| Japanese imperial family |
| --- |
|  |
| * **The Emperor**The Empress
	+ The Princess Toshi
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| The Emperor EmeritusThe Empress Emerita* The Crown Prince AkishinoThe Crown Princess Akishino
	+ Princess Kako of Akishino
	+ Prince Hisahito of Akishino
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| The Prince HitachiThe Princess Hitachi |
| The Princess Mikasa* Princess Tomohito of Mikasa
	+ Princess Akiko of Mikasa
	+ Princess Yōko of Mikasa
* The Princess Takamado
	+ Princess Tsuguko of Takamado
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| * v
* t
* e
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**Prince Hisahito of Akishino** (悠仁親王, *Hisahito Shinnō*, born 6 September 2006) is the youngest child and only son of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Japan. He is the nephew of Emperor Naruhito and second in line to the throne after his father, Fumihito.

Before his birth, the ongoing Japanese imperial succession debate had resulted in some politicians holding a favorable view on removing agnatic primogeniture imposed by World War II allies on the constitution of Japan. However, once Hisahito was born in 2006 he became next in the line of succession following his father. Hisahito's cousin and Emperor Naruhito's only child Princess Aiko remains at present legally unable to inherit the throne, while debate about the possibility of having future empresses regnant continues.

Birth
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Japanese tabloids announcing the birth of Hisahito, then third in line for the Chrysanthemum Throne
Hisahito was born at 08:27 JST (23:27 UTC) on 6 September 2006 at Aiiku Hospital, Tokyo. He was delivered by Caesarean section, two weeks early, after complications in the pregnancy.

Hisahito is the only son and youngest child of Fumihito, Crown Prince Akishino, and Kiko, Crown Princess Akishino. He has two older sisters, Mako Komuro and Princess Kako of Akishino. He was first seen in public on 15 September 2006, outside Aiiku Hospital.

Hisahito, the Prince's personal name, chosen by his father, means "serene and virtuous", according to the Imperial Household Agency. An alternative translation is "virtuous, calm, everlasting". 

Hisahito was the first male child born to the Imperial House of Japan since his father in 1965. In January 2007, the Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzō Abe, announced that he would drop an earlier proposal to change the Imperial Household Law so as to allow females to inherit the throne. The proposal had been made because the brother and two sons of Emperor Akihito had, at the time, no sons of their own. As a result of Hisahito's birth, it now seems increasingly unlikely that the laws will be changed to allow Hisahito's cousin, Princess Aiko, daughter of the Emperor Naruhito, to become a reigning Empress and thus end the Japanese succession debate. The supporters of changes criticized the current law as it placed a burden on the few aging males old enough to perform royal duties as females left the family.

Titles and styles
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*Mon* of the Akishino branch of the imperial family
6 September 2006 *His Imperial Highness* Prince Hisahito of Akishino

The *mon* represents the Japanese umbrella-pine tree (*kōyamaki*).

Other websites
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* "Their Imperial Highnesses Crown Prince and Crown Princess Akishino and their family". at the Imperial Household Agency website. Archived from the original on 7 July 2007. Retrieved 7 November 2013.


Wikimedia Commons has media related to ***Prince Hisahito of Akishino***.

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| Prince Hisahito of Akishino **Imperial House of Japan****Born:** 6 September 2006  |
| Lines of succession
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| Preceded byPrince Akishino |  **Succession to the Japanese throne**2nd in line | Succeeded byPrince Hitachi |

| * v
* t
* e
Japanese princes |
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| The generations show descent from Emperor Meiji, who founded the Empire of Japan. |
| 1st generation | 
* Yukihito, Prince Take [ja]
* Yoshihito, Emperor Taishō
* Michihito, Prince Aki [ja]
* Teruhito, Prince Mitsu [ja]

 |  |
| 2nd generation | 
* Hirohito, Emperor Shōwa
* Yasuhito, Prince Chichibu
* Nobuhito, Prince Takamatsu
* Takahito, Prince Mikasa

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| 3rd generation | 
* Emperor Emeritus Akihito
* Masahito, Prince Hitachi
* Prince Tomohito of Mikasa
* Yoshihito, Prince Katsura
* Norihito, Prince Takamado

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| 4th generation | 
* Emperor Naruhito
* Fumihito, Crown Prince Akishino

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| 5th generation | 
* Prince Hisahito of Akishino

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| Authority control: International Edit this at Wikidata | 
* VIAF
* WorldCat Identities

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