By AYAKO NAKADA/ Staff Writer
December 23, 2025 at 18:55 JST
Emperor Emeritus Akihito celebrated his 92nd birthday on Dec. 23, with officials reporting that his heart disorder remains relatively stable despite two hospitalizations earlier this year.
He is expected to receive congratulations from Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, their daughter, Princess Aiko, and Crown Prince Fumihito and his family.
Other members of the imperial family, along with the heads of Japan’s three branches of government, will also mark the occasion, according to the Imperial Household Agency.
The former emperor was admitted to a Tokyo hospital in May and July for issues related to a chronic heart condition. He has since begun taking additional medication, and officials say his current state is generally stable.
Akihito continues light exercise to maintain strength and pursues his long‑standing research on goby fish several times a week.
This year marks 80 years since Japan’s defeat in World War II, a milestone that shaped much of Akihito’s reflections over the past months.
He closely followed the emperor and empress’s memorial visits, including their July trip to Mongolia. Akihito also read documents about post‑war Japanese detainees by the Soviet Union who endured years of harsh labor in Mongolia, many of whom never returned home.
On his August trip to Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, Akihito returned to an area once settled by people who fled the former Manchuria 80 years ago.
During the Osaka-Kansai Expo earlier this year, the former emperor welcomed several foreign royal family members visiting Japan for the event.
He received the royals at his Tokyo residence, including the king of Sweden, with whom he has long maintained a close relationship.
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Emperor Emeritus Akihito and Empress Emerita Michiko stroll through the garden of their residence in Tokyo’s Minato Ward on Dec. 8. (Provided by the Imperial Household Agency)
