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January 15, 2025
 

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NAMES

Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama speaks during a news conference at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2025
LDP to start talks on selective dual surname system soon
Some of the party's members oppose the idea, fearing it will lead to the collapse of the family system.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has expressed support for allowing for married couples to retain different surnames.　
JAPAN / Society
Jan 3, 2025
Japan's dual-surname option could see turning point in 2025
Support for allowing spouses to retain separate surnames is strong among the opposition, and even within the Liberal Democratic Party, which rules as a minority government.
A birth notification document issued by Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. Family registers, which record and certify citizens' familial relationships from birth to death, currently do not include the phonetic readings of names.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 2, 2025
Family registers to incorporate phonetic readings of names from end-May
Citizens who wish to register readings that differ from those listed on certificates of residence must notify municipal governments within a year.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba says he will urge a stepped up debate on allowing the option of dual surnames for married couples.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 10, 2024
Ishiba vows to spur LDP debate on dual surname option
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he will urge a working group within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party "to increase the frequency and maturity of discussions."
The sought ¥21.3 billion will be used for making the revised family register law widely known to the public and setting up call centers to receive questions from the public.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 27, 2024
¥21.3 billion sought to help with adding phonetic readings in family registers
The planned funds will be used for making the revision widely known to the public and setting up call centers to receive questions from the public.
In the past three reports in 2003, 2009 and 2016, the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women recommended a revision to Article 750 of the country's Civil Code, which mandates the same surname for married couples.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 18, 2024
U.N. panel reviews Japan's women policies, including on surnames
It was the U.N. committee's first review of Japan in eight years.
Masahiko Uotani (third from left), head of Keidanren's diversity promotion committee, hands its proposal on a separate surname system for married couples to members of a lawmaker group focused on realizing such a system, in June.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Sep 24, 2024
Japan's top business lobby group pushes for separate surnames option
In response to Keidanren's push, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party held internal discussions on the issue for the first time in about three years.
Liberal Democratic Party presidential election candidates after a campaign event in Nagoya on Saturday
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 18, 2024
LDP leader candidates split on separate surnames for married couples
While party conservatives worry about damaging family unity, others say it’s time to push through a legislative change.
Japan is the only country in the world that still enforces a same-surname rule for married couples, according to Keidanren research.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 10, 2024
Japan should let married women keep names, main business lobby says
Keidanren said in a proposal that the government should quickly present legislation allowing for surname choice to parliament.
An advisory panel to the education ministry will consider how the Japanese language should be transcribed into the Latin alphabet, including unifying different romanization styles currently in use.
JAPAN
May 15, 2024
Japan to review romanization system for first time in 70 years
The review is due to be submitted as early as next spring.
Plaintiffs in a suit against the government over a law that requires married spouses to have the same surname arrive at the Tokyo District Court in Tokyo on March 8.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 1, 2024
By 2531, everyone in Japan could have the surname 'Sato'
The forecast is based on the premise that the current practice of requiring married couples to share the same surname continues.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 8, 2024
Group files lawsuit over Japan law that mandates couples share a surname
Similar lawsuits have been filed before, but public opinion appears to be shifting in favor of allowing couples to have separate surnames.
Japan is the only country with a law requiring married couples to adopt the same surname. In 95% of cases, it is women who take their husband's name.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 7, 2024
The land where single surnames are the only option
The business lobby recently joined calls for Japan to accept separate surnames after marriage. What, then, is standing in the way of change? Politics.
Gender-neutral names were more popular for Japanese babies born in 2023, a survey has found.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 5, 2023
Popularity of gender-neutral Japanese names rose in 2023
The annual ranking by Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance, released Monday, showed that unisex names have risen in popularity.
Yuuki Matsumoto, formerly Yuni, at his residence in Yokohama on Aug. 24. Japanese children with unconventional names can face societal and practical challenges unique to their country and its written language. Matsumoto, 24, was bullied over his name to the extent he dropped out of school, and had it legally changed this year.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 3, 2023
Unusual names can complicate life in Japan. Now parents are being reined in.
As such names have increased, so has attention to cases of people unhappy with them. But critics say new rules may infringe on the right to be creative.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 23, 2023
61% in Japan back separate surnames for married couples
A think tank sent forms to 16,470 households in July last year and analyzed responses from 5,518 women with spouses.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jul 17, 2023
Firms and authorities stop requiring staff to display names amid harassment
Concerns have been raised that name tags showing full names can lead to people identifying workers' personal information on social media.
Japan Times
LIFE
Jan 7, 2023
Across Japan, baby names are getting more creative
Despite a government-managed list of acceptable kanji, parents are choosing more unique readings for their children than ever before.
Japan avoids commenting on Cleveland-Cliffs CEO's provocative comment
Cleveland-Cliffs is reportedly in talks with North Carolina-based steelmaker Nucor to acquire U.S. Steel.
Strong quake strikes southwestern Japan
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck southwestern Japan at 9:19 p.m. on Monday evening
Miyazaki quake falls short of triggering Nankai Trough megaquake advisory
A mirror reflects a collapsed house in the city of Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Dec. 10, nearly one year after a major earthquake struck nearby on New Year's Day in 2024.
Japanese companies rush to up English-language disclosures in 2025
The Tokyo Stock Exchange will soon require some companies to publish their financials in English in addition to Japanese.
Tokyo plans to subsidize epidurals, but are hospitals ready?
Epidurals during childbirth have long been uncommon in Japan, though they have been growing more popular in recent years.
Japanese companies rush to up English-language disclosures in 2025
The Tokyo Stock Exchange will soon require some companies to publish their financials in English in addition to Japanese.
From wrath to radiance: Why the 'Manyoshu' feels like paradise lost
The entrance gate to Arakura Sengen Shrine in Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi Prefecture, with Mount Fuji in the distance.
Tokyo plans to subsidize epidurals, but are hospitals ready?
Epidurals during childbirth have long been uncommon in Japan, though they have been growing more popular in recent years.
Due north: Foreign-born guides introduce Hokkaido’s unique charms
Lantoko, a company operated by Taiwan native Ping-Fang Lan, offers drift ice walking tours and other exhilarating experiences in and around Shiretoko National Park.
30 minutes with Yuzuru Hanyu
Yuzuru Hanyu smiles during an interview in his hometown of Sendai in between performances of his latest tour, Ice Story.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

It's back to the classroom for some residents as municipal governments across the country conduct lessons to learn how to use new technologies.
Can aging Japan go digital without leaving anyone behind?
By Tomoko Otake

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SWCC keeps changing with keyword ‘new challenges’

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