Events in the year

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

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 ...

. It corresponds to the year

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, ...

10 (平成10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 ...

Ryutaro Hashimoto was a Japanese politician who served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 1996 to 1998. He was the leader of one of the largest factions within the ruling LDP through most of the 1990s and remained a powerful back-room player in Japanese politic ...

( L–Okayama) until July 30, Keizo Obuchi (L–Gunma) *

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 ...

: Kanezō Muraoka (L–Akita) until July 30,

Hiromu Nonaka was a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party. Nonaka served as a local politician in Kyoto Prefecture from 1951 to 1978 and in the House of Representatives from 1983 to 2003, becoming one of its most prominent members in the 1990 ...

(L–Kyōto) * 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 ...

Shigeru Yamaguchi Shigeru (written: , , , in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, a Japanese architect *, a Japanese voice actor *, Japanese karateka *, Japanese sport wrestler *, Japanese socialist ...

* 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 ...

: Sōichirō Itō (L–Miyagi) * 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, ...

: Jūrō Saitō (L–Mie) until July 25 and again from August 4 *

Diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

sessions: 142nd (regular, January 12 to June 18), 143rd (extraordinary, August 7 to October 16), 144th (extraordinary, November 27 to December 14)

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:

Sukeshiro Terata was the governor of Akita Prefecture. A native of Ōmagari, Akita and graduate of Waseda University, he was first elected to the post in 1997 after serving as mayor of Yokote, Akita since 1991. He ran in House of Councillors election in 2010 a ...

*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 is the former governor of Fukuoka Prefecture in Japan, first elected in 1995. From 2005-11 he was also President of the . A native of Kitakyūshū, Fukuoka and graduate of Kyoto University, he joined the Ministry of International Trade and Indus ...

*Fukushima Prefecture:

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 ...

*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 is a common masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Hiroki can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: extensive, good fortune, spacious. , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . It is written in hir ...

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 was a Japanese politician and the governor of Hiroshima Prefecture from 1993 to 2009. A native of Minami-ku, Hiroshima and graduate of Keio University, he had served in the House of Councillors in the Diet of Japan since 1989 for one term befor ...

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 A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as g ...

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 (until 4 September);

Takeki Manabe is a Japanese politician who was the 43rd governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's offi ...

(starting 5 September) *Kagoshima Prefecture:

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 ...

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 Teiichi (written: 貞一) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese sprinter *, Japanese composer *, Japanese general *, Japanese general Fictional characters

*, protagonist o ...

*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 (until 1 March);

Genjirō Kaneko is a Japanese politician and member of the Liberal Democratic Party. Kaneko served as Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries from October 2021 to August 2022. He has also represented the Nagasaki At-large district in the House of Counc ...

(starting 2 March) *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 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 ...

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 ...

Masahiro Ishii was the governor of Okayama Prefecture in Japan from November 1996 until November 2012. A native of Okayama, Okayama and graduate of the University of Tokyo, he had worked at the Ministry of Construction since 1969 before being elected governor. ...

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 ...

(until 10 December);

Keiichi Inamine is a Japanese politician who served as the fifth Governor of Okinawa from 1998 until 2006. He studied at, and graduated from, Keio University.

(starting 10 December) *

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 *

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 Yoshihiko is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yoshihiko can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *義彦, "justice, elegant boy" *義比古, "justice, young man (archaic)" *吉� ...

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 ...

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 ...

(until 20 July); Yoshitsugu Kunimatsu (starting 20 July) *Shiname Prefecture:

Nobuyoshi Sumita Nobuyoshi (written: 信吉, 信芳, 信義, 信喜, 信由, 経惟) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese photographer and artist *, Japanese chief executive *, Japanese sumo wrestler *, Japanese com ...

*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 (October 31, 1929 – August 4, 2004) was a Japanese actor most known for his work with Japanese New Wave director Nagisa Oshima. He was born in Tokyo and graduated from the University of Tokyo before joining the Shōchiku studio in 1956. Sele ...

*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 *Wakayama Prefecture: Isamu Nishiguchi *Yamagata Prefecture:

Kazuo Takahashi , ring name , is a Japanese retired mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1993 until 2013 (and then once again in 2018), he competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, Pancrase, RINGS, K-1 HERO'S, and World Victory Road. ...

*Yamaguchi Prefecture: Sekinari Nii *Yamanashi Prefecture: Ken Amano

Events

* February 7 – February 22: The

1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially known as the and commonly known as Nagano 1998 ( ja, 長野1998), was a winter multi-sport event held from 7 to 22 February 1998, mainly in Nagano, Japan, with some events taking place in the ...

are held in

Nagano Nagano may refer to: Places * Nagano Prefecture, a prefecture in Japan ** Nagano (city), the capital city of the same prefecture *** Nagano 1998, the 1998 Winter Olympics *** Nagano Olympic Stadium, a baseball stadium in Nagano *** Nagano Universi ...

. * March 5 – March 14: The

1998 Winter Paralympics The , the seventh Paralympic Winter Games, were held alongside the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan from 5 to 14 March 1998. They were the first Paralympic Winter Games to be held outside Europe. 571 athletes competed in Nagano; as 2022 it remain ...

are held in Nagano. * April 1:

Toyota City , formerly known as Koromo, is a city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 426,162 and a population density of 464 people per km2. The total area was . It is located about 35 minutes from Nagoya by way of the Meite ...

Fukuyama City is a city located on the Ashida River in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. As of September 30, 2019, the city has an estimated population of 468,812 and a population density of 904.80 persons per km2. The total area is . After Hiroshima, it is the l ...

Kōchi City Kochi is a city in Kerala, India. Kochi or Kōchi may also refer to: People * Kochi people, a predominantly Pashtun nomadic people of Afghanistan * , a Japanese surname: ** Arata Kochi (born 1948 or 1949), Japanese physician and World Health Org ...

and

Miyazaki City is the capital city of Miyazaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. The city was founded on April 1, 1924. As of July 2022, the city had an estimated population of 399,788 and a population density of 621 persons per km2. The total area ...

become

core cities The Core Cities Group (also Core Cities UK) is a self-selected and self-financed collaborative advocacy group of large regional cities in the United Kingdom outside Greater London. The group was formed in 1995 and serves as a partnership of el ...

. * April 5: The

Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge The is a suspension bridge which links the city of Kobe on the Japanese island of Honshu to Iwaya on Awaji Island. It is part of the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway, and crosses the busy and turbulent Akashi Strait (''Akashi Kaikyō'' in Japanese ...

linking

Shikoku is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...

with

Honshū , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separa ...

and costing about ¥ 500 billion (US$3.8 billion), opens to traffic, becoming the largest

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

in the world. * May 26: Takashi Imai is inaugurated as the 9th head of the

Keidanren The is an economic organization founded in May 2002 by amalgamation of Keidanren (, Japan Federation of Economic Organizations, established 1946; name sometimes used alone as abbreviation for whole organization) and Nikkeiren (, Japan Federatio ...

. * June 22:

Financial Services Agency The is a Japanese government agency and an integrated financial regulator responsible for overseeing banking, securities and exchange, and insurance sectors in order to ensure the stability of the financial system of Japan. The agency operates w ...

established. * July 5: Japan launches the Nozomi probe to

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

, joining the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

as an

outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...

-exploring nation. * July 12: Election for the House of Councillors held. * July 25: Masumi Hayashi poisons a curry pot at a festival in

Wakayama Wakayama may refer to: *Wakayama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan *Wakayama (city), the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture, Japan *Wakayama Station, a train station in Wakayama, Wakayama *Wakayama University , or , is a national university loc ...

, causing the death of two adults and two children. * September 3: ''

Metal Gear Solid is a series of techno-thriller stealth games created by Hideo Kojima. Developed and published by Konami, the first game, ''Metal Gear'', was released in 1987 for MSX home computers. The player often takes control of a special forces operat ...

'' is first released for the PS1 in Japan. * September 22 – 23: Typhoon Vivki causes damage to several cultural heritage sites in

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

and

and causing 19 deaths. * October 8: Japan-South Korea Joint Declaration of 1998. * November 13: Free solo climber

Alain Robert Alain Robert (born as Robert Alain Philippe on 7 August 1962) is a French rock climber and urban climber. Known as "the French Spider-Man" (after the comic character Spider-Man) or "the Human Spider", Robert is famous for his free solo climbing ...

scales the

Shinjuku Center Building The is a skyscraper in the Nishi-Shinjuku business district in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. It has a height of 223 metres and 54 floors. The building opened on October 31, 1979 and was fully renovated in 1998. It serves as the headquarters of the Tai ...

and is arrested on its roof. * November 26: Japan-China Joint Declaration On Building a Partnership of Friendship and Cooperation for Peace and Development. * December 18:

Mario Party is a party video game series featuring characters from the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise in which up to four local players or computer-controlled characters (called "CPU (gaming), CPUs") compete in a board game interspersed with mi ...

is released in Japan.

Births

* January 5 -

Marie Iitoyo is a Japanese actress and fashion model. Filmography Film Television Video on demand Japanese dub Publications Fashion Magazines * ''Niko☆Puchi''（April 2009 issue - June 2011 issue） - Exclusive model * '' Nicola''（June 2011 is ...

, model and actress * February 8 -

Rui Hachimura is a Japanese professional basketball player for the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs and is a member of the Japanese national team. Listed at and 230 ...

, basketball player * March 19 -

Sakura Miyawaki is a Japanese singer and actress based in South Korea. She is a member of the South Korean girl group Le Sserafim. Miyawaki began her music career with the girl group HKT48 in 2011, and was a concurrent member of their sister group AKB48 from ...

, singer (currently a member of

Le Sserafim Le Sserafim ( ; ; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean girl group formed by Source Music and Hybe Corporation. The group consists of five members: Sakura, Kim Chae-won, Huh Yun-jin, Kazuha and Hong Eun-chae. Originally a sextet, Kim Ga-ram ...

) * March 26 -

Satoko Miyahara is a retired Japanese figure skater. She is the 2015 World silver medalist, the 2018 World bronze medalist, the 2016 Four Continents champion, a two-time Four Continents silver medalist (2014, 2015), a two-time Grand Prix Final silver medalist ...

, figure skater * April 6 -

Rina Katsuta , formerly , is a Japanese idol girl group from the musical collective Hello! Project, which originally consisted of four former Hello! Pro Egg (''Hello! Project'' trainees) members that left Egg in 2010 and became full-time members of ''Hello! P ...

, singer * April 10 -

Airi Kinoshita Airi is a feminine given name used in several cultures, including Estonian, Finnish and Japanese. The Japanese name can be written as 愛里, 愛李, 愛莉, 愛理, 愛梨, 藍梨 or あいり in hiragana). In Estonian and Finnish the name is de ...

, murder victim (d.

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

) * April 28 -

Manamo Miyata is a Japanese singer, author and media personality. She is a second generation member of the idol group Hinatazaka46 and also noted for her knowledge in Japanese classic literature. Career Music On August 13, 2017, Miyata passed the auditio ...

, singer and member of

Hinatazaka46 is a Japanese idol group produced by Yasushi Akimoto. The group was established as a subgroup of Keyakizaka46 named Hiragana Keyakizaka46 on November 30, 2015, and was renamed and spun off into its own group on February 11, 2019. The group's ...

* May 13 -

Karen Iwata is an actress and former member of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48 under Team A. Biography Iwata was born on May 13, 1998 in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. Her mother is Miwa Sugawara, who works as a TV personality in Sendai. As a child, Iwata ...

, singer and voice actress * May 28 -

Riho Sayashi Riho Sayashi (鞘師里保 ''Sayashi Riho''; born May 28, 1998 in Hiroshima, Japan) is a Japanese dancer, actress, and singer. She is a former ninth generation member of the Japanese pop group Morning Musume, along with Mizuki Fukumura, Erina Iku ...

, J-pop singer * June 14 -

Taishi Nakagawa is a Japanese actor, host, and model. He is best known for his leading role as Yuiji Kira in the live action '' Closest Love To Heaven'', and as Tenma Hase in the second season of ''Hana Yori Dango''. Career Nakagawa originally started as a ch ...

, actor and model * June 19 -

Suzu Hirose is a Japanese actress and model. Despite her young age, she is widely regarded as one of the most promising Japanese actresses of her generation. Biography Hirose debuted as a model for Japanese fashion magazine ''Seventeen'', alongside her sis ...

, model and actress * July 9 - Tiger Onitsuka, jazz drummer * July 16 -

Rina Matsuno was a Japanese singer, model, actress and ''tarento'' who was a member of the idol group Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku. Career Matsuno was scouted into the entertainment industry in Tokyo in the Omotesandō Avenue when she was in the first grade of e ...

, singer (d.

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

) * July 17 - Shione Sawada, actress * July 26 -

Maya Sakura is an enka singer and child actress. In 2008, she made her debut with the single at the age of 10. In 2009, she received a "New Artist" award at the 51st Annual Japan Record Awards, becoming the youngest person to do so. She also appeared as a ...

, singer * July 27 -

Risa Watanabe is a Japanese fashion model and former idol. She is an exclusive model for the women's magazine ''non-no'' and a former member of the female Japanese idol group Sakurazaka46. Biography On August 21, 2015, Watanabe passed the audition for Keyaki ...

, idol and model * August 5 -

Kanon Suzuki Kanon may refer to: Buddhism * Kanon, a Japanese name for Guanyin, a Buddhist spiritual figure Media and literature * ''Kanon'' (video game), a Japanese visual novel by Key, later adapted into anime series * ''Kanon'' (manga), a manga by Chiho ...

, singer * August 17 -

Yoshinobu Yamamoto is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the Orix Buffaloes of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Professional career Yamamoto made his NPB debut on August 20, 2017 for the Orix Buffaloes. Yamamoto finished the 2021 season with an ...

, professional baseball player * August 28 -

Haruka Fukuhara is a Japanese actress, singer and model from Saitama Prefecture. From 2009 to 2012, she starred in ''Cooking Idol! I! My! Main'' as Main Hiiragi, portraying the character in both animated and live-action segments. Following the series' end, she h ...

, actress, model and singer * October 30 -

Meimi Tamura is a Japanese actress and singer. She is a former member of the Hello! Project group Angerme. Early life and background Meimi Tamura's mother was a Troupe Organizer, and acted at Gunma Prefecture in Japan. Her elder sister, Karen Tamura, was a ...

, singer and actress * November 12 -

Yuna Taira is a Japanese actress. Biography Taira was born in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, and grew up in Akashi, Hyōgo. Sankei Shimbun (April 4, 2015) . Taira was in the sixth grade at elementary school when her mother and grandmother applied for her to be ...

, actress * November 29 -

Ayumu Hirano is a Japanese Olympic champion and three-time Olympic medalist snowboarder and Olympic skateboarder. He won the silver medal in the superpipe in 2013 Winter X Games XVII at the age of 14, becoming the youngest medalist in X Games history, and wo ...

, snowboarder * December 30 -

Akari Uemura is a Japanese pop singer and idol pop singer signed to Hello! Project as a member of Japanese pop idol group Juice=Juice and Hello! Pro Kenshuusei. She was first introduced at the 2012 March ''Nama Tamago Show!'' concert. Her official nickname is ...

, pop singer

Deaths

* January 9 –

Kenichi Fukui was a Japanese chemist, known as the first Asian person to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Fukui was co-recipient of the 1981 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Roald Hoffmann, for their independent investigations into the mechanisms of ch ...

, Japanese chemist,

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

laureate (b. 1918) * January 21 –

Yoshifumi Kondō was a Japanese animator who worked for Studio Ghibli in his last years. He was born in Gosen, Niigata Prefecture, Japan. He worked as an animation director on ''Anne of Green Gables'', ''Sherlock Hound'', ''Kiki's Delivery Service'', '' Only Yest ...

, animator (b. 1950) * January 26 –

Shinichi Suzuki was a Japanese musician, philosopher, and educator and the founder of the international Suzuki method of music education and developed a philosophy for educating people of all ages and abilities. An influential pedagogue in music education of ...

, violinist (b. 1898) * January 27 –

Tamio Kageyama was a Japanese writer. The former television script writer and essayist won the 99th Naoki Prize in 1988 for his novel ''Coo: Tooi Umi Kara Kita Coo''. The novel was later adapted into an animated film. Kageyama also contributed to the films ''S ...

, novelist (b. 1947) * January 28 –

Shotaro Ishinomori was a Japanese manga artist who became an influential figure in manga, anime, and , creating several immensely popular long-running series such as ''Cyborg 009,'' the ''Super Sentai'' series (later adapted into the ''Power Rangers'' series), an ...

, Manga artist, "Father of Henshin heroes." (b. 1938) * February 5 –

Takahashi Chikuzan (; 1910–1998) was a renowned Japanese Tsugaru-jamisen performer and composer. He was born in Nakahiranai, a village that is now part of the Hiranai township in Aomori Prefecture. He lost his sight at around age two from measles before ...

Tsugaru-jamisen or refers to both the Japanese genre of music originating from Tsugaru Peninsula in present-day Aomori Prefecture and the instrument it is performed with. It is performed throughout Japan, though associations with the Tsugaru remain strong. ...

performer and composer (b. 1910) * March 10 –

Kenkō Satoshi Kenkō Satoshi (剣晃敏志, 27 June 1967 – 10 March 1998) was a sumo wrestler from Osaka, Japan. His highest rank was ''komusubi.'' Career Debuting in November 1984, he reached the second highest ''jūryō'' division in March 1991. His fir ...

, Sumo wrestler (b. 1967) * March 13 –

Kosho Uchiyama Kosho may refer to: *Emperor Kōshō, the fifth imperial ruler of Japan to appear on the traditional list of emperors *Kōshō, a Japanese era spanning from 1455 to 1457 *Kosho Shorei Ryu Kempo, a martial art system of Kenpo *Koshō, a premodern Ja ...

Sōtō Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Cáodòng school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Dòngshān L ...

priest (b. 1912) * April 20 –

Yoshio Inaba was a Japanese actor best known for his role as Gorobei in Akira Kurosawa's '' Seven Samurai''. In addition to his career in film, Inaba was also a prolific theater actor and a member of the prestigious Haiyuza Theatre Company. He died of a heart ...

, actor (b. 1920) * May 2 – Matsumoto Hideto (hide), Japanese musician (b. 1964) * May 10 –

Nekojiru , known by the pen name , was a Japanese manga artist. In 1990, she debuted in the June issue of the monthly manga anthology ''Garo'' with '' Nekojiru Udon'', which is now considered her definitive work. Early life Hashiguchi was born on Jan ...

, manga artist (b. 1967) * May 19 –

Sōsuke Uno was a Japanese politician who was briefly Prime Minister of Japan in 1989, the first Prime Minister who came from Shiga Prefecture. A scandal exposed by the geisha Mitsuko Nakanishi contributed to his premature resignation from office after just ...

(b. 1922) * August 3 –

Reizo Koike was a Japanese swimmer who specialized in the 200 m breaststroke. In this event he won a silver medal at the 1932 Olympics and a bronze medal at the 1936 Olympics, and set an unofficial world record in 100 m between these Olympics. During his ca ...

, breaststroke swimmer (b. 1915) * August 28 – Hirokazu Kobayashi,

aikidoka Aikidoka (合気道家'' aikidōka'') is a Japanese term for a master-level practitioner of the martial art Aikido. The term is rarely heard among native speakers of Japanese, in spite of its common use as a loanword in other countries. Etymolo ...

(b. 1929) * September 6 –

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

, screenwriter, producer, and director (b. 1910) * September 27 – Narita Bryan, racehorse (b. 1991) * October 12 –

Ineko Sata , also , born , was a Japanese writer closely connected to the Proletarian Literature Movement. An advocate of women's rights, she has also repeatedly been linked to the feminist movement. Biography Early life and career Born in Nagasaki to y ...

, communist and feminist author of

proletarian literature Proletarian literature refers here to the literature created by left-wing writers mainly for the class-conscious proletariat. Though the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' states that because it "is essentially an intended device of revolution", it is ...

(b. 1904) * November 1 –

Silence Suzuka Silence Suzuka (Japanese : サイレンススズカ, (May 1, 1994 - November 1, 1998) was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Grade I Takarazuka Kinen in 1998. In the same year, his career and life were cut short by an injury suffered du ...

, racehorse (b. 1994) * November 5 –

Momoko Kōchi (7 March 1932 – 5 November 1998), born , was a Japanese film, stage and television actress. She is best known for her roles in the original ''Godzilla'', playing the character of Emiko Yamane (a role she reprised in ''Godzilla vs. Destoro ...

, actress (b. 1932) * December 1 –

Shōji Nakayama (February 26, 1928 – December 1, 1998) was a Japanese film actor. Selected filmography * ''Kenpei'' (1953) * ''Senkan Yamato'' (1953) * ''Anatahan'' (1953) - Nishio * ''Yasen Kangofu'' (1953) - Nemoto * ''Waga koi no lila no kokage ni'' (195 ...

, actor (b. 1928) * December 2 –

Mikio Oda was a Japanese athlete and the first Japanese Olympic gold medalist. He was the first Asian Olympic champion in an individual event.Keisuke Kinoshita was a Japanese film director and screenwriter.Ronald Berganbr>"A satirical eye on Japan: Keisuke Kinoshita" ''The Guardian'', 5 January 1999. While lesser-known internationally than contemporaries such as Akira Kurosawa, Kenji Mizoguchi and Yasu ...

, film director (b. 1912)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1998 In Japan Years of the 20th century in Japan