Nostalgia, excitement as Japan awaits new imperial era name

It's become something people can casually talk about, and even a topic on television quiz shows

That pretty much sums it up. Lived here for 25 years and still never met a Japanese person who know what Heisei year it is without checking on their phone. Tradition but not much else...

How about calling it the common era and starting at the year 2019?

This has given all the TV networks a chance to run all sorts of programs reliving the "Heisei" era. The next month is going to be full of them! That along with the "Last of Hesei........(fill in the blank/specials/sales/ tournaments/movies/etc etc etc)

(Saved them the trouble of actually producing something worth watching!)

Pardon my sarcasm this early Monday AM, but the way things go over-board here sometimes just makes me nauseous!

Lived here for 25 years and still never met a Japanese person who know what Heisei year it is without checking on their phone. 

You must live in some weird bubble. I figuratively see Japanese people write it every day without looking at their phone. All the time.

That pretty much sums it up. Lived here for 25 years and still never met a Japanese person who know what Heisei year it is without checking on their phone. Tradition but not much else.

Do you mean what year it is in the Gregorian calendar? Like Hesei 31 is 2019?

That sounds kind of weird, as everybody I live and work with sure as hell "knows" what Hesei year it is and I agree with Strangerland here, I see people who need to check between the two, never just to check what Heisei it is now.

How about calling it the common era and starting at the year 2019?

Then it wouldn't be Japan!

I know what the Era will be named but I have promised I will keep it secret until 11:30AM. After that all bets are off.

I heard the Koreans are demanding the new era be called 陳謝 (a formal apology for some wrong doing).

I heard the Koreans are demanding the new era be called 陳謝 (a formal apology for some wrong doing).

Really? I heard a new era name under consideration will be 遠韓　(distancing oneself from Korea).

Luckily I don’t watch tv. It will be wall to wall about this name. For days...

"The era names carry this weight with them; they have this sense of defining a period,"

maybe because they do define a period?

Akihito was a decent and low key emperor but the coming emperor Naruhito appears to be a self assertive person. Wait to see.

hopefully not some right wing jingoism

Funny, I always knew which year it was because the top of the windscreens all around Japan always reminded me. Especially mine.

Heisei era has been a fabulous and prosperous time for Japan. Especially in the past decade, "Japan is Back", as Abe Shinzo famously said.

May the new era continue this good fortune!

Do most people in Japan even care very much about this?

Do most people in Japan even care very much about this?

Yes they do.

While I think its not very influential on a day to day basis some tradition keeps things interesting and different.

My only hope is, it embraces peace, love and forward looking ideas and doesn't make calls to Japan's "strong" past. I have some concerns with the somewhat right leaning government there may be hints of it, but hope that isn't the case. Better to go for something more likely to not cause issues I would think.

Additionally lets hope it was decided by a room of widely traveled and experienced people so its not ridiculous or offensive in other langauges.

its not ridiculous or offensive in other langauges.

If you speak Cantonese, 安 久 in cantonese sounds kinda like "stupid". However, I read that since it is leaked so it will not be chosen.

Ganbare Japan! Today  09:12 am JST

Do most people in Japan even care very much about this?

Yes they do.

Great. If you could cite some research or opinion poll to support that, that would be even better.

This probably isn't worth much, but several Japanese people I've talked to don't seem to care much.

i'll be clicking refresh every minute!

this simply isn't possible, is it? it is basic common knowledge. my 8 year old daughter knows what Heisei year it is.

 Lived here for 25 years and still never met a Japanese person who know what Heisei year it is without checking on their phone.

Does the outgoing or incoming Emperor have any say in the name of the new era? what if one of them doesn't like it?

It's weird that the politicians have a say in the name, but not the emperor! That's messed

I am now going for a walk by the rice fields, this should be settled by the time I am back!

@JenniSchiebel

When I took the dog for a walk this morning the other dog walkers I met all wanted to get home by 11:30 in order to hear what it would be. They were quite excited about it.

It's hard to get any work done this morning, with the constant thrum of helicopters buzzing around Akasaka. What are they hoping to see from up there?

I wish I could get excited about this.

Eight minutes late and counting....

FIRST!!!!

The new Era name is: Reiwa!

令和

Doesn't exactly roll off the tongue.

I like it.

NHK already said the alphabet style will be L. WTF! It should be R!

Do most people in Japan even care very much about this?

Yes, they do, at least those I've talked to. It's one of those things that holds interest, as opposed to fanaticism.

It does sound a little bit authoritarian though. Should appeal to right wingers, domestic and foreign, I imagine.