Events in the year 1956 in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Incumbents

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

Hirohito Emperor , commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name , was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Ichirō Hatoyama was a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan from 1954 to 1956. A conservative, Hatoyama helped oversee the 1955 merger of the Liberal Party and the Democratic Party to create the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), of which Hatoyam ...

(

Liberal Democratic Liberal democracy is the combination of a liberal political ideology that operates under an indirect democratic form of government. It is characterized by elections between multiple distinct political parties, a separation of powers into diff ...

) until December 23,

Tanzan Ishibashi was a Japanese journalist, Nichiren Buddhist priest, and politician who was Prime Minister of Japan for two months from 1956 to 1957, before resigning due to illness. He simultaneously served as Director General of the Japan Defense Agency. F ...

(

) *

Chief Cabinet Secretary The is a member of the cabinet and is the leader and chief executive of the Cabinet Secretariat of Japan. The Chief Cabinet Secretary coordinates the policies of ministries and agencies in the executive branch, and also serves as the government ...

: Ryutaro Nemoto until December 23,

Hirohide Ishida was a Japanese politician. Early life Born in Noshiro, Akita, Ishida entered Waseda University, where he majored in political science and economics. After graduating in 1939, he joined '' Chugai Shōgyō Shimpo'' (later renamed ''Nihon Keizai ...

*Chief Justice of the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

: Kōtarō Tanaka *President of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

Shūji Masutani Shūji Masutani (益谷秀次; 17 January 1888–18 August 1973) was a Japanese jurist and politician who was a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. He served at the House of Representatives for a long time. Biography Masutani was a graduate ...

*President of the

House of Councillors The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers. If the two houses disagree on matters of the budget, treaties, ...

: Yahachi Kawai until April 3, Tsuruhei Matsuno

Governors

Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectur ...

Mikine Kuwahara Mikine Kuwahara (桑原幹根, ''Kuwahara Mikune'', August 29, 1895 – April 11, 1991) was a Japanese Home Ministry government official. He was born in Yamanashi Prefecture. He was a graduate of the University of Tokyo. He was twice governor of Ai ...

*Akita Prefecture:

Yūjirō Obata Yūjirō, Yujiro or Yuujirou is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yūjirō can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Some examples: *勇二郎, "courage, 2, son" *勇次郎, "courage, next, son" *勇治郎 ...

*Aomori Prefecture:

Bunji Tsushima Bunji or Bunji-ye may refer to: Places * Bunji-ye Karbasi, a village in Hormozgan Province, Iran * Bunji-ye Maski, a village in Hormozgan Province, Iran * Bunji-ye Saheli Latidan, a village in Hormozgan Province, Iran * Bunji, Pakistan, a town ...

(until 1 June);

Iwao Yamazaki was a lawyer, politician and cabinet minister in the early Shōwa period of Japan. His brother, Tatsunosuke Yamazaki was also a politician and cabinet minister, and his nephew Heihachiro Yamazaki was later a prominent member of the post-war Libe ...

(starting 20 July) *Chiba Prefecture:

Hitoshi Shibata Hitoshi (written: , , , , , , , , , or in hiragana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese politician *, Japanese manga artist *, Japanese baseball player *, Japanese photographer *, Japanese baseba ...

*Ehime Prefecture: Sadatake Hisamatsu *Fukui Prefecture:

Seiichi Hane Seiichi (written: , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese karateka *, Japanese cult member *, Japanese politician *, Japanese photographer *, Japanese philosopher *, Japanese art di ...

*Fukuoka Prefecture:

Taichi Uzaki Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called "shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. Ta ...

*Fukushima Prefecture:

Sakuma Ootake Sakuma (written: 佐久間) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Akira Sakuma (born 1952), Japanese video game designer *, Japanese ice hockey player *Kumi Sakuma (born 1976), Japanese voice actress *Rei Sakuma (born 19 ...

*Gifu Prefecture:

Kamon Muto Kamon may refer to: * Kamon (name) *Mon (emblem), also known as kamon (家紋), a Japanese heraldic symbol * Kamon, Israel, a village See also * Camon (disambiguation) * Kumon (disambiguation) *Cimon Cimon or Kimon ( grc-gre, Κίμων; – 45 ...

*Gunma Prefecture:

Shigeo Kitano Shigeo (written: 茂雄, 茂生, 茂男, 茂夫, 成雄, 成男, 重雄, 重男, 重夫, 繁雄, 繁男, 晟郎, 殖生 or 滋雄) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese photographer *, Japanese swimm ...

(until 1 August); Toshizo Takekoshi (starting 2 August) *

Hiroshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Hiroshima Prefecture has a population of 2,811,410 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 8,479 km² (3,274 sq mi). Hiroshima Prefecture borders Okayama ...

Hiroo Ōhara was the Governor of Hiroshima Prefecture from 1951 to 1962. References 1894 births 1971 deaths People from Hiroshima Governors of Hiroshima {{Japan-politician-stub ...

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

Toshifumi Tanaka Toshifumi is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Toshifumi can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Some examples: *敏文, "agile, literature" *敏史, "agile, history" *敏郁, "agile, aroma/progress" *� ...

*Hyogo Prefecture:

Masaru Sakamoto is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Masaru can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *勝, "excel" *優, "excel" *大, "large" *将 or 將, "commander" The name can also be written in hiragana or katakana. ...

Ibaraki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,871,199 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...

: Yoji Tomosue *

Ishikawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,140,573 (31 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,186 km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to ...

: Jūjitsu Taya *Iwate Prefecture:

Senichi Abe was a Nippon Professional Baseball player and manager. In 2003, he led the Hanshin Tigers to their first Central League pennant in 18 years before retiring for health reasons. In 2007, he managed the Japanese national team for the 2008 Beijin ...

*Kagawa Prefecture:

Masanori Kaneko Masanori is a masculine Japanese name, Japanese given name. Kanji and meaning The name Masanori is generally written with two kanji, the first read and the second read , for example: *Starting with ("correct"): **: second kanji means "rule" o ...

*Kagoshima Prefecture:

Katsushi Terazono Katsushi (written: 克志, 克史, 勝志, 豪氏 or かつし in hiragana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese animator *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese editor *, Japanese ...

Kanagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kana ...

: Iwataro Uchiyama *Kochi Prefecture:

Masumi Mizobuchi Masumi is a unisex Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese hurdler * Masuumi Juma, a Japanese voice actor *Masumi Aya, a Japanese hammer thrower * Masumi Fuchise, a Japanese racewalker * Masumi Hayashi (disambiguation ...

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to ...

: Saburō Sakurai * Kyoto Prefecture: Torazō Ninagawa *Mie Prefecture: Satoru Tanaka *

Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,305,596 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefecture to the nort ...

: Otogorō Miyagi (until 4 October);

Yasushi Onuma Yasushi is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yasushi can be written using many different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *康, "healthy" *靖, "peaceful" *泰, "peaceful" *安, "tranquil" *靖志, "peace ...

(starting 5 October) *Miyazaki Prefecture: Jingo Futami *

Nagano Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...

: Torao Hayashi *Nagasaki Prefecture:

Takejirō Nishioka Takejirō, Takejiro or Takejirou (written: 竹二郎 or 武次郎) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: * (1853–1938), Japanese publisher * (1867–1935), Japanese politician {{DEFAULTSORT:Takejiro Japanese ...

*Nara Prefecture: Ryozo Okuda *

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,227,496 (1 July 2019) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

Kazuo Kitamura was a Japanese actor. His son is actor Yukiya Kitamura. Kitamura met Shōhei Imamura when he was a student of Waseda University and became a close friend so often worked with Imamura. Kitamura joined Bungakuza theatre company and started his acti ...

*Oita Prefecture:

Kaoru Kinoshita Kaoru is a Japanese given name for males or females. Name Meanings The name's meaning varies depending on its written form: *薫/郁/芳 — "fragrance", common for both males and females *馨/香 — "fragrance", more common for females ...

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,906,464 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefectur ...

Yukiharu Miki was a Japanese physician and politician. He served as Governor for the Okayama Prefecture

Osaka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture ...

: Bunzō Akama *

Saga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of 809,248 (1 August 2020) and has a geographic area of 2,440 km2 (942 sq mi). Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasak ...

: Naotsugu Nabeshima *

Saitama Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefecture ...

Yuuichi Oosawa Yūichi, Yuichi, or Yuuichi is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yūichi can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *勇一, "courage, 1" *祐一, "to help, 1" *祐市, "to help, cit ...

(until 29 May); Hiroshi Kurihara (starting 16 July) *

Shiga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the nort ...

: Kotaro Mori *Shiname Prefecture:

Yasuo Tsunematsu Yasuo is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yasuo can be written using many different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *安雄, "tranquil, male" *安男, "tranquil, man" *安夫, "tranquil, husband" *安� ...

*Shizuoka Prefecture:

Toshio Saitō Toshio is a common masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Toshio can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *敏夫, "agile, man" *敏男, "agile, man" *敏雄, "agile, male" *俊夫, "sagacious, man" *俊雄, "sagaci ...

*Tochigi Prefecture: Kiichi Ogawa *Tokushima Prefecture:

Kikutaro Hara (born November 17, 1976), better known as his wrestling persona and formerly , is a freelance Japanese people, Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Though best known for wrestling under a Wrestling mask, mask, he also regula ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

: Seiichirō Yasui *Tottori Prefecture: Shigeru Endo *Toyama Prefecture:

Kunitake Takatsuji Kunitake (written: 国威, 国武 or 邦武) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese women's footballer *, Japanese businessman *, Japanese historian *, Japanese politician Kunitake (written: 国武) ...

(until 30 September); Minoru Yoshida (starting 1 October) *Wakayama Prefecture:

Shinji Ono is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for J1 League club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo. Career Urawa Reds Ono grew up in the Shizuoka Prefecture and began his professional career with Urawa Reds in the J1 League in 1998. ...

*Yamagata Prefecture: Tōkichi Abiko *Yamaguchi Prefecture: Taro Ozawa *Yamanashi Prefecture:

Hisashi Amano Hisashi is a masculine Japanese given name. Its meaning differs depending on the kanji used to write it. Kanji Single kanji used to write the name Hisashi include: *: "long time" *: "eternal" *: "still" *: "standard" *: "complete" *: "long" *: "li ...

Events

* January 1 - According to

Japanese government The Government of Japan consists of legislative, executive and judiciary branches and is based on popular sovereignty. The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan, adopted in 1947. It is a unitary state, c ...

officially confirmed report, human stampede hit during newyear festival in

Yahiko Shrine , also known as Iyahiko-jinja is a Shinto shrine in the Yahiko neighborhood of the village of Yahiko, Nishikanbara District, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. It is one of the three shrines which claim the title of ''ichinomiya'' of former Echigo Pr ...

, 124 person were perished, 77 person were hurt. * April 10 – Sanwa Shutter was founded in

Amagasaki file:Amagasaki Castle Tenshu 20181125.jpg, 270px, Amagasaki Castle file:Amagasaki city center area Aerial photograph.1985.jpg, 270px, Aerial view of Amagasaki city center file:Amagasaki st03s3000.jpg, 270px, Amagasaki Station is an industrial Citi ...

, Hyogo Prefecture. * May 3 - The first World Judo Championships are held at the

Kuramae Kokugikan was a building situated in the Kuramae neighborhood of Taitō, Tokyo which was built by the Japan Sumo Association and opened in 1954. Its construction was decided to replace the old bomb-damaged Ryogoku Kokugikan. It closed its doors in 1984 ...

. * July 8 - House of Councillors election held. * October 15 – According to Japan Transport Ministry official confirmed report, two trains crush in

Rokken rail accident The occurred on October 15, 1956, when two passenger trains collided and derailed at Rokken Station on the Japan National Railways (JNR) Sangu Line in Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture. The accident led to improvements in the Japanese rail signaling s ...

Mie Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Mie Prefecture has a population of 1,781,948 () and has a geographic area of . Mie Prefecture is bordered by Gifu Prefecture to the north, Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture to ...

, official death toll was 42 persons, with 94 persons were hurt. * October 19 -

Soviet–Japanese Joint Declaration of 1956 The Soviet Union did not sign the Treaty of Peace with Japan in 1951. On October 19, 1956, Japan and the Soviet Union signed a Joint Declaration providing for the end of the state of war and for the restoration of diplomatic relations betwee ...

signed. * October 28 – A landmark spot in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

Tsūtenkaku , owned by , is a tower and well-known landmark of Osaka, Japan and advertises Hitachi. It is located in the Shinsekai district of Naniwa-ku, Osaka. Its total height is 103 m; the main observation deck is at a height of 91 m. History The cu ...

was rebuilt, after it caught fire and was demolished in 1943. * December 12 - Japan becomes a member of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Births

* January 1 -

Kōji Yakusho , known professionally as , is a Japanese actor. He is well known for his starring roles in ''Shall We Dance?'' (1996), ''Cure'' (1997), ''Memoirs of a Geisha'' (2005), '' 13 Assassins'' (2010), ''The Third Murder'' (2017), '' The Blood of Wolv ...

, actor * January 3 -

Tomiko Suzuki was a Japanese voice actress who was born in Aichi Prefecture and was affiliated with Aoni Production at the time of her death. Suzuki's last film was '' Pokémon: Jirachi Wishmaker'' (where she voiced the protagonist Pokémon: Jirachi), re ...

, voice actress * January 5 -

Chen Kenichi , whose name is often romanized Chin Kenichi in Japanese sources, is a chef best known for his role as the Iron Chef Chinese on the television series ''Iron Chef'' (料理の鉄人). Nicknamed The Szechuan Sage, he wears a yellow outfit and ris ...

, chef * February 5 –

Mao Daichi , better known as , is a Japanese actress and former Top Star ''otokoyaku'' (an actress who plays male roles) of the Japanese Takarazuka Revue The is a Japanese all-female musical theatre troupe based in Takarazuka, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan ...

, actress (

Takarazuka Revue The is a Japanese all-female musical theatre troupe based in Takarazuka, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. Women play all roles in lavish, Broadway-style productions of Western-style musicals and stories adapted from films, novels, manga, and Japane ...

) * February 15 -

Miyoko Asada is a Japanese actress. She is a former pop idol. Biography Miyoko Asada debuted as an idol in April 1973 with the single ''"Akai Fuusen"'' (The Red Balloon), which sold over 800,000 copies and peaked at #1 on the Japanese Oricon chart list. ...

, actress * February 16 –

Takayoshi Nakao Takayoshi Nakao (中尾孝義, ''Nakao Takayoshi'', born February 16, 1956, in Hyogo Prefecture) is a former Japanese professional baseball player. He was a catcher. In 1982, he was the MVP of the Central League The or is one of the two pr ...

, former professional baseball player * February 23 -

Goro Noguchi is a Japanese singer and actor. He debuted as a singer in 1971 and earned a spot on the Kohaku Utagassen is the Japanese word for amber. Kohaku (琥珀) may refer to: Music * Kohaku, a song by Mikuni Shimokawa Characters * Kohaku (''Dr ...

, singer and actor * February 26 -

Keisuke Kuwata is a Japanese multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and frontman for the Southern All Stars, as well of his own solo band, the Kuwata band. He has also done a significant amount of scoring music for films. He went to Aoyama Gakuin University ...

, musician * February 27 – Kenji Niinuma, enka singer * March 13 –

Motoharu Sano , is a Japanese singer-songwriter and musician. A graduate of Rikkyo University, Sano is a frontman with a history of performing in several bands which feature music both in Japanese and occasionally, English, playing songs that often have a rock ...

, musician and singer-songwriter * March 20 -

Naoto Takenaka is a Japanese actor, comedian, singer, and director from Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, affiliated with From First Production. He is married to idol singer and actress Midori Kinouchi. He is also known as the voice of Samuel L. Jac ...

, actor, comedian, singer and director * March 24 –

Shinsuke Shimada is a Japanese comedian and television presenter. In 1991 he directed the film '' Kaze, Slow Down''. On August 23, 2011, Shinsuke Shimada announced his retirement after admitting to extensive ties to the yakuza, Japan's organized crime. The yakuz ...

, former television presenter * April 8 -

Yoshiko Tanaka was a Japanese actress. She was also famous as a member of the pop group Candies (Japanese idol group), Candies. While a member of Candies, Tanaka was known by the nickname . Still at the height of its popularity, the group disbanded in 1978. T ...

, actress (d.

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

) * April 12 - Yasuo Tanaka, politician and novelist * May 28 -

Sayuri Yamauchi , also known by the stage name , was a Japanese voice actress. Yamauchi voiced Itchy and Maude Flanders on the Japanese dub of ''The Simpsons''. Sayuri was formerly affiliated with Kyu Production and affiliated with Aigumi at the time of her death ...

, voice actress * May 31 -

Yoshiko Sakakibara is a Japanese actress, voice actress and narrator. Career In 1981, she made her voice actor debut as Flore in ''Six God Combination Godmars''. She also narrates many news programs, especially as a main narrator for TV Asahi News Station for ov ...

, voice actress * June 27 –

Takeshi Nishimoto I'm Not a Gun is an American post-rock and electronica musical duo by John Tejada and Takeshi Nishimoto, formed in 2000. Background Tejada and Nishimoto met in 1998 and discovered that they took inspiration from the same musicians. Shortly a ...

, former professional baseball pitcher * July 15 -

Toshihiko Seko is a Japanese former long-distance runner. He was a world-class marathon competitor in the 1980s. He represented his native country at the 1984 and the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Seko's notable marathon wins include Fukuoka Mara ...

, long-distance runner * July 19 -

Yoshiaki Yatsu Yoshiaki Yatsu (谷津嘉章 ''Yatsu Yoshiaki'', born July 19, 1956) is a Japanese professional wrestler, amateur wrestler and mixed martial artist. He is known for being one-half of the first-ever All Japan Pro Wrestling World Tag Team Champi ...

, professional wrestler * August 4 -

Mika Doi is a Japanese actress, voice actress and narrator who was born in Sendai.Doi, Hitoshi. She's also the Japanese voice actor for the charcacter Daisy Duck"Doi Mika" ''Seiyuu Database''. January 3, 2011. Retrieved January 4, 2011. Filmography Te ...

, voice actress * August 25 –

Takeshi Okada is a Japanese former football player and manager. He played for and managed the Japan national team. Club career Okada was born in Osaka on August 25, 1956. After graduating from Waseda University, he joined Japan Soccer League (JSL) club Fur ...

, association footballer and football coach * August 31 -

Masashi Tashiro (born August 31, 1956) is a Japanese former television performer and a founding member of the band Rats & Star. Tashiro was a tenor singer for Rats & Star and later made a name for himself as a TV entertainer in Japan. He also directed a movie ...

, television performer * September 7 –

Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi is a Japanese singer-songwriter, actor, poet, and human-rights advocate, who is a prominent figure in Japanese popular music. He has sold more than 20 million records worldwide and has appeared in movies and television dramas. His wife Etsu ...

, singer-songwriter * September 20 - Makiko Kinoshita, composer * October 26 –

Machiko Watanabe is a feminine given name of Japanese origin. It can be written with the characters for ''know; wisdom'' (machi) and ''child'' (ko), although it can have a number of other different meanings depending on which kanji characters are used to write it. ...

, singer and singer-songwriter * December 19 -

Masami Akita is a Japanese noise project started in 1979 by , best known for a style of harsh, confrontational noise. Since 1980, Akita has released over 400 recordings and has collaborated with various artists. The name Merzbow comes from the German dada ...

noise Noise is unwanted sound considered unpleasant, loud or disruptive to hearing. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference arise ...

musician, (aka

Merzbow is a Japanese noise project started in 1979 by , best known for a style of harsh, confrontational noise. Since 1980, Akita has released over 400 recordings and has collaborated with various artists. The name Merzbow comes from the German dada ...

)

Deaths

*January 4 –

Makoto Nishimura was a Japanese biologist. He is most renowned as the inventor of Gakutensoku, Japan's first functional robot. He was the father of actor Kō Nishimura. Biography Makoto was born on March 26, 1883 in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture. During his life ...

, biologist (b.

1883 Events January–March * January 4 – ''Life'' magazine is founded in Los Angeles, California, United States. * January 10 – A fire at the Newhall Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, kills 73 people. * Ja ...

) *June 3 –

Fukushi Masaichi was a Japanese physician, pathologist and Emeritus Professor of Nippon Medical School in Tokyo. He was the founder or nite of the world's only known collection of tattoos taken from the dead. Fukushi Masaichi and his son Fukushi Katsunari are kno ...

, physician and pathologist (b.

1878 Events January–March * January 5 – Russo-Turkish War – Battle of Shipka Pass IV: Russian and Bulgarian forces defeat the Ottoman Empire. * January 9 – Umberto I becomes King of Italy. * January 17 – Battle o ...

)

References

{{Asia topic, 1956 in Years of the 20th century in Japan