Emperor Kōkaku
Before Ninkō's ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name ("imina") was . He was born on 16 March 1800 and was the fourth son of Emperor Kōkaku, the only child of sixteen others to survive into adulthood. Ayahito was named as crown prince in 1809, having been adopted by his father's chief wife , also known as . His birth mother was one of his father's concubines named . Ayahito's Imperial Family lived with him in the Dairi of the Heian Palace.