Princess Aiko
The daughter of the Japanese imperial couple is celebrating her 20th birthday
Princess Aiko at a photo opportunity as part of the ceremonies for her 20th birthday
© Dana Press
In Japan there was reason to celebrate at the weekend: Princess Aiko turned 20 years old. When the Japanese imperial couple’s only child comes of age, there are plenty of first times: the first diadem, an important award and new duties.
With her 20th birthday, Princess Aiko is considered to be of legal age in Japan. Since December 1, 2021, she has officially been an adult. At the weekend the celebrations for this special occasion took place and a few important dates and ceremonies were scheduled.
Special honor for Princess Aiko
After a short pilgrimage to the Shinto shrines, where, according to old belief, her ancestors lived on, Princess Aiko was given the Great Cordon of the Order of the Noble Crown on a shoulder strap by her father, Emperor Naruhito, 61, in the Houou no Ma hall of the Imperial Palace presented. This honor has been bestowed on royal women by the Imperial Palace since 1889. Previously it was awarded to Queen Letizia of Spain, 49, and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, 50, among others.
Empress Masako, Emperor Naruhito and Princess Aiko at celebrations at the Imperial Palace as part of the ceremonies for her 20th birthday in Tokyo, Japan, on December 5, 2021.
© Dana Press
The princess renounces new jewels
For the official photos with her parents, the now 20-year-old slipped into a floor-length, white dress. For the first time, she also wore a sparkling tiara on her head. Out of consideration for her people, who had to suffer from the consequences of the corona pandemic in recent months, she did without a new diadem and jewels. Instead of a new product, the princess wore jewelry and a diadem from her aunt, the former Princess Sayako, who, like Princess Mako, 30, left the imperial family in 2005 with her wedding to a commoner in 2005. The diadem was made for her in the early 1990s by the jeweler Mikimoto at her father’s expense and not at the expense of the state.
Your coming of age tiara has a catch
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No festive banquet for the 20th birthday
Aiko then went to her grandparents, Emperor Emeritus Akihito, 87, and Empress Emerita Michiko, 87, in the temporary Sento residence, which she has not seen for almost two years due to the corona pandemic. Back at the palace, family members and Japanese dignitaries as well as the heads of the three branches of government awaited the birthday child.
The celebratory banquet in honor of the princess, who is studying Japanese literature at Gakushuin University in Tokyo, was not held due to the pandemic and the usual press conference on her coming of age was postponed to the semester break in mid-March 2022. “I am deeply grateful to everyone who has accompanied me on my way to this day,” Aiko said in a statement on her birthday.
Sources used: Dana Press, tatler.com