Events in the year 1971 in Japan. It corresponds to Shōwa 46 (昭和46年) in the

Japanese calendar Japanese calendar types have included a range of official and unofficial systems. At present, Japan uses the Gregorian calendar together with year designations stating the year of the reign of the current Emperor. The written form starts with t ...

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 ...

Eisaku Satō was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister from 1964 to 1972. He is the third-longest serving Prime Minister, and ranks second in longest uninterrupted service as Prime Minister. Satō entered the National Diet in 1949 as a membe ...

(

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 ...

) *

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 ...

: Shigeru Hori until July 5,

Noboru Takeshita was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1987 to 1989 during the bubble economy. Takeshita led the largest faction at the time in the Liberal Democratic Party, which he inherited from Kakuei Tanaka, from the 1980s u ...

* 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 ...

: Kazuto Ishida * 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 ...

: Naka Funada * 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, ...

Yūzō Shigemune Yūzō, Yuzo or Yuuzou is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yūzō can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *勇三, "courage, 3" *悠三, "calm, 3" *雄三, "male, 3" *優三, "ge ...

until July 17,

Kenzō Kōno Kenzō Kōno ( ja, 河野謙三) (May 14, 1901 – October 16, 1983) was President of the Japan Association of Athletics Federations (1965–1975). He was the younger brother of his predecessor, Ichirō Kōno and the uncle of Yōhei Kōno (Ichiro' ...

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:

Shunkichi Takeuchi Shunkichi (written: 俊吉 or 駿吉) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese field hockey player *, Japanese photographer {{given name Japanese masculine given names ...

*Chiba Prefecture:

Taketo Tomonō Taketo (written: 岳人 or 勇人) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese basketball player and coach *Taketo Gohara Taketo Gohara is a record producer and sound designer who has collaborated with ...

*Ehime Prefecture: Sadatake Hisamatsu (until 27 January);

Haruki Shiraishi Haruki is both a masculine/neutral Japanese given name and a Japanese surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name: *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese-born theatre performer *, Japanese footballer *, Nippon Professional Baseball pla ...

(starting 28 January) *Fukui Prefecture: Heidayū Nakagawa *Fukuoka Prefecture:

Hikaru Kamei is a Japanese unisex given name meaning "light" or "radiance". Possible writings Hikaru can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: * 光, "light" * 輝, "radiance" The name can also be written in hiragana or katakana. It is m ...

*Fukushima Prefecture: Morie Kimura *Gifu Prefecture:

Saburō Hirano is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Saburō can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *三郎, "third son" *三朗, "three, bright" The name can also be written in hiragana or katakana. People with the name ...

*Gunma Prefecture: Konroku Kanda *

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 ...

Iduo Nagano was the Governor of Hiroshima Prefecture from 1962 to 1973. In 1974 was elected as a member of the upper house of the Japanese parliament. References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nagano, Iduo 1918 births 1981 deaths People from Hiroshima University o ...

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 ...

Kingo Machimura was a Japanese politician who served as governor of Toyama Prefecture (1941–1943), governor of Niigata Prefecture (1945) and the second Governor of Hokkaido (1959–1971). He was a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), Liberal Democr ...

(until 23 April);

Naohiro Dōgakinai Naohiro Dōgakinai ( ja, 堂垣内尚弘) (June 2, 1914 – February 2, 2004) was the 3rd Governor of Hokkaido (1971–1983). He was member of the Liberal Democratic Party, and originally from Sapporo. Awards *Order of the Sacred Treasure T ...

(starting 23 April) *Hyogo Prefecture: Tokitada Sakai *

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, ...

: Nirō Iwakami *

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 ...

Yōichi Nakanishi Yōichi Nakanishi ( ja, 中西陽一) (September 23, 1917 – February 2, 1994) was Governor of Ishikawa Prefecture (1963–1994). He was a graduate of Kyoto University and a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) The , frequently ab ...

*Iwate Prefecture: Tadashi Chida *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: Saburō Kanemaru *

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 ...

: Bunwa Tsuda *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 ...

: Kōsaku Teramoto (until 10 February); Issei Sawada (starting 11 February) * 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 ...

: Sōichirō Yamamoto *Miyazaki Prefecture: Hiroshi Kuroki *

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 ...

Gon'ichirō Nishizawa was a Japanese politician and essayist. He was born in Nagano Prefecture. He was a graduate of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology The commonly known as TUAT is a Japanese national university headquartered in Fuchū, Tokyo. This univ ...

*Nagasaki Prefecture: Kan'ichi Kubo *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 ...

Shiro Watari Shiro, Shirō, Shirow or Shirou may refer to: People * Amakusa Shirō (1621–1638), leader of the Shimabara Rebellion * Ken Shiro (born 1992), Japanese boxer * Shiro Azumi, Japanese football player 1923–1925 * Shiro Ichinoseki (born 1944), ...

*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 ...

(until 27 April); Masaru Taki (starting 28 April) *

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 ...

: Takenori Kato *

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 ...

: Gisen Satō (until 22 April);

Ryōichi Kuroda was a Japanese jurist and politician from Suita, Osaka. Early life and academic career After graduating from Tohoku Imperial University in 1933, Kuroda was sent to Manchukuo to be an instructor at a service academy. He spent five years in a ...

(starting 23 April) *

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 ...

: Sunao Ikeda *

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 ...

: Hiroshi Kurihara *

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 ...

: Kinichiro Nozaki *Shiname Prefecture: Choemon Tanabe (until 29 April);

Seiji Tsunematsu Seiji (written: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , or in hiragana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese ski jumper *, Japanese racing driver *, Japanese politician *, Japanese film directo ...

(starting 30 April) *Shizuoka Prefecture: Yūtarō Takeyama *Tochigi Prefecture:

Nobuo Yokokawa Nobuo (written: , , , , , in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine, Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese basketball player *Nobuo Fujita (1911–1997), Warrant Flying Officer of the Imperial Japanese Navy *, J ...

*Tokushima Prefecture: Yasunobu Takeichi *

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 ...

: Ryōkichi Minobe *Tottori Prefecture: Jirō Ishiba *Toyama Prefecture: Kokichi Nakada *Wakayama Prefecture: Masao Ohashi *Yamagata Prefecture: Tōkichi Abiko *Yamaguchi Prefecture:

Masayuki Hashimoto Masayuki (written: , ,, , , , , , , , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese animator and director *, Japanese actor *, Japanese baseball player and manager *, Japanese politician *, ...

*Yamanashi Prefecture:

Kunio Tanabe Kunio (written: 邦夫, 邦男, 邦雄, 邦生, 國男, 國士, 国男, 国夫, 州男 or 久仁生) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese businessman *, Japanese businessman *, Japanese judge *, Jap ...

Events

* January 2 - A

ryokan A is a type of traditional Japanese inn that typically features ''tatami''-matted rooms, communal baths, and other public areas where visitors may wear yukata and talk with the owner. Ryokan have existed since the eighth century A.D. du ...

fire in

Wakayama Wakayama may refer to: *Wakayama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan *Wakayama (city) Wakayama City Hall is the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 351,391 in 157066 househol ...

kills 16 people and injures 15. * March Unknown date – Nagase Upbright Cram School, as predecessor of Nagase Brothers Group was founded in Mitaka, Tokyo. :ja:ナガセ#沿革 (Japanese language edition) Retrieved on 14 June 2020. * March 4 - A

Lake Kawaguchi is located in the town of Fujikawaguchiko in southern Yamanashi Prefecture near Mount Fuji, Japan. It is the second largest of the Fuji Five Lakes in terms of surface area, and is located at the lowest elevation. It is situated at an altitude of ...

to Otsuki local train collision with truck in Fujikyu Line,

Fujiyoshida is a city located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 48,782 in 19,806 households and a population density of 400 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Fujiyoshida lies at the northern ...

Yamanashi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Yamanashi Prefecture has a population of 817,192 (1 January 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,465 km2 (1,724 sq mi). Yamanashi Prefecture borders Saitama Prefecture to the no ...

, according to Japan Transport Ministry official confirmed report, 17 person were lost to lives, with 69 person were wounded. * April 1 – Apa Group founded, as predecessor name was Shinkin Developer in Komatsu,

. * April 27 - A massive forest fire in

Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan M ...

, according to Fire and Disaster Management Agency confirmed report, 18 firefighter were lost their lives. * July 3 -

Toa Domestic Airlines Flight 63 Toa Domestic Airlines Flight 63, registration JA8764, was a NAMC YS-11A-217 en route from Okadama Airport in Sapporo, Japan to Hakodate Airport. On July 3, 1971, the plane left Sapporo Okadama Airport on a scheduled flight at 08:30. After arriv ...

crash into Mount Yokotsu,

Hakodate is a city and port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of July 31, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 279,851 with 143,221 households, and a population density of 412.8 ...

, according to Japan Transport Ministry official confirmed report, all 68 person were lost to lives. * July 18 - A heavy torrential rain, wide range affective landslide, debris flow, bridge collapse around Aioi and Sayo, Hyogo Prefecture, 19 person were lost to lives, 26 persons were wounded, according to Japan Fire and Disaster Management Agency official confirmed report. * July 20 - A first

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

fast food outlet A fast-food restaurant, also known as a quick-service restaurant (QSR) within the industry, is a specific type of restaurant that serves fast food, fast-food cuisine and has minimal Foodservice#Table service, table service. The food served ...

open in Japan at

Ginza Ginza ( ; ja, 銀座 ) is a district of Chūō, Tokyo, located south of Yaesu and Kyōbashi, west of Tsukiji, east of Yūrakuchō and Uchisaiwaichō, and north of Shinbashi. It is a popular upscale shopping area of Tokyo, with numerous intern ...

. * July 30 - An

All Nippon Airways , also known as ANA (''Ē-enu-ē'') or is an airline in Japan. Its headquarters are located in Shiodome City Center in the Shiodome area of Minato ward of Tokyo. It operates services to both domestic and international destinations and had mo ...

Boeing 727 The Boeing 727 is an American narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After the heavy 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter flight lengths from smaller airpo ...

collides with a Japanese fighter jet, resulting in a loss of 162 lives. * October 25 - Collision of two limited express trains on the

Kintetsu Osaka Line ''Kintetsu'' is the abbreviation of , or Kintetsu Railway, a Japanese railway corporation. It may also refer to: Companies * Kintetsu Group Holdings, the holding corporation of the Kintetsu Railway ** Kintetsu Bus, a bus company and a subsidiary ...

in Hakusan (now Tsu) in

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 ...

. Casualties include 25 dead and 227 wounded. * November 11 - A slope failure field site collapsed during an experiment in Tama-ku, Kawasaki,

. According to a Japan Fire and Disaster Management Agency confirmed report, 15 persons lost their lives, 10 persons were wounded.

Births

*January 2 -

Yutaka Takenouchi is a Japanese actor. His on-screen acting debut was in the drama 「ボクの就職」 (Boku no Syūshoku) in 1994, after winning a modeling contest. He regularly appears in commercials. Filmography TV series * ''Boku no Shūshoku/My First Job' ...

, actor * January 4 **

Junichi Kakizaki is a Japanese artist, sculptor, floral artist, nature art artist, land art artist and environmental artist. He exhibits regularly both in Japan and internationally. Since 1992, he has mainly worked on scenography. He brought a floral design ...

, botanist and floral designer **

Hiroyuki Sato , also credited as , is a Japanese actor and voice actor from Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. He is represented by Aoni Production is a Japanese talent agency representing a fair number of voice actors and other Japanese entertainers. Voice ac ...

, professional baseball player **

Futoshi Yamabe is a Japanese former Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who a ...

, professional baseball player * January 5 -

Mayuko Takata Mayuko Takata (高田万由子 ''Takata Mayuko'', born January 5, 1971) is a Japanese actress, best known in the western world for her appearances on the Japanese TV show Iron Chef. Personal life She was born in Tokyo, Japan. Her husband is Jap ...

, actress *January 6 -

Mitsuru Manaka Mitsuru Manaka (真中満, born January 6, 1971, in Tochigi, Tochigi, Japan) is a former Nippon Professional Baseball outfielder. On October 8, 2014, he was named manager of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, replacing Junji Ogawa was a Japanese N ...

, professional baseball player *January 8 -

Kenjiro Kawasaki Kenjiro Kawasaki (川崎憲次郎, born January 8, 1971) is a former Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is ofte ...

, professional baseball player *January 17 - Youki Kudo, actress *January 19 –

Tamayo Marukawa is a Japanese politician and former announcer of TV Asahi, who serves as a member of the House of Councillors of the National Diet (parliament of Japan). She is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. She served as the head of the Women's A ...

, politician, cabinet minister, representative and former TV announcer *January 20 - Masaru Hanada, sumo, 66th generation Yokozuna *January 23 **

Kaori Kawamura was a rock and pop singer in Japan, born in Moscow, Soviet Union. Family background Her father was a Japanese expatriate in the Soviet Union, while her mother was a Russian. The family moved to Japan when she was 11 years old, where she was ...

, singer (d.

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

) **

Akira Ota Akira may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Akira'' (franchise), a Japanese cyberpunk franchise ** ''Akira'' (manga), a 1980s cyberpunk manga by Katsuhiro Otomo ** ''Akira'' (1988 film), an anime film adaptation of the manga ** ''Akira'' (vide ...

, professional baseball player *January 27 - Tomoefuji Toshihide, sumo, *January 31 - Yasuo Manaka, soccer player *February 2 –

Kiyoshi Toyoda Kiyoshi Toyoda (豊田清, born February 2, 1971) is a Japanese professional baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the co ...

, former professional baseball pitcher *February 14 **

Risa Hirako is a Japanese fashion model NAVER人物検索 who is represented by Newpower. She produced fashion brands and appeared in the music industry. Her ex-husband is actor Eisaku Yoshida is a Japanese freelance actor and singer. His ex-wife is model ...

, model **

Noriko Sakai is a Japanese given name for females. Possible writings * 徳子, "benevolence child" * 法子, "method, law child" * 則子, "rule child" * 紀子, "chronicle child" * 教子, "teach child" * 範子, "pattern child" * 典子, "rule, precedent, c ...

, pop singer and actress *February 22 –

Etsuko Kozakura , better known by her stage name , is a Japanese voice actress from Mizuho. She was formerly with Ohsawa Jimusho, but now heads her own agency called Little Portal with husband Jin Domon. Some of her major roles are Ryo-Ohki in the ''Tenchi Muyo ...

, voice actress * March 2 -

Manami Toyota is a retired professional wrestler, best known for her work with the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) promotion. She is considered to be one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. Following AJW's closure, she continued to work ...

, professional wrestler * March 4 -

Satoshi Motoyama Satoshi Motoyama (本山哲 - Motoyama Satoshi; born March 4, 1971) is a Japanese professional racing driver and team manager. He is best known for racing in the Super GT Series, formerly known as the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGT ...

, professional racing driver * March 6 - Maguro Fujita, manga artist * March 10 **

Ryu Fujisaki is a Japanese manga artist and author from Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture. He won prizes in 39th and the 40th Tezuka Awards. He made his professional manga debut with ''WORLDS'' in 1990. All of his works are published by Shueisha under their Shō ...

, manga artist ** Tsubuyaki Shirō, comedian * March 13 -

Tsutomu Nishino is a former Japanese football player. Playing career Nishino was born in Ikoma on March 13, 1971. After graduating from Kobe University, he joined Urawa Reds in 1993. He played many matches as center back from first season. In 1997, he became a ...

, football player * March 15 -

Risa Junna is a Japanese actress, singer, and voice actress. She was part of Takarazuka Revue's Snow Troupe and Flower Troupe. During her time in the Revue, she specialized in female roles (''musumeyaku''). She was the ''musumeyaku'' top star from 1995 to ...

, actress and singer * March 16 -

Tae Kimura is a Japanese actress. She won the Best Actress award at the 32nd Japan Academy Prize for ''All Around Us''. Biography Kimura starred in Ryosuke Hashiguchi's ''All Around Us''. Her performance in the film was described by Jason Gray as "one of ...

, actress * March 17 -

Masataka Gōda is a Japanese professional shogi player, ranked 9-dan. He is a former major title holder, having won the Ōi, Kisei, Kiō and Ōshō titles throughout his career. Early life Gōda was born on March 17, 1971, in Suginami, Tokyo. He learned ho ...

, professional shogi player * March 20 -

Shinichiro Ohta is a Japanese voice actor and television announcer noted primarily in the English-speaking world for his appearance as the kitchen reporter in ''Iron Chef'', where he was known for his rapid-fire announcing style. On the English-language version ...

, voice actor and TV announcer * March 24 - Shinichi Hatori, free announcer, tarento, and TV presenter * March 26 -

Moyoco Anno is a Japanese manga artist and fashion writer, with numerous books published in both categories. Her work ''Sugar Sugar Rune'' won the Kodansha manga award for children in 2005. Anno is married to director Hideaki Anno of ''Neon Genesis Evangel ...

, manga artist * March 29 **

Shizuka Ishikawa , also known under the name , is a Japanese voice actress who specializes in voicing characters in adult video games. She is a member of the Tokyo Actor's Consumer's Cooperative Society. Filmography Anime *''Cardfight!! Vanguard'' – Kamui Katsu ...

, voice actress ** Hidetoshi Nishijima, actor * April 2 **

Makoto Hasegawa Makoto Hasegawa may refer to: * Makoto Hasegawa (basketball) * Makoto Hasegawa (dancer) {{hndis, Hasegawa, Makoto ...

, basketball player ** Cunning Takeyama comedian and actor. **

Zeebra , known professionally as , is a Japanese hip hop recording artist and DJ who made his first appearance in 1995. Zeebra is a former member of the hip-hop group King Giddra, which also included DJ Oasis and K Dub Shine, and the older brother of f ...

, rapper * April 5 **

Takami Itō is a Japanese author who won an Akutagawa Prize in 2006. Biography Itō was born in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. As a middle-school student, he was a classmate of Ken Hirai. He later graduated from Waseda University. Prizes * Bungei Prize ...

, author ** Ayako Nishikawa, cosmetic surgeon * April 8 -

Yoshinobu Ohga is a Japanese musical arranger and guitarist in distributors Being Inc., mainly in their label Giza Studio. In years 2000-2002 he was part of the Japanese soul band ''Nothin' but love'', in years 2004-2009 part of Japanese pop band ''OOM'' and ...

, musician * April 12 - Takako Katō, basketball player * April 18 -

Junya Ogawa is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan, a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Takamatsu, Kagawa and graduate of the University of Tokyo, he joined the Ministry of Home Affairs ...

, politician * April 22 -

Daisuke Enomoto is a Japanese businessman and former livedoor executive who hoped to become the fourth space tourist. He had trained at Star City, Moscow in Russia to fly with two members of Expedition 14 on board Soyuz TMA-9, which was launched on September 18, ...

, would-be first Japanese

space tourist Space tourism is human space travel for recreational purposes. There are several different types of space tourism, including orbital, suborbital and lunar space tourism. During the period from 2001 to 2009, seven space tourists made eight s ...

* April 23 - Shigetoshi Hasebe, football player and manager * April 26 - Naoki Tanaka, comedian, actor and presenter * May 2 **

Musashimaru Kōyō is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler. He was born in American Samoa, before moving to Hawaii at the age of 10. At 18 he moved to Japan and made his professional sumo debut in 1989, reaching the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1991. After ...

, sumo wrestler ** Shu Takumi, creator of ''

Ace Attorney ''Ace Attorney'' is a series of visual novel adventure video games developed by Capcom. With storytelling fashioned after legal dramas, the first entry in the series, ''Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney'', was released in 2001; since then, five f ...

'' * May 3 - Ryo Kawano, baseball player * May 9 -

Hiroki Azuma (born May 9, 1971) is a Japanese cultural critic, novelist, and philosopher. He is the co-founder and former director of Genron, an independent institute in Tokyo, Japan. Biography Azuma was born in Mitaka, Tokyo. Azuma received his PhD in ...

, cultural critic, novelist, and philosopher * May 11 –

Tsutomu Iwamoto is a Japanese former Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who a ...

, former professional baseball pitcher * May 12 **

Kayoko Okubo is a Japanese comedian, ''tarento'' and actress who is a member of the comedy duo Oasiz. Filmography TV series Current appearances Former appearances Drama Other TV series Advertisements Radio series Films References External lin ...

, comedian, tarento and actress **

Nao Nagasawa is a Japanese actress, voice actress, former singer and model. She is known for her roles in various tokusatsu series, film, and drama, such as "Nanami Nono / Hurricane Blue" in the series Super Sentai ''Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger''. Filmograp ...

, voice actress * May 14 - Takashi Kashiwada, baseball player * May 20 -

Yasuko Mitsuura is a Japanese ''tarento'' and comedian. She was born in Tahara, Aichi, and is part of the comedy duo Oasiz, with Kayoko Okubo. Filmography Current appearances Former appearances TV dramas Films Advertisements Stage Bibliography Ser ...

, comedian * May 21 -

Yoshikazu Mera is a Japanese countertenor. His range is three and a half octaves. Originally wanting to become a pop singer, Mera now primarily sings classical music from the West but also classical Japanese music. He appears frequently as a soloist with the ...

, countertenor * May 24 -

Taizō Mikazuki is a Japanese politician and the current governor of Shiga Prefecture, having been elected to the position in July 2014. He previously served in the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature) as a member of the Democratic Party ...

, politician and governor * May 25 - Kōtarō Isaka, author * May 26 - Takuro, musician * May 28 - Miho Otani,

JMSDF , abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...

officer * June 5 **

Miyuki Komatsu is a Japanese actress. She made her debut as a gravure idol in 1990, and also appeared in two adult videos in 1993. She is well known for her roles as Sanami in Death Note and Death Note 2: The Last Name. She reprised her role for TV special ...

, actress **

Tomoko Nakajima is a Japanese actress best known for playing Hotaru Kuroita in the long-running television drama '' Kita no Kuni kara'' ("From a Northern Country"). She won the award for best supporting actress at the 12th Yokohama Film Festival for ''Tugumi''. ...

, actress * June 8 - Teru, musician and singer * June 10 - Tadashi Nakamura, footballer * June 11 -

Kenjiro Tsuda is a Japanese actor, voice actor, narrator, and film director. He works at ANDSTIR. Some of his roles as a voice actor include Seto Kaiba in ''Yu-Gi-Oh!'', Sadahara Inui in ''Shin Tennis no Ouji-sama'', Kazama Chikage in ''Hakuoki'', Ryuga in ' ...

, voice actor * June 14 -

Ken Maeda was a Japanese comedian, impressionist, actor and choreographer. He was nicknamed . Maeda was born in Suginami, Tokyo. He was represented with K Dash Stage. Maeda graduated from Tokyo Metropolitan Agricultural High School. At the same school hi ...

, comedian, impressionist, and actor * June 18 -

Yoshiyuki Shinoda is a former Japanese association football, football player and manager. he currently manager of Ventforet Kofu from 2023. Club career Shinoda was born in Kofu on June 18, 1971. After graduating from high school, he joined Japan Soccer League clu ...

, footballer and manager * June 23 - Katsuhiro Maeda, baseball player * June 24 - Toshihiro Noguchi, baseball player * June 27 -

Shizuka Ochi is a feminine Japanese given name. Possible writings Shizuka can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *, "quiet/calm" *, "quiet/calm, flower" *, "quiet/calm, fragrance" *, "quiet/calm, flower" *, "quiet/calm, excellent" *, " ...

, actress * June 28 -

Norika Fujiwara is a Japanese beauty queen, model and actress. She became Miss Nippon in 1992 and was an exclusive model for CanCam magazine. She has appeared in various commercials and TV series and a number of films in Japan. Biography Career Fujiwara was bo ...

, actress and television personality * June 29 -

Junko Noda is a Japanese freelance voice actress and singer from Naniwa-ku, Osaka. She often voices boyish girls and boys, and since she herself lived in Osaka until the age of 21, she also voices characters with Kansai dialect in supporting roles. Filmog ...

, voice actress * July 1 - Yusuke Torigoe, baseball player * July 17 -

Ritsuko Tanaka is a Japanese actress, ''tarento'' and singer. She is formerly represented with Box Corporation. She is the president of the non-profit organization Aqua Planet. She is also the associated president of the Japan Sap Yoga and detoxification Deto ...

, actress and singer. * July 19 -

Naoki Soma is a Japanese football manager and former player. He played for the Japan national team He is the current manager of Omiya Ardija. Club career Soma was born in Shizuoka on July 19, 1971. After graduating from Waseda University , mottoen ...

, footballer * July 23 -

Noriko Mizoguchi is a retired judoka from Japan. Overviews Mizoguchi claimed the silver medal in the Women's Half-Lightweight (– 52 kg) division at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. In the final she was defeated by Spain's Almudena Muñ ...

judoka is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

* July 24 - Tetsuji Nakamura, politician * July 26 -

Kazuki Sakuraba is a Japanese author of novels and light novels, and Naoki Prize winner. Biography Sakuraba was born in Shimane Prefecture on the 26th of July 1971. She, however, grew up in Yonago, Tottori Prefecture. She started writing novels when she was ...

, author * August 25 -

Ayumi Miyazaki or Ayumi for short, is a Japanese singer and composer. Miyazaki has sung several songs in the Digimon series. He sang the evolution theme song for ''Digimon Adventure'' called "Brave Heart" and its '' Digimon Adventure Tri'' remix. He also sang ...

, singer * September 2 –

Fumie Hosokawa is a Japanese actress, singer, and model. She is often referred to as the “original” ''kyonyu'' (huge breasts) idol. Life and career Hosokawa was born in Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture and lived in Etajima, Hiroshima Prefecture until the age of ...

, actress * September 7 -

Tomomi Okazaki Tomomi Okazaki ( ja, 岡崎朋美, born 7 September 1971) is a Japanese speed skater who has competed in five Olympic Games. She won a bronze medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. Okazaki was the oldest member of the Japanese team a ...

, speed skater * September 10 -

Tomo Sakurai is a Japanese actress and singer. Sakurai was a member of I'm Enterprise but later became freelance until her retirement. She previously announced her retirement on September 1, 2016, but on June 1, 2019, she announced that she would return to t ...

, voice actress * September 12 –

Atsuko Wakai is a Japanese practitioner of karate who has won many international and Japanese national competitions in ''kata'' (patterns), including unprecedented numbers of consecutive titles in World Karate Federation (WKF) and All Japan Karatedo champio ...

, karateka * October 1 - Tatsuya Ide, baseball player * October 4 –

Toshihisa Nishi was a professional Japanese baseball player. External links

* 1971 births Living people Baseball people from Ibaraki Prefecture Japanese expatriate baseball players in the United States Asian Games medalists in baseball Baseball play ...

, former professional baseball player * October 8 - Hiroki Kokubo, baseball player * October 25 -

Midori Gotō , who performs under the mononym Midori, is a Japanese-born American violinist. She made her debut with the New York Philharmonic at age 11 as a surprise guest soloist at the New Year's Eve Gala in 1982. In 1986 her performance at the Tanglewood ...

, violinist * November 12 -

Yasuo Aiuchi is a Japanese snowboarder Snowboarding is a recreational and competitive activity that involves descending a snow-covered surface while standing on a snowboard that is almost always attached to a rider's feet. It features in the Winter Olympi ...

snowboarder Snowboarding is a recreational and competitive activity that involves descending a snow-covered surface while standing on a snowboard that is almost always attached to a rider's feet. It features in the Winter Olympic Games and Winter Paralympi ...

* November 29 -

Naoko Mori (born 29 November 1971) is a Japanese actress based in the United Kingdom. She is known for her roles as Toshiko Sato in ''Doctor Who'' and ''Torchwood'', Yasuko Namba in ''Everest'', Sarah in ''Absolutely Fabulous'' and Nicola in '' Spice World ...

, actress * December 2 -

Mine Yoshizaki is a Japanese mangaka, manga creator. His most well known works are ''Sgt. Frog'', a manga he created which later received an anime adaption, and ''Kemono Friends'', a multimedia franchise for which Yoshizaki serves as concept designer. Career ...

Manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

artist * December 28 -

Machiko Toyoshima is a Japanese actress, voice actress and singer from Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. Biography She was known for her role as Lulula Franc, a Cherrybaiter in 1997 Face/SNK's Neo Geo puzzle game ''Money Puzzle Exchanger''. Filmography Television ani ...

, voice actress * December 30 –

Daisuke Motoki is a Japanese former Nippon Professional Baseball player. External links

1971 births Living people Baseball people from Osaka Prefecture Japanese baseball players Nippon Professional Baseball infielders Yomiuri Giants players Japanese ...

, former professional baseball player

Deaths

*February 26 – Yahei Miura, athlete (b.

1895 Events January–March * January 5 – Dreyfus affair: French officer Alfred Dreyfus is stripped of his army rank, and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island. * January 12 – The National Trust for Places of Histor ...

) *April 20 –

Hyakken Uchida was a Japanese author and academic. Biography Uchida was born in Okayama to a family of sake brewers whose business later went bankrupt. His real name is Eizo Uchida (内田榮造 ''Uchida Eizō''). He became a pupil of Natsume Sōseki in ...

, author, writer and academic (b.

1889 Events January–March * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the ...

) *October 21 –

Naoya Shiga was a Japanese writer active during the Taishō and Shōwa periods of Japan, whose work was distinguished by its lucid, straightforward style and strong autobiographical overtones. Early life Shiga was born in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, ...

, novelist and short story writer (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 ...

)

References

{{Asia topic, 1971 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 ...