Under great mystery, an expert group has come to the conclusion that the name of the new era should be "Reiwa". It is a kind of proverb that will symbolize the time of the new emperor.
The word consists of two signs: Rei which means order or favorable and wa which stands for peace or harmony. According to the Japanese Embassy in Sweden, the name can be interpreted as "Beautiful harmony".
Military associations?Speculation about the content of the characters is in full swing. In social media, some have noted the word command and controversial military undertones.
- It is typical of the Japanese writing characters that they can mean different things in different contexts, says Japanese connoisseur and author Monica Braw to SVT News.
Here you can watch the entire SVT broadcast from the ceremony.
Concerns about data crashesTo avoid administrative chaos, the new name was announced a month before the new era began. Since all official documents, letters, calendars and coins must be adorned with the two signs, there is a concern about data breaches and problems. However, ministries and most large companies also use the Western time count in their systems.
Some emperors have changed their names even during the current period, usually after a crisis or disaster to get the subjects to move on and restart in a spirit of confidence.
The outgoing Emperor Akihito's period was called "Heisei", which means "Achieve peace". Eran has been going on for the 31 years he has been sitting on the chrysanthemum throne until the abdication on April 30.
"Heisei" has been marked by peace, but for many Japanese, the now 85-year-old Akihito's empire is also associated with major natural disasters such as the earthquake and nuclear accident in Fukushima.
- The Emperor couple Akihito and Michiko have tried to modernize the heavily controlled role. They have visited affected people and shown their participation by going down on their knees. The couple has traveled to war scenes and prayed for all the fallen, a way to indicate Japan's debt to the war, says Monica Braw.
The more than millennial Japanese monarchy is now entering a new stage and perhaps a new spirit of time with Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako. He learns to be withdrawn and Masako learns to be severely mentally ill for many years. Many wonder how much they will be able to participate in the tradition-heavy ceremonies.