Events in the year

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

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 ...

. The year 1996 corresponded to

Heisei The is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of Emperor Emeritus Akihito from 8 January 1989 until his abdication on 30 April 2019. The Heisei era started on 8 January 1989, the day after the death of the Emperor Hirohito, ...

8 (平成8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), ...

Akihito is a member of the Imperial House of Japan who reigned as the 125th emperor of Japan from 7 January 1989 until his abdication on 30 April 2019. He presided over the Heisei era, ''Heisei'' being an expression of achieving peace worldwide. Bo ...

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 ...

Tomiichi Murayama is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1994 to 1996. He led the Japanese Socialist Party, and was responsible for changing its name to the Social Democratic Party (Japan), Social Democratic Party of Japan in 1996. Up ...

( S–Ōita) until January 11, Ryūtarō Hashimoto ( L–Okayama) *

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 ...

: Kōken Nosaka (S–Tottori) until January 11,

Seiroku Kajiyama was a Japanese politician who served in the House of Representatives from 1969 to 1976 and from 1979 to 2000, as Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party from 1992 to 1993, and as Chief Cabinet Secretary from 1996 to 1998. Early lif ...

(L–Ibaraki) * 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 ...

: Tōru Miyoshi * President of the House of Representatives:

Takako Doi was a prominent Japanese politician from 1980 until her retirement in 2005. She was the List of female speakers of national and territorial lower houses, first female Lower House Speaker in Japan, the highest position a female politician has ...

(S–Hyōgo) until September 27 (dissolution), Sōichirō Itō (L–Miyagi) from November 7 * President of the House of Councillors: Jūrō Saitō (L–Mie) * Diet sessions: 135th (extraordinary, January 11 to January 13), 136th (regular, January 22 to June 19), 137th (extraordinary, September 27, HR dissolved on same day), 138th (special, November 7 to November 12), 139th (extraordinary, November 29 to December 18)

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 ...

Reiji Suzuki 鈴木礼治さん死去　元愛知県知事、９３歳
was a Japanese ...

*Akita Prefecture: Kikuji Sasaki *Aomori Prefecture:

Morio Kimura Morio (written: , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese singer-songwriter and actor *, Japanese anime director *, Japanese karateka *, Japanese actor *, pen-name of Sokichi Saitō, ...

*Chiba Prefecture:

Takeshi Numata Takeshi ( in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings *武, "warrior" *毅, "strong" *猛, "fierce" *健, "healthy" *剛, "sturdy" *彪, "spotted" *威, "intimidate" *壮, "robust" *丈, "length" *雄, "mascu ...

*Ehime Prefecture:

Sadayuki Iga Sadayuki (written: or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese sumo wrestler *, Japanese businessman See also * 48624 Sadayuki, a main-belt asteroid {{given name Japanese masculine given names

*Fukui Prefecture:

Yukio Kurita Yukio is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yukio can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *幸夫, "happiness, man" *幸生, "happiness, live" *幸男, "happiness, man" *幸雄, ...

*Fukuoka Prefecture: Wataru Asō *Fukushima Prefecture: Eisaku Satō *Gifu Prefecture:

Taku Kajiwara Taku may refer to: Places North America * the Taku River, in Alaska and British Columbia ** Fort Taku, also known as Fort Durham and as Taku, a former fort of the Hudson's Bay Company near the mouth of the Taku River ** the Taku Glacier, in Ala ...

*Gunma Prefecture: Hiroyuki Kodera *

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 ...

: Yūzan Fujita *

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 ...

Tatsuya Hori is a Japanese politician. He was director of the Hokkaidō-Kitami University. From 1995 he served as governor of Hokkaidō for two terms totalling 8 years. He was chairman of the board of Sapporo University. He was associate professor at Tokyo ...

*Hyogo Prefecture:

Toshitami Kaihara Toshitami Kaihara (August 24, 1933 - November 13, 2014) became a Vice Governor in 1970 and Governor of Hyogo Profecture in 1986, a position he held for four terms over 15 years. Prior to that he was an official at the Ministry of Home Affairs. He h ...

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, ...

Masaru Hashimoto is Japanese politician who was the governor of Ibaraki Prefecture from 1993 to 2017. Life Masaru Hashimoto was born on 19 November 1945 in Tōkai, Ibaraki Prefecture. He is a graduate of the University of Tokyo, and joined the Ministry of H ...

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 ...

Masanori Tanimoto is a Japanese politician who was the governor of 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 ...

*Iwate Prefecture:

Hiroya Masuda is a Japanese politician, government official, and business executive. He was Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications from August 2007 to September 2008, and has served as the president and CEO of Japan Post Holdings since January 2020. ...

*Kagawa Prefecture: Jōichi Hirai *Kagoshima Prefecture: Yoshiteru Tsuchiya (until 26 June);

Tatsurō Suga Tatsurō, Tatsuro or Tatsurou (written: , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese singer *, Japanese football player *, Japanese baseball player *, Japanese sumo wrestler *, Japanese baseball ...

(starting 31 July) *

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 ...

: Hiroshi Okazaki *Kochi Prefecture:

Daijiro Hashimoto is a politically independent former governor of the Kōchi Prefecture who served from 1991 to 2007, with an intermediate resignation in 2004 to test support after a scandal alleging transactions between his campaign aide and a construction compan ...

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 ...

: Joji Fukushima * Kyoto Prefecture: Teiichi Aramaki *Mie Prefecture: Masayasu Kitagawa *

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 ...

: Shirō Asano *Miyazaki Prefecture: Suketaka Matsukata *

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 ...

: Gorō Yoshimura *Nagasaki Prefecture: Isamu Takada *Nara Prefecture:

Yoshiya Kakimoto Yoshiya (written: 佳也, 栄哉 or 代志也) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: * (born 1987), Japanese footballer * (born 1973), Japanese footballer Yoshiya (written: 吉屋) is also a Japanese surname. N ...

* Niigata Prefecture:

Ikuo Hirayama Ikuo Hirayama (''Hirayama Ikuo'' 平山郁夫; 15 June 1930 – 2 December 2009), was a Japanese Nihonga painter and educator. Born in Setoda-chō, Hiroshima Prefecture, he was famous in Japan for Silk Road paintings of dreamy desert landscap ...

*Oita Prefecture:

Morihiko Hiramatsu was a Japanese politician who was governor of Ōita Prefecture from April 1979 to April 2003. He is best known for initiating the One Village One Product movement in the prefecture, which was later followed by various other countries. Early li ...

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 ...

: Shiro Nagano (until 12 November); Masahiro Ishii (starting 12 November) *

Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city o ...

Masahide Ōta was a Japanese academic and politician who served as the governor of Okinawa Prefecture from 1990 until 1998. After starting his career as a professor at the University of the Ryūkyūs, he wrote books in English and Japanese, mostly about the Ba ...

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 ...

Knock Yokoyama was a Japanese politician and comedian. Born Isamu Yamada (山田勇 ''Yamada Isamu'') in Kobe, he adopted his current stage name while directing the ''Manga Trio'' manzai troupe from 1959 to 1968. Following his comedy years, he went into the c ...

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 ...

Isamu Imoto was a Japanese politician who served as Governor of 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). ...

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 ...

: Yoshihiko Tsuchiya * Shiga Prefecture:

Minoru Inaba is a Japanese Voice acting in Japan, voice actor from Shizuoka Prefecture. He is affiliated with Ken Production. Inaba is best known for his roles in The Walt Disney Company, Disney productions (as Chip 'n Dale, Dale), ''Buzz Lightyear of Star C ...

*Shiname Prefecture: Nobuyoshi Sumita *Shizuoka Prefecture:

Yoshinobu Ishikawa was the governor of Shizuoka Prefecture in Japan, first elected in 1993. A native of Kakegawa, Shizuoka, formerly known as Daitō, Shizuoka, and graduate of the University of Tokyo, Department of Law, he had worked at the Ministry of Home Affai ...

*Tochigi Prefecture: Fumio Watanabe *Tokushima Prefecture: Toshio Endo *

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 ...

Yukio Aoshima was a Japanese politician who served as Governor of Tokyo from 1995 to 1999. He is also well known as a TV actor, novelist, film director, screenwriter and songwriter. Early life and artistic career Yukio was born in Nihonbashi ward of Tok ...

*Tottori Prefecture: Yuji Nishio *Toyama Prefecture:

Yutaka Nakaoki Yutaka is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yutaka can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *豊, "bountiful" *裕, "affluence" *穣, "fertile" *温, "warmth" The name can also be written in hiragana ゆ� ...

*Wakayama Prefecture: Isamu Nishiguchi *Yamagata Prefecture: Kazuo Takahashi *Yamaguchi Prefecture: Toru Hirai (until 22 August); Sekinari Nii (starting 22 August) *Yamanashi Prefecture: Ken Amano

Events

January 11 Events Pre-1600 * 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodrome escalates into violence. * 630 – Conquest of Mecca: The prophet Muhamma ...

– Ryutaro Hashimoto, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, becomes Prime Minister. *

February 10 Events Pre-1600 * 1258 – Mongol invasions: Baghdad falls to the Mongols, bringing the Islamic Golden Age to an end. * 1306 – In front of the high altar of Greyfriars Church in Dumfries, Robert the Bruce murders John Comyn, sparkin ...

– A boulder falls onto the Toyohama Tunnel in

Furubira, Hokkaido is a town located in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. As of September 2016, the town had an estimated population of 3,265, and a density of 17 persons per km2. The total area is . Geography Furubira occupies the eastern end of the n ...

, crushing a bus and several cars and resulting in 20 fatalities. *

February 27 Events Pre-1600 * 380 – Edict of Thessalonica: Emperor Theodosius I and his co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to Nicene Christianity. * 425 – The University of Constantinople ...

– ''Red'' and ''Green'' was released in Japan as the first game in the

Pokémon (an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise. In terms of ...

series. *

April 1 Events Pre-1600 * 33 – According to one historian's account, Jesus Christ's Last Supper is held. * 527 – Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne. *1081 – Alexios I Kom ...

Tokyo Big Sight , officially known as , is a convention and exhibition center in Tokyo, Japan, and the largest one in the country. Opened in April 1996, the center is located in the Ariake Minami district of on the Tokyo Bay waterfront. Its most iconic feature i ...

opens. * June 13 -

Garuda Indonesia Flight 865 Garuda Indonesia Flight 865 (GA/GIA 865) was a scheduled international flight from Fukuoka, Japan, to Jakarta, Indonesia via Bali, Indonesia. On 13 June 1996, Flight 865 crashed on its takeoff from runway 16 at Fukuoka Airport. Three of the 275 ...

crashes on takeoff from Fukuoka Airport, resulting in three fatalities. *

June 23 Events Pre-1600 * 229 – Sun Quan proclaims himself emperor of Eastern Wu. * 1266 – War of Saint Sabas: In the Battle of Trapani, the Venetians defeat a larger Genoese fleet, capturing all its ships. * 1280 – The Spanish Re ...

- The Nintendo 64 video game system is released in Japan. * June 25 - A train on the

Takayama Main Line The is a Japanese railway line between Gifu Station in Gifu and Toyama Station in Toyama, operated by Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West). The line directly links the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area (m ...

collides with a fallen boulder, resulting in 16 injuries. *

July 16 Events Pre-1600 * 622 – The beginning of the Islamic calendar. * 997 – Battle of Spercheios: Bulgarian forces of Tsar Samuel are defeated by a Byzantine army under general Nikephoros Ouranos at the Spercheios River in Greece. * 105 ...

– An outbreak of

E. coli ''Escherichia coli'' (),Wells, J. C. (2000) Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. Harlow ngland Pearson Education Ltd. also known as ''E. coli'' (), is a Gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped, coliform bacterium of the genus ''Escher ...

food poisoning Foodborne illness (also foodborne disease and food poisoning) is any illness resulting from the spoilage of contaminated food by pathogenic bacteria, viruses, or parasites that contaminate food, as well as prions (the agents of mad cow disease) ...

Sakai City is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or kofun, which date from the fifth century and inclu ...

resulted in 6309 schoolchildren and 92 school staff members from 62 municipal elementary schools falling ill. * August 8 -

Tokyo Opera City Tower is a skyscraper located in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. Completed in 1996, it stands 234 metres (768 feet) high and has 54 floors. The tower is the third-tallest building in Shinjuku, Tokyo and seventh-tallest in Tokyo. The closest train statio ...

is completed. * November 12 – Skymark Airlines was established. *

November 26 Events Pre-1600 * 783 – The Asturian queen Adosinda is held at a monastery to prevent her king from retaking the throne from Mauregatus. *1161 – Battle of Caishi: A Song dynasty fleet fights a naval engagement with Jin dynasty ...

- Tamagotchi is released. * December 6 - Gamahara Swamp Landslide disaster, A landslide recurs, during restoration work for landslide by heaviest rain hit in July 1995, borders between

and Niigata Prefecture, according to Japan Fire and Disaster Management Agency confirmed report, 14 workers were lost to lives, nine were wounded.

Fashion and Rebellion

In the 1990s in Japan, we begin to see an influx of growth in the fashion community. The infamous Harajuku style, as well as the birth of a popular style known as Gyaru. Both fashion styles as well as the many sub groups of fashion in Japan, were built due to the idea that most youth in Japan were tired of being conformed into one look. We begin to see Japan break away from the idea of being a country built on tradition and monotony, and branch into what it has come today; a colorful and vibrant place.

Births

* January 10 -

Sakurako Ohara is a Japanese actress and pop singer under Victor Entertainment. Her father is narrator Naochika Hayashida. Filmography Television Series Film Theatre Discography Albums Singles Video albums References External links ...

, actress and singer * January 12 -

Ai Hashimoto is a Japanese actress, fashion model and singer. Life Hashimoto was born in Kumamoto, Kumamoto Prefecture, the second of three daughters.星原克也「女優魂橋本愛 14歳飛躍の幕開け」,『熊本日日新聞』(Kumamoto Nichinichi S ...

, actress and fashion model * January 13 -

Ami Inamura is a Japanese gravure idol, ''tarento'', and sportscaster represented by Asai Kikaku is a Japanese talent agency and entertainment production company headquartered in Higashigotanda, Shinagawa, Tokyo. It was found in 1968 by Ryoji Asai, who a ...

, gravure idol, and sportscaster * February 7 - Mai Hagiwara, singer * February 10 **

Shiori Niiyama is Japanese singer and songwriter under Being label. Biography Under the influence of her father, Shiori grew up listening to various music genres such as rock, punk and blues. In elementary school she learned to play on piano, in junior high s ...

, singer and songwriter **

Ukyo Shuto is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He is the world record holder with a record of 13 consecutive games with stolen bases. Early baseball career Shuto participated ...

, professional baseball player * February 16 -

Nana Komatsu is a Japanese actress and model. She is best known for her roles in ''The World of Kanako'', ''Destruction Babies'', '' Drowning Love'', '' The Black Devil and the White Prince'', ''My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday'', '' After the Rain'', ''Farewell ...

, actress and model * February 18 -

Ikumi Hisamatsu is a Japanese actress, fashion model, gravure idol, variety and tarento. Biography Hisamatsu was born in Tokyo. After being scouted in Harajuku, she worked as an exclusive model for ''Hanachu'' in 2008. Hisamatsu later became an exclusive model ...

, fashion model and actress * April 3 -

Mayo Hibi is a Japanese former professional tennis player. She has won eight singles titles and one doubles title on the ITF Women's Circuit. On 3 February 2020, she reached her best singles ranking of world No. 157. On 26 May 2014, she peaked at No. 378 ...

, tennis player * May 18 -

Yuki Kadono is a Japanese snowboarder who competes in the slopestyle event. Born in Miki, Hyōgo, Japan, he competed for Japan at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, qualifying for the final of the slopestyle event and finishing 8th overall. Kadono won t ...

, snowboarder * May 21 -

Sarina Koga is a Japanese volleyball player who won the bronze medal at the 2013 U23 World Championship with the Japan's U23 national team. She also competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Women's volleyball. Now, she is the senior national team captai ...

, volleyball player * May 28 -

Ayano Kudo is a Japanese actress and tarento. In 2009 at the age of 12, she won the 12th National Beauty Pageant ( Japan Bishojo Contest). She played the lead role in the movie version of '' Thriller Restaurant'' (Gekijo-ban: Kaidan Resutoran) (2010) as Har ...

, model and actress * June 11 ** Naoki Maeda, footballer **

Ayaka Sasaki is a Japanese idol. She is known as a member of the female musical group Momoiro Clover Z. Her Momoiro Clover Z signature color is Pink. She is the youngest member of the group. Her self-introduction is: . On July 24, 2021, it was reported Sas ...

, singer * June 30 –

Kazuma Okamoto is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Yomiuri Giants of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Career He has been selected as an all-star twice, and was named the Central League Climax Series MVP in 2019. In 2020, he le ...

, professional baseball player ( Tokyo Giants) * July 5 -

Risa Shoji Risa may refer to: * Risa (given name), a feminine given name * Risa (Star Trek), a fictional planet * Radioiodinated serum albumin * Recording Industry of South Africa * Ribosomal Intergenic Spacer analysis See also * * * Rise (disambiguation) ...

, figure skater * July 18 - Shiina Natsukawa, voice actress and singer * August 24 -

Kenzo Shirai is a common masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Kenzō can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *賢三, "wise, three" *健三, "healthy, three" *謙三, "humble, three" *健想, "healthy, concept" *建造, "bu ...

, gymnast * September 6 -

Rika Hongo Rika Hongo ( ja, 本郷理華; born September 6, 1996) is a Japanese retired competitive figure skater who is a two-time (2015–16) Four Continents bronze medalist, 2014 Rostelecom Cup champion, 2015 Finlandia Trophy champion and 2014–15 Jap ...

, figure skater * September 12 - Nakamura Umemaru, actor * September 15 - Nao Furuhata, idol singer * September 19 -

Haruka Kodama is a Japanese actress and former member of the idol girl groups HKT48 and AKB48. In HKT48, she was a member of Team H. She has been the lead performer of three HKT48 singles: "Hikaeme I Love You!" (2014), "12 Byō" (2015, with Sakura Miyawaki), ...

, idol singer * October 8 -

Sara Takanashi (born 8 October 1996) is a Japanese Ski jumping, ski jumper. She is one of the most successful female ski jumpers to date, as well as one of the most successful athletes in the history of the sport, having won four FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, Wo ...

, ski jumper * October 30 - Mizuki Fukumura, singer * November 9 - Momo Hirai, singer and member of South Korean girl group Twice * November 15 - Kanako Watanabe, swimmer * November 16 - Hiroshi Kaino, professional baseball player * November 18 - Saki Ogawa, singer * December 2 – Minato Oike, BMX freestyle cyclist * December 12 -

Karen Miyama is a Japanese actress and voice actress. She used to be part of the Gekidan Tohai talent agency, and is now part of Horipro talent agency. She portrayed the young Ann Uekusa in the live-action drama ''Sand Chronicles''. In anime, she provided ...

, actress * December 13 - Miu Sato, figure skater * December 29 -

Sana Minatozaki , known mononymously as Sana (; ja, サナ), is a Japanese singer based in South Korea. She is one of three Japanese members of the South Korean girl group Twice, formed in 2015 by JYP Entertainment. Early life Sana was born on December 29 ...

, singer and member of South Korean girl group Twice

Deaths

*January 7 – Tarō Okamoto, artist (b.

1911 A notable ongoing event was the Comparison of the Amundsen and Scott Expeditions, race for the South Pole. Events January * January 1 – A decade after federation, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory ...

) *January 8 – Michiya Mihashi, enka singer (b.

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...

) *February 12 – Ryōtarō Shiba, writer (b.

1923 Events January–February * January 9 – Lithuania begins the Klaipėda Revolt to annex the Klaipėda Region (Memel Territory). * January 11 – Despite strong British protests, troops from France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr area, t ...

) *February 20 –

Tōru Takemitsu was a Japanese composer and writer on aesthetics and music theory. Largely self-taught, Takemitsu was admired for the subtle manipulation of instrumental and orchestral timbre. He is known for combining elements of oriental and occidental phil ...

, composer (b.

) *May 11 – Yasuko Namba, mountaineer, summited the

Seven Summits The Seven Summits are the highest mountains of each of the seven traditional continents. Climbing to the summit of all of them is regarded as a mountaineering challenge, first achieved on 30 April 1985 by Richard Bass. Climbing the Seven Summits a ...

(b.

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – Luis ...

) *June 6 –

Kusuo Kitamura was a Japanese swimmer who competed at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. Kitamura was born in Kōchi, Japan. Selected as one of the youngest members of the Japanese swimming team in the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, he won the ...

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

swimmer (b.

1917 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 9 – WWI – Battle of Rafa: The last substantial Ottoman Army garrison on the Sinai Peninsula is captured by the Egyptian Expeditionary Force's ...

) *July 30 –

Arihiro Hase was a Japanese actor and voice actor. Life and career Arihiro Hase was the son of Sanji Hase and was formerly affiliated with Production M-3; he was attached to Sigma Club Sigma (; uppercase Σ, lowercase σ, lowercase in word-final positi ...

, actor and voice actor (b.

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

) *August 4 – Kiyoshi Atsumi, actor ( Otoko wa Tsurai yo) (b.

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

) *September 23 –

Fujiko F. Fujio was a manga writing duo formed by Japanese manga artists and . They formed their partnership in 1951, and used the Fujiko Fujio name from 1954 until dissolution of the partnership in 1987, upon Fujimoto's illness. The pair was best known ...

, cartoonist (b.

1933 Events January * January 11 – Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independence, against the wis ...

) *September 29 –

Shūsaku Endō was a Japanese author who wrote from the rare perspective of a Japanese Catholic. Internationally, he is known for his 1966 historical fiction novel ''Silence'', which was adapted into a 2016 film of the same name by director Martin Scorsese. ...

, novelist (b.

)

References

{{Year in Asia, 1996 Years of the 20th century in Japan