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is the national anthem of Japan. The lyrics are from a poem written by an unnamed author in the Heian period (794–1185), and the current melody was chosen in 1880, replacing an unpopular melody composed by John William Fenton 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. When the Empire was dissolved following its surrender at the end of World War II, the State of Japan succeeded it in 1945. This successor state was a parliamentary democracy, constitutional monarchy and the polity therefore changed from a system based on imperial sovereignty to one based on popular sovereignty. However, the Allied occupation forces (mainly U.S. military) allowed Hirohito, Emperor Shōwa to retain the throne and "Kimigayo" remained the de facto national anthem for preservation of Japanese monarchy. The passage of the Act on National Flag and Anthem in 1999 recognized it as the official national and imperial anthem. "Kimi" has been used to indicate the Emperor of Japan or one's lord (i.e., master) since at least the Heian period. For example, the protagonist 光源氏 of the Tale of Genji is also called 光の君 or 光君. But before the Nara period, 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, "Kimigayo" was used as a festive song among samurai, and then became popular among the people in the Edo period. In the later part of the Edo period, "Kimigayo" was used in the Ōoku (harem of Edo Castle, current Tokyo Imperial Palace) and Satsuma-han (current 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 as rulers of the Satsuma-han, guests of honor, or all members of a festive drinking party.

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Related concepts (16)

Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan or Japanese Empire, also referred to as Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation-state that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the reformed Constitution of Japan in 1947. From 29 August 1910 until 2 September 1945, it administered the naichi (the Japanese archipelago and post-1943 Karafuto) and the gaichi (Korea, Taiwan, Kwantung Leased Territory, and pre-1943 Karafuto). The South Seas Mandate was a single Japanese dependent territory in the name of the League of Nations.

Flag of Japan

The national flag of Japan is a rectangular white banner bearing a crimson-red circle at its center. This flag is officially called the Nisshōki, but is more commonly known in Japan as the Hinomaru. It embodies the country's sobriquet: the Land of the Rising Sun. The Nisshoki flag is designated as the national flag in the Act on National Flag and Anthem, which was promulgated and became effective on 13 August 1999. Although no earlier legislation had specified a national flag, the sun-disc flag had already become the de facto national flag of Japan.

Kimigayo