Events in the year 1937 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 n ...

Incumbents

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

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 ...

: **

Kōki Hirota was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1936 to 1937. Originally his name was . He was executed for war crimes committed during the Second Sino-Japanese War at the Tokyo Trials. Early life Hirota w ...

: until February 2 **

Senjūrō Hayashi was a Japanese politician and general. He served as Imperial Japanese Army Commander of the Japanese Korean Army during the Mukden Incident and the invasion of Manchuria. He briefly served as Prime Minister of Japan in 1937. Early life Hay ...

: from February 2 until June 4 **

Fumimaro Konoe Prince was a Japanese politician and prime minister. During his tenure, he presided over the Japanese invasion of China in 1937 and the breakdown in relations with the United States, which ultimately culminated in Japan's entry into World W ...

: from June 4

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 Prefecture ...

: Eitaro Shinohara (until 10 February); Kotaro Tanaka (starting 10 February) *Akita Prefecture: Kiyoshi Honma (until 24 June); Kaoru Sasaki (starting 24 June) *Aomori Prefecture: Masanori Ogawa *Ehime Prefecture: Shizuo Furukawa *Fukui Prefecture: Masanori Hanyu (until 4 November); Nakano Yoshiro (starting 4 November) *Fukushima Prefecture: Ito Takehiko (until 7 July); Seikichi Kimishima (starting 7 July) *Gifu Prefecture: Chiaki Saka (until 20 February);

Miyano Shozo was Governor of Gifu Prefecture (1937–1941) and 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 ...

(starting 20 February) *Gunma Prefecture: Seikichi Kimishima (until 7 July); Shozo Tsuchiya (starting 7 July) *

Hiroshima Prefecture is a 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 Prefecture to the ...

: Saburo Hayakawa (until 8 January); Aijiro Tomita (starting 8 January) *

Ibaraki Prefecture is a 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, Tochigi Prefecture ...

: Ando Kyoushirou (until 8 January); Nobuo Hayashi (starting 8 January) *

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 ...

: Masasuke Kodama (until 1938);

Shunsuke Kondo Kondo Shunsuke

was the penultimate Governor of the South Seas Mandate ( ...

(starting 1938) *Iwate Prefecture: Hidehiko Ishiguro (until 5 June); Chiyoji Yukizawa (starting 5 June) *Kagawa Prefecture: Nagatoshi Fujioka (until 24 December); Shojiro Tamada (starting 24 December) *

Kumamoto Prefecture is a 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 the northeast, M ...

: Fujioka Nagawa *Kochi Prefecture: Kobayashi Mitsumasa * Kyoto Prefecture: Keiichi Suzuki *Mie Prefecture: ** until 8 January: Aijiro Tomita ** 8 January-4 November: Ando Kyoushirou ** 4 November-24 December: Hanyu Masaki ** starting 24 December: Masatoshi Sato *

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 no ...

: Yoshio Kikuyama *Miyazaki Prefecture: Seiya Mishima (until 7 July); Katsuroku Aikawa (starting 7 July) *

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 ...

: Shinsuke Kondo *

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

: Sekiya Nobuyuki *

Okayama Prefecture is a 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 km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture borders Tottori Prefecture to the ...

: Hisashi Kurashige *

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 cit ...

: Hisashi Kurashige *

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 Nagas ...

: Shizuo Furukawa (until 7 July); Tomoichi Koyama (starting 7 July) *

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 ...

: Jitsuzo Kawanishi *Shiname Prefecture: Kyuichi Kodama *Tochigi Prefecture: Hachimintsu Matsumura (until 1 October); Adachi Shuuritsu (starting 1 October) *

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 37.46 ...

: Tetsuji Kan *Toyama Prefecture: Ginjiro Toki *Yamagata Prefecture: Takei Yoshitsugu

Events

*January 4 - Two plates containing 58 scales are stolen off of the kinshachi (a kind of dolphin fish) affixed to the top of the castle tower of

Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...

. The culprit was apprehended 23 days later. *February 11 – Hasegawa Builder Corporation, as predecessor of Haseko Corporation founded in

Amagasaki 270px, Amagasaki Castle 270px, Aerial view of Amagasaki city center 270px, Amagasaki Station is an industrial city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 455,555 in 223812 households, and a population ...

, Hyogo Prefecture. *March 15-May 31 - Nagoya Pan-Pacific Peace Exposition (1937) *March 30 –

Marui is a Japanese multinational retail company which operates a chain of department stores in Tokyo as well in other major Japanese cities. They are best known for their women's fashion and accessories, which are aimed at the 25–35 age ran ...

founded as installndnt credit store in

Nakano, Tokyo is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Nakano City.1937 Japanese general election General elections were held in Japan on 31 March 1937. Rikken Minseitō emerged as the largest in Parliament, with 179 of the 466 seats. The election was a major victory for the Shakai Taishūtō, which became the third-largest party in the Diet. ...

*May – Mitsubishi Real Estate was founded. *July 6 – According to

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

official confirmed report, a caught fire in Handa Mental Rescue Hospital in

Hiroshima City is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsu ...

, kills 23 persons. *July 7–9 -

Marco Polo Bridge Incident The Marco Polo Bridge Incident, also known as the Lugou Bridge Incident () or the July 7 Incident (), was a July 1937 battle between China's National Revolutionary Army and the Imperial Japanese Army. Since the Japanese invasion of Manchuri ...

*early July-early August -

Battle of Beiping-Tianjin A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

*July 26 - Langfang Incident *July 29 - Tungchow Mutiny *August - Operation Chahar *August–November -

Tianjin–Pukou Railway Operation The Tientsin–Pukow Railway Operation ( ja, 津浦線作戦; early August to mid November, 1937) was a follow up operation to the Battle of Beiping-Tianjin of the Japanese army in North China at the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War, foug ...

*August–December - Beiping-Hankou Railway Operation *August 13-November 26 -

Battle of Shanghai The Battle of Shanghai () was the first of the twenty-two major engagements fought between the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Republic of China (ROC) and the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) of the Empire of Japan at the beginning of the ...

*September 1-November 9 - Battle of Taiyuan *September 13-November 11 -

Battle of Xinkou The Battle of Xinkou () was a decisive engagement of the Taiyuan Campaign, the second of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Prelude After battles at N ...

*September 24–25 -

Battle of Pingxingguan The Battle of Pingxingguan (), commonly called the Great Victory of Pingxingguan in Mainland China, was an engagement fought on 25 September 1937, at the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War, between the Eighth Route Army of the Chinese ...

*October 26-November 1 -

Defense of Sihang Warehouse The Defense of Sihang Warehouse () took place from October 26 to November 1, 1937, and marked the beginning of the end of the three-month Battle of Shanghai in the opening phase of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Defenders of the warehouse h ...

*December 12 - USS Panay incident *December 20 – According to former Japan Education Ministry official confirmed report, a caught fire in South Tonda Primary School,

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture ...

, kills 81 persons, mostly school children.

Births

*February 12 –

Keisuke Sagawa was a Japanese actor and ''tarento'' who was the first Taisō no Onīsan. He was born in Tokyo. His wife was actress and voice actress Nobuyo Ōyama. Biography While attending Seijo High School, he appeared in numerous socialist films such as '' ...

, actor (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 s ...

) *March 25 – Hidekatsu Shibata, actor, voice actor and narrator *April 6 – Minoru Betsuyaku, playwright, novelist, and essayist *April 18 – Keiko Abe, marimba player and composer *May 26 – Monkey Punch, manga artist (

Lupin III , also written as ''Lupin the Third'', ''Lupin the 3rd'', or ''Lupin the IIIrd'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Monkey Punch. It follows the endeavors of master thief Arsène Lupin III, the grandson of Arsèn ...

) (d.

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

) *May 29 –

Hibari Misora was a Japanese singer, actress and cultural icon. She received a Medal of Honor for her contributions to music and for improving the welfare of the public, and was the first woman to receive the People's Honour Award, which was conferred posthu ...

, singer and actress (d.

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

) *June 25 –

Keizō Obuchi was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1998 to 2000. Obuchi was elected to the House of Representatives in Gunma Prefecture in 1963, becoming the youngest legislator in Japanese history, and was re-elected to his ...

, Prime Minister of Japan (d.

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

) *July 14 –

Yoshirō Mori is a former Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan between April 2000 and April 2001. He was unpopular in opinion polls during his time in office, and is known for making controversial statements, both during and after his ...

, Prime Minister of Japan *July 29 – Ryutaro Hashimoto, Prime Minister of Japan (d.

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro votes to declare independence from Serbia; The 2006 ...

) *August 26 –

Kenji Utsumi was a Japanese actor and voice actor from Kitakyūshū, affiliated with the self-founded Ken Production. He was best known for his roles in ''Sally the Witch (1966)'' (as Sally's Papa), ''Fist of the North Star'' (as Raoh and Kaioh), ''Dr. Slu ...

, actor and voice actor (d.

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

)

Deaths

*May 2 – Takuji Iwasaki, meteorologist, biologist, ethnologist historian (b.

1869 Events January–March * January 3 – Abdur Rahman Khan is defeated at Tinah Khan, and exiled from Afghanistan. * January 5 – Scotland's oldest professional Soccer, football team, Kilmarnock F.C., is founded. * January 20 & ...

) *July 16 –

Kanichiro Tashiro was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army at the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Biography A native of Saga prefecture, Tashiro graduated from the 15th class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1903 and the 25th class o ...

, lieutenant general (b.

1881 Events January–March * January 1– 24 – Siege of Geok Tepe: Russian troops under General Mikhail Skobelev defeat the Turkomans. * January 13 – War of the Pacific – Battle of San Juan and Chorrillos: The ...

) *August 19: ** Ikki Kita, philosopher and 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. * Janua ...

) ** Asaichi Isobe, army officer (b

1905 As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia ( Shostakovich's 11th Symphony ...

) **

Takaji Muranaka was an Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were n ...

, Army officer (b

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 19 – The first west–east transatlantic radio broadcast is made from the United States to England (the first east–west broadcast having bee ...

) *October 22 –

Chūya Nakahara , born , was a Japanese poet active during the early Shōwa period. Originally shaped by Dada and other forms of European (mainly French) experimental poetry, he was one of the leading renovators of Japanese poetry. Although he died at the youn ...

, poet (b

1907 Events January * January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000. February * February 11 – The French warship ''Jean Bart'' sinks off the coast of Morocco ...

) *December 6 –

Sone Tatsuzō was a Japanese architect noted for his use of western architectural styles in the later Meiji period. One of the famous disciples of Josiah Conder. Early life and career Together with Katayama Tokuma, Tatsuno Kingo and Satachi Shichijiro, o ...

, architect (b

1853 Events January–March * January 6 – Florida Governor Thomas Brown signs legislation that provides public support for the new East Florida Seminary, leading to the establishment of the University of Florida. * January 8 – Taiping Reb ...

)

References

{{Asia topic, 1937 in 1930s in Japan