The Imperial Household (内廷皇族 Naitei kōzoku, also known as the Inner court), is the term for the Emperor of Japan's direct family and includes the Empress, the Empress dowager, the Grand Empress Dowager, the Imperial Crown Prince, (皇太子, kōtaishi, the heir to the throne who is son of the current Emperor), and the Imperial Crown Princess (皇太子妃, kōtaishihi, the wife of the Imperial Crown Prince), and any unmarried children of the above.
Currently Prince Fumihito holds the title of kōshi (皇嗣) as he is not the son of the current emperor, thus is not part of the Imperial household. His wife, Princess Kiko, currently holds the title kōshihi (皇嗣妃), as she is the wife of the crown prince, and not the wife of the Imperial Crown Prince. Princess Abe is the only woman to have held the title Imperial Crown Prince in her own right.
The Empress Emerita, based on the Emperor Abdication Law, is considered an equivalent to Empress Dowager (a title she will receive should her husband predecease her). The Emperor and Emperor Emeritus are usually excluded from this.
History During the Taishō era, the Imperial Household comprised the following: The Imperial Household membersTitleName and ImageBirthdayCeased to be part of the Imperial HouseholdReasonRelationship to the EmperorMarriage dateEmpress Sadako25 June, 1884N/AN/AWife10 May, 1900Imperial Crown Prince Hirohito29 April, 1901N/AN/ASon26 January, 1924 (As the Imperial Crown Prince, his marriage did not establish a new household)Imperial Crown Princess Nagako6 March, 1903N/AN/ADaughter-in-law (As wife of Hirohito)26 January, 1924Teru-no-miya Shigeko6 December, 1925N/AN/AGranddaughterN/AAtsu-no-miya Yasuhito25 June, 1902N/AN/ASonN/ATeru-no-miya Nobuhito3 January, 1905N/AN/ASonN/ASumi-no-miya Takahito2 December, 1915N/AN/ASonN/AEmpress Dowager Shōken9 May, 1849N/ANever formally ceased to be part of the Imperial Household. Passed away aged 64 on 9 April, 1914.Step-mother11 January, 1869 During the Shōwa era, the Imperial Household comprised the following: The Imperial Household membersTitleName and ImageBirthdayCeased to be part of the Imperial HouseholdReasonRelationship to the EmperorMarriage dateEmpress Nagako6 March, 1903N/AN/AWife26 January, 1924Imperial Crown Prince Akihito23 December, 1933N/AN/ASon10 April, 1959 (As the Imperial Crown Prince, his marriage did not establish a new household)Imperial Crown Princess Michiko20 October, 1934N/AN/ADaughter-in-law (As wife of Akihito)10 April, 1959Hiro-no-miya Naruhito23 February, 1960N/AN/AGrandsonN/AAya-no-miya Fumihito30 November, 1965N/AN/AGrandsonN/ANori-no-miya Sayako18 April, 1969N/AN/AGranddaughterN/AYoshi-no-miya (Before marriage, Hitachi-no-miya after) Masahito28 November, 193530 September, 1964Marriage to Hanako TsugaruSon30 September, 1964Teru-no-miya Shigeko6 December, 192510 October, 1943Marriage to Morihiro Higashikuni(then Prince Morihiro)Daughter10 October, 1943Hisa-no-miya Sachiko10 September, 1927N/ANever formally ceased to be part of the Imperial Household. Passed away at 5 months old on 8 March, 1928.DaughterN/ATaka-no-miya Kazuko30 September, 192920 May, 1950Marriage to Toshimichi TakatsukasaDaughter20 May, 1950Yori-no-miya Atsuko7 March, 193110 October, 1952Marriage to Takamasa IkedaDaughter10 October, 1952Suga-no-miya Takako2 March, 193910 March, 1960Marriage to Hisanaga ShimazuDaughter10 March, 1960Empress Dowager Sadako25 June, 1884N/ANever formally ceased to be part of the Imperial Household. Passed away aged 66 on 17 May, 1951.Mother10 May, 1900 During the Heisei era, the Imperial Household comprised the following:
The Imperial Household membersTitleName and ImageBirthdayCeased to be part of the Imperial HouseholdReasonRelationship to the EmperorMarriage dateEmpress Michiko20 October, 1934N/AN/AWife10 April, 1959Imperial Crown Prince Naruhito23 February, 1960N/AN/ASon19 January, 1993 (As the Imperial Crown Prince, his marriage did not establish a new household)Imperial Crown Princess Masako9 December, 1963N/AN/ADaughter-in-law (As wife of Naruhito)19 January, 1993Toshi-no-miya Aiko1 December, 2001N/AN/AGranddaughterN/AAya-no-miya (Akishino-no-miya after marriage) Fumihito30 November, 196529 June, 1990Marriage to Kiko Kawashima and establishment of own householdSon29 June, 1990Nori-no-miya Sayako18 April, 196915 November, 2005Marriage to Yoshiki Kuroda and loss of titleDaughter15 November, 2005
Current members These are the current members of the Imperial Household: The Imperial Household membersTitleName and ImageBirthdayCeased to be part of the Imperial HouseholdReasonRelationship to the EmperorMarriage dateEmpressMasako9 December, 1963N/AN/AWife19 January, 1993Toshi-no-miyaAiko1 December, 2001N/AN/ADaughterN/AEmpress EmeritaMichiko20 October, 1934N/AN/AMother10 April, 1959 Despite Akihito's abdication, Michiko is still part of the Imperial Household. Should Akihito die before her, Michiko would become Empress Dowager.
Extended imperial family
The imperial family of Japan is split into the following branches: The Imperial Household The Akishino-no-miya, led by Prince Fumihito The Hitachi-no-miya, led by Prince Masahito The Tomohito Mikasa-no-miya, led by Princess Tomohito of Mikasa The Mikasa-no-miya, led by Princess Akiko of Mikasa The Takamado-no-miya, led by Princess Hisako Notes
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