Reform to allow a female emperor, or an emperor descended from the female line of the royal family, has ground to a halt. This is despite overwhelming public support for a change.
Articles on Emperor Naruhito
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History tells us there were eight women who ruled as empresses of Japan, but since reforms of the constitution in 1947, only a man can inherit the throne.
Japan’s 86-year-old Emperor Akihito abdicates on April 30 — an exceedingly rare event for this ancient monarchy. Can his son, Prince Naruhito, give Japan’s royal family a modern makeover?
