is the
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...
of
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 lyrics are from a ' poem written by an unnamed author in the
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...
(794–1185), and the current melody was chosen in 1880, replacing an unpopular melody composed by
John William Fenton
John William Fenton (12 March 1828 – 28 April 1890) was an Irish musician of Scottish descent and the leader of a military band in Japan at the start of the Meiji period. He is considered "the first bandmaster in Japan" and "the father of band ...
eleven years earlier. While the title "Kimigayo" is usually translated as "His Imperial Majesty's Reign", no official translation of the title or lyrics has been established in law.
From 1888 to 1945, "Kimigayo" served as the national anthem of the
Empire of Japan
The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent fo ...
. When the Empire was dissolved following
its surrender at the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the State of Japan succeeded it in 1945. This
successor state
Succession of states is a concept in international relations regarding a successor state that has become a sovereign state over a territory (and populace) that was previously under the sovereignty of another state. The theory has its roots in 19th- ...
was a
parliamentary democracy
A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...
, and the
polity
A polity is an identifiable Politics, political entity – a group of people with a collective identity, who are organized by some form of Institutionalisation, institutionalized social relation, social relations, and have a capacity to mobilize ...
therefore changed from a system based on imperial
sovereignty
Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...
to one based on
popular sovereignty
Popular sovereignty is the principle that the authority of a state and its government are created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political power. Popular sovereignty, being a principle, does not imply any ...
. However, the
U.S. occupation forces allowed
Emperor 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 ...
to retain the throne and "Kimigayo" remained the ''
de facto
''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
'' national anthem. The passage of the
Act on National Flag and Anthem
The , abbreviated as , is a law that formally established Japan's national flag and anthem. Before its ratification on August 13, 1999, there was no official flag or anthem for Japan. The flag, commonly referred to as the , had represented Japan ...
in 1999 recognized it as the official national and imperial anthem.
Etymology
"''Kimi''" has been used to indicate an emperor or one's lord (i.e., master) since at least the Heian period.
[新村出記念財団(1998). A dictionary of ]language
Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...
『広辞苑』 ("''Kōjien''"), 5th edition. Published b
Iwanami Shoten, Publishers
[ ] For example, the protagonist of ''
the Tale of Genji'' is also called . But before the
Nara period
The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the cap ...
, the emperor was often called "''opokimi''" (great lord); so it is controversial whether or not the word "''kimi''" in "''kimigayo''" had meant "emperor" originally.
In the
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...
, "Kimigayo" was used as a festive song among samurai, and then became popular among the people in the
Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...
. In the later part of the Edo period, "Kimigayo" was used in the Ōoku (harem of Edo Castle) and
Satsuma-han (now Kagoshima Prefecture) as a common festive new year song. In those contexts, "''kimi''" never meant the emperor, but only the Tokugawa shōgun, the
Shimazu clan
The were the ''daimyō'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ōsumi and Hyūga provinces in Japan.
The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyō'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in contrast ...
as rulers of the Satsuma-han, guests of honor, or all members of a festive drinking party. After the Meiji Restoration, samurai from Satsuma-han controlled the Imperial Japanese government, and they adopted "Kimigayo" as the national anthem of Japan. From this time until the Japanese defeat in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, "Kimigayo" was understood to mean the long reign of the emperor. With the adoption of the
Constitution of Japan
The Constitution of Japan (Shinjitai: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ) is the constitution of Japan and the supreme law in the state. Written primarily by American civilian officials working under the Allied occupation of Japan, the constitution r ...
in 1947, the emperor became no longer a
sovereign
''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'.
The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...
who ruled by
divine right, but a human who is a symbol of the state and of the unity of the people.
The Ministry of Education did not give any new meanings for "Kimigayo" after the war; this allowed the song to mean the Japanese people. The Ministry also did not formally renounce the pre-war meaning of "Kimigayo".
In 1999, during the deliberations of the
Act on National Flag and Anthem
The , abbreviated as , is a law that formally established Japan's national flag and anthem. Before its ratification on August 13, 1999, there was no official flag or anthem for Japan. The flag, commonly referred to as the , had represented Japan ...
, the official definition of ''Kimi'' or ''Kimi-ga-yo'' was questioned repeatedly. The first suggestion, which was given by Chief Cabinet Secretary
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 ...
, stated that ''kimi'' meant the "emperor as the symbol of Japan", and that the entire lyrics wish for the peace and prosperity of Japan. He referred to the new status of emperor as established in Article 1 of the Constitution of Japan as the main reason for these suggestions.
During the same session, Prime Minister
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 ...
confirmed this meaning with a statement on June 29, 1999:
"''Kimi''" indicates the Emperor, who is the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people, and whose position is derived from the consensus-based will of Japanese citizens, with whom sovereign power resides. And, the phrase "Kimigayo" indicates our State, Japan, which has the Emperor enthroned as the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people by the consensus-based will of Japanese citizens. And it is reasonable to take the lyric of "Kimigayo" to mean the wish for the lasting prosperity and peace of such country of ours.
Parties opposed to the
Liberal Democratic Party, which was in control of the government at the time Obuchi was prime minister, strongly objected to the government's meaning of ''kimi'' and "Kimigayo". Members of the Democratic Party of Japan objected on the grounds that there was a lack of any historical ties to the meaning. The strongest critic was Kazuo Shii, the chairman of the
Communist Party of Japan
The is a left-wing to far-left political party in Japan. With approximately 270,000 members belonging to 18,000 branches, it is one of the largest non-governing communist parties in the world.
The party advocates the establishment of a democr ...
, who strongly claimed that "Japan" could not be derived from "Kimigayo", because the lyrics only mention wishing for the emperor to have a long reign. Shii also objected to the use of the song as the national anthem, saying that for a democratic nation, an anthem about the emperor was not appropriate.
History
Empire of Japan (1868–1945)
![Kimigayo-Anthem-Japan-Sheet-Music-1888](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Kimigayo-Anthem-Japan-Sheet-Music-1888.png)
The lyrics first appeared in the ''
Kokin Wakashū
The , commonly abbreviated as , is an early anthology of the ''waka'' form of Japanese poetry, dating from the Heian period. An imperial anthology, it was conceived by Emperor Uda () and published by order of his son Emperor Daigo () in about ...
'', a poetry anthology published in ca.920, as an anonymous poem. The poem was included in many anthologies, and was used in a later period as a celebration song of a long life by people of all social statures. Unlike the form used for the current national anthem, the poem originally began with "''Waga Kimi wa''" ('my lord') instead of "''Kimiga Yo wa''" ('my lord's reign').
The first lyrics were changed during the Kamakura period, while the rest of the lyrics stayed the same. Because the lyrics were sung on informal occasions, such as birthdays, there was no sheet music for it until the 19th century.
In 1869,
John William Fenton
John William Fenton (12 March 1828 – 28 April 1890) was an Irish musician of Scottish descent and the leader of a military band in Japan at the start of the Meiji period. He is considered "the first bandmaster in Japan" and "the father of band ...
, a visiting Irish military band leader, realized that there was no national anthem in Japan, and suggested to
Iwao Ōyama, an officer of the
Satsuma Clan
The were the '' daimyō'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ōsumi and Hyūga provinces in Japan.
The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyō'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in con ...
, that one be created. Ōyama agreed, and selected the lyrics.
The lyrics may have been chosen for their similarity to the
British national anthem, due to Fenton's influence.
After selecting the anthem's lyrics, Ōyama then asked Fenton to create the melody. After being given just two to three weeks to compose the melody, and only a few days to rehearse, Fenton debuted the anthem before the Japanese Emperor in 1870.
This was the first version of "Kimigayo". This was discarded because the melody "lacked solemnity", according to the Japanese government,
although others believe it is because the melody was actually "unsingable" for the Japanese. However, this version is still performed annually at the ''Myōkōji'' temple in
Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...
, where Fenton served as a military band leader. ''Myōkōji'' serves as a memorial to him.
In 1880, the
Ministry of the Imperial Household
The was a division of the eighth century Japanese government of the Imperial Court in Kyoto, instituted in the Asuka period and formalized during the Heian period. The Ministry was reorganized in the Meiji period and existed until 1947, befor ...
adopted a new melody composed by Yoshiisa Oku and Akimori Hayashi. The composer is often listed as
Hiromori Hayashi
was a Japanese composer credited with composing the Japanese national anthem "Kimigayo".
Life and career
He held several positions in the royal court starting in his youth. He moved to Tokyo after the Meiji Restoration and in 1875 helped carry ...
, who was their supervisor and Akimori's father. Akimori was also one of Fenton's pupils.
Although the melody is based on a traditional mode of Japanese court music, it is composed in a mixed style influenced by Western hymns, and uses some elements of the Fenton arrangement.
[Hermann Gottschewski: "''Hoiku shōka'' and the melody of the Japanese national anthem ''Kimi ga yo''", in: ''Journal of the Society for Research in Asiatic Music'' (東洋音楽研究), No. 68 (2003), pp. 1–17. Published b]
The society for Research in Asiatic Music
The German musician
Franz Eckert
Franz Eckert (5 April 1852 – 6 August 1916) was a German composer and musician who composed the harmony for Japan's national anthem, "Kimigayo" and the national anthem of the Korean Empire, " Aegukga".
Early life and education
Eckert was ...
applied the melody with Western style harmony, creating the second and current version of "Kimigayo". The government formally adopted "Kimigayo" as the national anthem in 1888 and had copies of the music and lyrics sent overseas for diplomatic ceremonies.
By 1893, "Kimigayo" was included in public school ceremonies due to the efforts of the then
Ministry of Education
An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
.
At the turn of the 20th century, "Kimigayo" was beginning to be closely associated with the idea of honoring the Emperor. It was also associated as a part of Japanese education. However, opinions expressed in an Osaka paper in 1904 calls "Kimigayo" a song for the imperial family and not the state as a whole.
Uchimura Kanzo Uchimura may refer to
* Uchimura (surname)
* Uchimura Dam in the Nagano Prefecture, Japan
*Uchimura Produce
, produced by Teruyoshi Uchimura, is a Japanese TV comedy program that aired from 2000 to 2005 on TV Asahi.
Summary
The program that Ter ...
, a Christian leader in Japan, stated at the turn of the 20th century that "Kimigayo" is not the anthem of Japan by saying the song's purpose is to praise the emperor. According to Kanzo, a national anthem should express the feelings of the people, and not of the divine emperor. The Japanese were not familiar with "Kimigayo" as the anthem until there was a surge of celebrations after victories in the
First Sino-Japanese and
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
s. Previously, papers were critical of fellow Japanese who could not sing "Kimigayo" properly at ceremonies overseas.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the
Japanese Empire
The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent forma ...
ordered that schoolchildren, both from its homeland and
its colonies, were to sing the "Kimigayo" anthem and salute
Emperor 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 ...
every morning.
Postwar Japan (1945–present)
1945 to 1999
During the
American occupation of Japan
Japan was occupied and administered by the victorious Allies of World War II from the 1945 surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of the war until the
Treaty of San Francisco took effect in 1952. The occupation, led by the United States wi ...
, there were no directives by the
Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers
was the title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the United States-led Allied occupation of Japan following World War II. It issued SCAP Directives (alias SCAPIN, SCAP Index Number) to the Japanese government, aiming to suppress its "milit ...
to restrict the use of "Kimigayo" by the Japanese government. This was different from the regulations issued that restricted the use of the ''Hinomaru'' flag.
Along with the encouragement to use "Kimigayo" in the schools to promote defense education and patriotism, the national broadcaster
NHK
, also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee.
NHK operates two terrestr ...
began to use the song to announce the start and ending of its programming.
Since 1999
![国旗及び国歌に関する法律](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/%E5%9B%BD%E6%97%97%E5%8F%8A%E3%81%B3%E5%9B%BD%E6%AD%8C%E3%81%AB%E9%96%A2%E3%81%99%E3%82%8B%E6%B3%95%E5%BE%8B.jpg)
The "
Act on National Flag and Anthem
The , abbreviated as , is a law that formally established Japan's national flag and anthem. Before its ratification on August 13, 1999, there was no official flag or anthem for Japan. The flag, commonly referred to as the , had represented Japan ...
" was passed in 1999, choosing both the ''Hinomaru'' and "Kimigayo" as Japan's national symbols. The passage of the law stemmed from a suicide of a school principal in Hiroshima who could not resolve a dispute between his school board and his teachers over the use of the ''Hinomaru'' and "Kimigayo".
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 ...
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 ...
of the
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) decided to draft legislation to make the ''Hinomaru'' and "Kimigayo" official symbols of Japan in 2000. His
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 ...
,
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 ...
, wanted the legislation to be completed by the 10th anniversary of the coronation of
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 ...
as Emperor.
This is not the first time legislation was considered for establishing both symbols as official. In 1974, with the backdrop of the 1972 return of Okinawa to Japan and the
1973 oil crisis
The 1973 oil crisis or first oil crisis began in October 1973 when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), led by Saudi Arabia, proclaimed an oil embargo. The embargo was targeted at nations that had supp ...
, Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka hinted at a law being passed legalizing both symbols.
The main supporters of the bill were the LDP and the
Komeito
, formerly New Komeito and abbreviated NKP, is a conservative political party in Japan founded by lay members of the Buddhist Japanese new religious movement Soka Gakkai in 1964. Since 2012, it has served in government as the junior coalitio ...
(CGP), while the opposition included the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
For ...
(SDPJ) and
Communist Party
A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...
(CPJ), who cited the connotations both symbols had with the war era. The CPJ was further opposed for not allowing the issue to be decided by the public. Meanwhile, the
Democratic Party of Japan
The was a centristThe Democratic Party of Japan was widely described as centrist:
*
*
*
*
*
*
* to centre-left liberal or social-liberal political party in Japan from 1998 to 2016.
The party's origins lie in the previous Democratic Part ...
(DPJ) could not develop party consensus on it. President of the DPJ,
Naoto Kan
is a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) from June 2010 to September 2011. Kan was the first Prime Minister since the resignation of Junichiro Koizumi in 2006 to serve for m ...
stated that the DPJ must support the bill because the party already recognized both symbols as the symbols of Japan. Deputy Secretary General and future prime minister
Yukio Hatoyama
is a former Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 16 September 2009 to 8 June 2010. He was the first Prime Minister from the modern Democratic Party of Japan.
First elected to the House of Representatives in 1986, Hatoy ...
thought that this bill would cause further divisions among society and the public schools.
Before the vote, there were calls for the bills to be separated at the Diet.
Waseda University
, abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the ''Tōkyō Senmon Gakkō'' by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the school was formally renamed Waseda University in 1902.
The university has numerou ...
professor Norihiro Kato stated that "Kimigayo" is a separate issue more complex than the ''Hinomaru'' flag. Attempts to designate only the ''Hinomaru'' as the national flag by the DPJ and other parties during the vote of the bill were rejected by the Diet. The House of Representatives passed the bill on July 22, 1999, by a 403 to 86 vote. The legislation was sent to the House of Councilors on July 28 and was passed on August 9. It was enacted into law on August 13.
Protocol
![Kimi ga Yo at volleyball tournament](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Kimi_ga_Yo_at_volleyball_tournament.jpg)
The lyrics and
musical notation
Music notation or musical notation is any system used to visually represent aurally perceived music played with instruments or sung by the human voice through the use of written, printed, or otherwise-produced symbols, including notation fo ...
of the anthem are given in the second appendix of the
Act on National Flag and Anthem
The , abbreviated as , is a law that formally established Japan's national flag and anthem. Before its ratification on August 13, 1999, there was no official flag or anthem for Japan. The flag, commonly referred to as the , had represented Japan ...
. As for the sheet music itself, it displays a vocal arrangement with no mention of tempo and all of the lyrics in
hiragana
is a Japanese syllabary, part of the Japanese writing system, along with ''katakana'' as well as ''kanji''.
It is a phonetic lettering system. The word ''hiragana'' literally means "flowing" or "simple" kana ("simple" originally as contrast ...
. The anthem is composed in 4/4 (
common time
The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...
) in the
Dorian mode
Dorian mode or Doric mode can refer to three very different but interrelated subjects: one of the Ancient Greek ''harmoniai'' (characteristic melodic behaviour, or the scale structure associated with it); one of the medieval musical modes; or—mos ...
.
The
Act on National Flag and Anthem
The , abbreviated as , is a law that formally established Japan's national flag and anthem. Before its ratification on August 13, 1999, there was no official flag or anthem for Japan. The flag, commonly referred to as the , had represented Japan ...
does not detail how one should show respect during performances of "Kimigayo". In a statement made by Prime Minister Obuchi, the legislation will not impose new regulations on the Japanese people when it comes to respecting the flag or anthem. However, local government bodies and private organizations sometimes suggest or demand certain protocols be followed. For example, an October 2003 directive by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government required teachers to stand during the national anthem at graduation ceremonies. While standing, the teachers are required to sing "Kimigayo" while facing the
''Hinomaru''. United States military personnel are required by regulations to render honors with a hand salute, or when in civilian dress, to place their right hand over their heart when "Kimigayo", "
The Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the b ...
", or any other national anthem is performed. The Act on National Flag and Anthem also does not dictate when or where "Kimigayo" should be played. The anthem, however, is commonly played at sporting events inside of Japan, or at international sporting events where Japan has a competing team. At
''sumō'' tournaments, "Kimigayo" is played before the awards ceremony.
Public schools
Since the end of World War II, the
Ministry of Education
An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
has issued statements and regulations to promote the usage of both the ''Hinomaru'' and "Kimigayo" at schools under their jurisdiction. The first of these statements was released in 1950, stating that it was desirable, but not required, to use both symbols. This desire was later expanded to include both symbols on national holidays and during ceremonial events to encourage students on what national holidays are and to promote defense education. The Ministry not only took great measures to explain that both symbols are not formally established by law, they also referred to "Kimigayo" as a song and refused to call it the national anthem. It was not until 1977 that the Ministry referred to "Kimigayo" as the of Japan.
In a 1989 reform of the education guidelines, the LDP-controlled government first demanded that the ''Hinomaru'' flag must be used in school ceremonies and that proper respect must be given to it and to "Kimigayo". Punishments for school officials who did not follow this order were also enacted with the 1989 reforms.
The 1999
curriculum guideline
is a standard issued by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology(MEXT) that specifies materials taught at all of elementary, junior and senior high schools in Japan, either public or private. The authority of the minis ...
issued by the Ministry of Education after the passage of the ''Law Regarding the National Flag and Anthem'' decrees that "on entrance and graduation ceremonies, schools must raise the flag of Japan and instruct students to sing the "Kimigayo" (national anthem), given the significance of the flag and the song." Additionally, the ministry's commentary on 1999 curriculum guideline for elementary schools note that "given the advance of internationalization, along with fostering patriotism and awareness of being Japanese, it is important to nurture school children's respectful attitude toward the flag of Japan and "Kimigayo" as they grow up to be respected Japanese citizens in an internationalized society."
The ministry also stated that if Japanese students cannot respect their own symbols, then they will not be able to respect the symbols of other nations.
Present-day perception
According to a survey conducted by TV Asahi, most Japanese people perceived "Kimigayo" as an important, yet a controversial song even before the passage of the ''
Act on National Flag and Anthem
The , abbreviated as , is a law that formally established Japan's national flag and anthem. Before its ratification on August 13, 1999, there was no official flag or anthem for Japan. The flag, commonly referred to as the , had represented Japan ...
'' in 1999.
However, a poll in the same year, conducted by the Mainichi Shimbun, found that most respondents opposed legislation that make it the national anthem, or thought that the Diet should take more time in passing such a law.
Many Japanese students, who must sing the song at entrance and graduation ceremonies, say they cannot understand the old and obsolete language of the lyrics and are not educated on its historical uses.
Controversies surrounding the use of the anthem in school events still remain.
Lyrics
Japanese original
English translations
Controversies
Japan's national anthem is controversial due to its post-war history.
Schools
A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compulsor ...
have been the center of controversy over both it and the national flag.
The Tokyo Board of Education requires the use of both "Kimigayo" and flag at events under their jurisdiction. The order requires school teachers to respect both symbols or risk losing their jobs.
In 1999, several teachers in
Hiroshima
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 Matsui h ...
refused to put up the anthem while the Hiroshima Education Board demanded that they do so. As the tension arose between them, a vice-principal killed himself. A similar incident in Osaka in 2010 also occurred, with 32 teachers refusing to sing the song in a ceremony. In 2011, nine more teachers joined the rebellion, along with another eight in 2012.
Hashimoto Toru, the mayor of
Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
, stated that "
was good that criminals who are intent on breaking the rules have risen to the surface". Some have protested that such rules violate the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the Human rights, rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN Drafting of the Universal De ...
and the "freedom of thought, belief and conscience" clause in the
Constitution of Japan
The Constitution of Japan (Shinjitai: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ) is the constitution of Japan and the supreme law in the state. Written primarily by American civilian officials working under the Allied occupation of Japan, the constitution r ...
,
but the Board has argued that since schools are government agencies, their employees have an obligation to teach their students how to be good Japanese citizens. Teachers have unsuccessfully brought criminal complaints against Tokyo Governor
Shintarō Ishihara
was a Japanese politician and writer who was Governor of Tokyo from 1999 to 2012. Being the former leader of the radical right Japan Restoration Party, he was one of the most prominent ultranationalists in modern Japanese politics. An ultra ...
and senior officials for ordering teachers to honor the ''Hinomaru'' and "Kimigayo".
After earlier opposition, the
Japan Teachers Union
, abbreviated , is Japan's largest and oldest labor union of teachers and school staff. The union is known for its critical stance against the conservative Liberal Democratic Party government on such issues as ''Kimigayo'' (the national anthem) ...
accepts the use of both the flag and national anthem; the smaller All Japan Teachers and Staffs Union still opposes both symbols and their use inside the school system.
In 2006, Katsuhisa Fujita, a retired teacher in Tokyo, was threatened with imprisonment and fined 200,000
yen
The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar (US$) and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the e ...
(roughly 2,000
US dollars
The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from Dollar, other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American ...
) after he was accused of disturbing a graduation ceremony at
Itabashi
is a special ward located in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. In English, it calls itself Itabashi City. Itabashi has sister-city relations with Burlington, Ontario, in Canada; Shijingshan District of Beijing in the People's Republic of China; and ...
High School by urging the attendees to remain seated during the playing of the national anthem. At the time of Fujita's sentence, 345 teachers had been punished for refusing to take part in anthem related events, though Fujita is the only man to have been convicted in relation to it. On September 21, 2006, the Tokyo District Court ordered the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to pay compensation to the teachers who had been subjected to punishment under the directive of the Tokyo Board of Education. The then
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 ...
Junichiro Koizumi
Junichiro Koizumi (; , ''Koizumi Jun'ichirō'' ; born 8 January 1942) is a former Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics in 2009. He is ...
commented, "It is a natural idea to treat the national anthem importantly". The ruling was appealed by the Metropolitan Government. From October 23, 2003 to 2008, 410 teachers and school workers were punished for refusing to stand and sing the anthem as ordered by school principals. Teachers can also be punished if their students do not stand while "Kimigayo" is played during school ceremonies.
On 30 May 2011 and 6 June 2011, two panels of the
Supreme Court of Japan
The , located in Hayabusachō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda, Tokyo, is the Supreme court, highest court in Japan. It has ultimate judicial authority to interpret the Constitution of Japan, Japanese constitution and decide questions of national law. It ...
ruled that it was constitutional to require teachers to stand in front of the
Hinomaru
The national flag of Japan is a rectangular white banner bearing a crimson-red circle at its center. This flag is officially called the , but is more commonly known in Japan as the . It embodies the country's sobriquet: the Land of the Rising S ...
and sing the Kimigayo during school ceremonies. In making the ruling, the panels ratified the decision of the
Tokyo High Court
is a high court in Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The is a special branch of Tokyo High Court.
Japan has eight high courts: Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Sendai, Sapporo, and Takamatsu. Each court has jurisdiction over one of ...
in ruling against 13 teachers who had asked for court relief after being disciplined between 2003 and 2005 for refusing to stand and sing the anthem.
Outside of the school system, there was a controversy regarding "Kimigayo" soon after the passage of the 1999 law. A month after the law's passage, a record containing a performance of "Kimigayo" by Japanese rock musician
Kiyoshiro Imawano
, born , was a Japanese rock musician, lyricist, composer, musical producer, and actor from Tokyo, Japan. He was dubbed "Japan's King of Rock". He formed and led the influential rock band RC Succession. He wrote many anti-nuclear songs followin ...
was removed by Polydor Records from his album ''Fuyu no Jujika''. Polydor did not want to attract harassment from
far-right groups. In response, Imawano re-released the album through an independent label with the track in question.
See also
Notes
References
Citations
Works cited
*
*
*
*
*
*
* Marshall, Alex.
Republic or Death! Travels in Search of National Anthems', Windmill Books, 2016,
*
Further reading
Legislation
*
External links
* Web-Japan.or
National Flag and AnthemKimigayo: streaming audio, lyrics and information* About.co
Recording of original Fenton version
{{good article
Empire of Japan
Japanese poems
Japanese songs
Japanese-language songs
Japanese patriotic songs
Asian anthems
National anthems
National symbols of Japan
Postwar Japan
Royal anthems
Articles containing Japanese poems
1880 songs
National anthem compositions in A minor
National anthem compositions in C major
Controversial national anthems