The Mikasa Family Thread


If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Makiko Sen, daughter of ex-Mikasa princess Masako and Soshitsu Sen, married in 2017.

The engagement ceremony of Makiko Sen and Munehiro Sakata was celebrated on February 19, 2017. Mr. Sakata is 35 years old, born in Kyoto, and works as an orthopedic surgeon and clinical researcher at Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, University Hospital. Former Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda served as nakōdo (仲人 matchmaker) for the two families.

Source: urasenke.or.jp
http://www.urasenke.or.jp/textm/headq/soke/news/news206/image/news206-02.jpg

The couple married on October 7th at Heian Shrine in Kyoto with the reception at the Westin Miyako Kyoto Hotel. Guests included her grandmother Princess Yuriko, aunt Princess Hisako, and cousins Princesses Akiko, Tsuguko, Ayako, and Noriko Senge.

Source: urasenke.or.jp 2
http://www.urasenke.or.jp/textm/headq/soke/news/news215/image/news215-01.jpg
http://www.urasenke.or.jp/textm/headq/soke/news/news215/image/news215-02.jpg

Interesting former PM Yasuo Fukuda and his wife are placed closest to the couple in the engagement and wedding photos.

Very late news, but congrats to the couple!
Are her brothers married?
 
So, this is to announce that they will get engaged on August 12 and last week we were told that they would announce their intention to grt engsged today? It all seems rather complicated. Just announce the engagement on the day itself apparently is not the way it works in Japan apparently.
 
I just read she was the first imperial family member to be born in the Heisei era and it seems she is scheduled yo be the last one to leave the family in this era as well.
 
[...]

Princess Akiko will visit the United States privately June 11-21. Most of the trip is work as Gakushuin University researcher. However, she'll attend a US-Japan arts and culture symposium at the Detroit Institute of Arts in Detroit, Michigan on June 12th.

[...]
:previous: Photos of Princess Akiko at the Detroit Institute of Arts' Facebook post


Consulate-General of Japan in Detroit: Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko of Mikasa Visited Michigan [PDF]


On July 12th, Princess Akiko was spotted at Aosagaura Church in Shinkamigoto, Nagasaki Prefecture.
Facebook photos:
ETA: On July 8th, Princess Akiko attended the 5th Prince Tomohito Cup Track Cycling at the Izu Velodrome in Izu, Shizuoka Prefecture.
Photos: izu-np.co.jp
 
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Princess Akiko visited Shimane Prefecture recently. Her foundation Shinyusha organized cultural workshops July 14-16th at Izumo Shrine and Izumo history museum.

Photo: Sankei


On July 15th, Princess Akiko, Shinyusha participants, and locals attended the completion of the shimenawa (sacred straw rope) for Izumo Shrine in Iinan, Shimane Prefecture. It was installed at Izumo Shrine on the 17th. The rope is 17 meters and 1.7 tons, needing a crane and 100 people to twist the 2 pieces together. Work on the rope began in April. The shimenawa has been replaced 6 times since 1980.

Photos: Sankei, Yomiuri

More of Princess Akiko's Shinyusha events in May from their Facebook page.

May 19 rice planting photos and video

Cheering on their members at the Ebisu Daikoku 100km marathon from Miho-Jinja Shrine to Izumo Taisha Shrine on May 27 (photos)
 
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:previous:

Akiko has been amazingly busy! Her passion for Japanese history and traditions shines through constantly.

Princess Mako has Japan Art Crafts Association. Prince Akishino has Japan Forestry Association and Agricultural Society of Japan. Prince Katsura's other patronages should be vacant.

His Imperial Highness Prince Katsura - The Imperial Household Agency

Princess Akiko would be an excellent match for Japanese Urushi Craft-Art Association.

Agreed!

On July 12th, Princess Akiko was spotted at Aosagaura Church in Shinkamigoto, Nagasaki Prefecture.
Facebook photos:

Did they tell the reason why she was there? I've wondered whether she attends Christian church services seeing as her mother's side of the family is Christian.
 
I haven't found the reason why Akiko was at Aosagaura Church. The translated comments below the photos express surprise and speculate connection to her mother's family. Apparently she arrived with police escort and was supposed to attend Mass the next day. Maybe the visit is related to her research or foundation? Aosagaura Church is a designated national cultural asset.

Another photo of Princess Akiko at the shimenawa completion on July 15 from Sankei Imperial Weekly #548

https://www.sankei.com/images/news/180720/prm1807200006-p14.jpg
 
Princess Nobuko visited Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture July 15-16 for the 30th Asian-Pacific Children's Convention (APCC).

Photos: www.pref.fukuoka.lg.jp


The 150th anniversary Meiji court exhibition has moved to Akita Senshu Museum of Art. On July 21st, Princess Akiko attended the opening ceremony and delivered a lecture about the clothing of Imperial women. As Japan became more westernized, the Imperial family also switched to western clothes in public. A German diplomat, who served as an advisor to the Meiji government, proposed the importance of traditional culture such as clothing in the midst of Japan's rapid westernization.

Videos: NHK, headlines.yahoo.co.jp

Empress Shōken's court dress on the Akita prefecture's site promoting the exhibition.
http://www.city.akita.akita.jp/city/ed/ss/senshu-art/schedule/2018_2019/koshitsu/koshitsu.jpg

I took some screenshots in case NHK or Yahoo removes the videos. The tableware is from Arisugawa-no-miya.
Akiko.jpg

Akiko_opening.jpg

dress_top.jpg

dress_train.jpg

akiko_tour.jpg

akiko_lecture.jpg

silverware.jpg
 
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On June 24th, Princess Yoko attended the Japan Blind Football Championship where she also supported a movie project about a blind football player. The project hopes to raise 10 million yen to start production and release by the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Photos of Princess Yoko with football player Hiroshi Ochiai on his blog and with the executive director of the Japan Blind Football Association at the movie's fundraising page.

On July 21st, Princess Yoko attended the 20th Independent Award ceremony for people with disabilities and their supporters held in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. This year's recipients included a software company with a focus on cerebral palsy and a founder of a music contest for the disabled. [kahoku.co.jp]

Facebook photo https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...44321192.34701.100003787125943&type=3&theater

Princess Yoko attended the 53rd All Japan Kendo Competition for schoolchildren at Nippon Budokan in Chiyoda, Tokyo from July 24-25.
Photos:
Photo Journal: Student swordplay - The Mainichi
Princess Yohko, second daughter of Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, holds a fifth-dan rank in kendo and said at the opening ceremony, "I wish you good luck."
ETA:
2017 Independent award ceremony [www.komei.or.jp]
2016 Independent award ceremony [blogs.yahoo.co.jp]
 
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On August 8th, Princess Akiko attended a Shinyusha sericulture workshop at Fukushima Inari Shrine in Fukushima Prefecture. Twelve elementary and junior high students inspected silkworms, spun yarn, and weaved fabrics. All fabrics will be donated to the shrine. The workshop is part of a reconstruction assistance project as well as educating children on Japanese culture through hands-on experiences. The first workshop in Fukushima was held in 2014.

Photo: minyu-net.com

From Shinyusha's Facebook page: On June 26th, Princess Akiko attended 2 workshops with Dazaifu Tenmangu Kindergarten in Dazaifu, Fukuoka Prefecture. First, the group visited a wagashi (Japanese confectionery) factory. Then, they attended a tea workshop.

Cute photos:
 
During her July 14-16 visit to Fukuoka Prefecture, Princess Nobuko also visited the Japanese Red Cross Kyushu International College of Nursing.
Photos: www.jrckicn.ac.jp

More photos of Princess Akiko's July 14-16 Shinyusha workshop at Izumo Taisha Shrine:
On August 7th, Princess Akiko attended another Shinyusha event: a lecture and Ikebana workshop using washi (traditional Japanese paper) with Kokugakuin University students.
Photos:
 
Traditional confectionery, Meiji court clothing, shimenawa, sericulture, ikebana, historic churches... is there a tradition the diligent Princess Akiko hasn't been actively working to preserve?

On June 24th, Princess Yoko attended the Japan Blind Football Championship where she also supported a movie project about a blind football player. The project hopes to raise 10 million yen to start production and release by the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Photos of Princess Yoko with football player Hiroshi Ochiai on his blog and with the executive director of the Japan Blind Football Association at the movie's fundraising page.

It's a lovely surprise to see a member of the imperial family posing so informally.

The 150th anniversary Meiji court exhibition has moved to Akita Senshu Museum of Art. On July 21st, Princess Akiko attended the opening ceremony and delivered a lecture about the clothing of Imperial women. As Japan became more westernized, the Imperial family also switched to western clothes in public. A German diplomat, who served as an advisor to the Meiji government, proposed the importance of traditional culture such as clothing in the midst of Japan's rapid westernization.

Videos: NHK, headlines.yahoo.co.jp

Ironic that a Western adviser argued against excessive westernization. ;) I wonder why he proposed to retain traditional clothing, since German royal families during the Meiji era did not wear traditional German clothing (did they?).

I haven't found the reason why Akiko was at Aosagaura Church. The translated comments below the photos express surprise and speculate connection to her mother's family. Apparently she arrived with police escort and was supposed to attend Mass the next day. Maybe the visit is related to her research or foundation? Aosagaura Church is a designated national cultural asset.

Even minor royals are given police escorts for private visits? Very stringent.
 
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Princess Nobuko will travel to Italy September 18-26 to attend the opening ceremony of the "Annual General Meeting of the Japanese Academy of Sciences" held at the University of Milan.

Princess Akiko will visit Turkey September 8-14 to support research and events for the Prince Mikasa Memorial Foundation. Akiko is president of the foundation.

Sources: Sankei, Asahi
 
On May 20th, Princess Yoko attended the 39th All Japan Selected Junior Tennis Championships' award and closing ceremony at the Yoshida Memorial Tennis Training Center in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture.

Photo: https://www.facebook.com/tennisclas...3970121779610/983968978446391/?type=3&theater


On September 1st, Princess Yoko attended the Prince Tomohito Cup 18th Kendo 8-dan Competition at Tokyo Budokan.

Skip to 7:43
She’s barely visible in the background throughout this competition video:
 
Recently Princess Nobuko gave a lecture on work-life balance and women's health at the Imperial Police Headquarters. She recalled a time when the person in charge of the Imperial Police HQ arrived for the first time and revealed "as a man, I felt a little surprised and [it would be inconvenient/awkward] to follow [Nobuko] everywhere."

300 people, including Imperial escort guards, attended the lecture. Female officers exceeded 10% of Japan's police force for the first time 4 years ago.

Source: NHK (published on September 7, 2018 but didn't mention when the lecture happened so I assume it was recent)


Details on Princess Akiko's September 8-14 visit to Turkey at Princess Akiko to visit Istanbul, Ankara and Kirsehir - Anadolu Agency
[…] Akiko is visiting Turkey to attend an event organized by "Prince Mikasa Foundation" at Sakip Sabanci Museum of Istanbul-based Sabanci University.

Akiko will begin her trip with a visit to Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Turkish Republic's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, in the capital and the Turkish-Japanese Foundation. She will later head to Kirsehir to visit the Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology.

[…]

I found more info on Akiko's June visit to the U.S. University of Michigan's The Center of Japanese Studies newsletter [PDF, see pages 5 & 14-15]

In June 2018, UMMA [University of Michigan Museum of Art] welcomed Princess Akiko of Japan and a research group from Gakushuin University. As part of a project to study Japanese art collections and their histories in American institutions, they visited cultural organizations in Southeast Michigan, including UMMA and the Detroit Institute of Arts.

[…] A specialist in the history of Japanese art collecting overseas, Princess Akiko was particularly interested in the impact on local museums of the circle of Japanese art collectors in the greater Detroit area active in the early twentieth century. […]

[…] Princess Akiko presented, "One British and Three American Collectors: Collecting Japanese Paintings from the 19th Century to the Present." She recounted the fascinating histories of several major collectors of Japanese art, starting with William Anderson (1842-1900), who wrote one of the first books on Japanese painting and who amassed the pieces that formed the core of the British Museum's collection of Japanese art. She contrasted Anderson with Ernest Fenollosa (1853-1908), another early scholar of Japanese art history from whom the Museum of Fine Arts Boston received many of its most notable Japanese artworks. […]

At lunch [on June 12], Princess Akiko received a diverse group of dignitaries, including the Consul-General of Japan in Detroit, leaders of the Japanese business community, and other cultural lights of the region. In the afternoon, she viewed the galleries and collections.

On June 13th, the princess graced Ann Arbor with a visit, spending the morning at UMMA with colleagues from Gakushûin University (Tokyo). […] Between intensive viewing sessions of the UMMA collection, the group broke for lunch with the princess, during which five students presented some of their dissertation research. In addition […], three PhD candidates from UM discussed their work […] The conversation was spirited, punctuated by many insightful comments from Princess Akiko, Professor Sano, and the other distinguished scholars who attended.

Princess Akiko concluded the day with a visit to CJS itself. In a meeting with Professor Tsutsui and CJS staff, Princess Akiko and Professor Ito examined photographs and documents showcasing the history of Japanese students in Ann Arbor, the U-M Army Intensive Japanese Language School, and the early history of the Center for Japanese Studies. While reviewing photographs of a 1952 Christmas party at the CJS Okayama Field Station, Princess Akiko noted that none other than Her Imperial Highness Princess Atsuko (the current Emperor’s older sister) was among the attendees.

In two very full days, Princess Akiko demonstrated the great potential of art and scholarship to transcend cultural, linguistic, and national boundaries. […]
 
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:previous:
Thanks for the update!
It is great to see Princess Akiko undertaking a serious diplomatic mission.
 
You're welcome! :flowers:

I hope Turkey's media covers Princess Akiko's visit since I'm not expecting much from Japan's media.

I joined twitter! https://twitter.com/ImperialJPNfan

Been thinking about it for a while and finally created an account. It's sort of a mess as I'm tweeting current and past events.
 
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Princess Akiko visited Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Turkish Republic's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, and the "Turkish - Japanese Cultural Centre" in Ankara today, September 10. And in the afternoon Akiko visited the Kalehoyuk excavation site, Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology, Japanese Garden and Kalehoyuk Archaeological Museum in Kaman:


** gettyimages gallery ** ppe gallery **
 
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Thanks iceflower! Yay, so many photos and videos!

Getty gallery updated. Princess Akiko also met Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) Speaker, Binali Yildirim. What a busy day.

Some videos:
 
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Princess Akiko's day started with a visit to the Japanese Garden at Baltaliman in Sariyer district of Istanbul today, September 13:


** gettyimages gallery **
 
Thanks iceflower! Getty Images updated with the Prince Mikasa Foundation Honorary Presidential ceremony at the Sakip Sabanci Museum in Istanbul, Turkey. Princess Akiko has been honorary president since March 2017 although her position was announced this year.

Japanese princess takes foundation chair in Istanbul - Anadolu Agency
[...]

"Prince Mikasa Foundation, which is devoted to three generations of the Mikasa Family, my grandfather, father and me, was established in 2017 with the permission of the Turkish Government to provide continuous support for the study of Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archeology," Akiko said.

"It is honorable to accept the presidency in foundation as a member of the Mikasa Family," she added.

In 1998, Japanese Institute of Anatolian Archaeology was established as an affiliated institution in the central province of Kirsehir. [...]

Lovely twitter photos:

Videos of her visit to the Japanese Garden at Baltaliman:
 
Princess Nobuko departed for Italy on September 18th.

On September 20th, Princess Nobuko attended the opening of the 42nd Annual Conference of the Italian Association of Japanese Studies (Aistugia) at the Center for Linguistic Mediation and Intercultural Studies at the University of Milan in Sesto San Giovanni.


Small photo at
According to Sankei Imperial Weekly #557, she will also visit St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

ETA: Princess Nobuko appears in this video Aistugia: convegno "imperiale" sul Giappone - Il Sole 24 ORE
 
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