New Japanese Era Name [Update: it's Reiwa (令和)]

The current emperor is abdicating on 30 April. The Heisei era comes to an end.
His son, the crown prince Naruhito, will be enthroned on 1 May. Along with him comes a new era name.

Currently there are a lot of speculations floating around on the internet about the new name. It seems that the most popular guess is 『安久』(あんきゅう)which probably means something like “peace forever”.

Personally, I’d be surprised if the next nengo will actually be あんきゅう. It’s like people trying to predict who’s going to be the next pope and it’s never the favourite. Some unknown cardinal always gets the most votes. Or in this case, a heretofore unmentioned name will be announced as the new emperor’s name.

Do you want to also guess the new era name? How about 好位置? Does that sound good?

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The age of Naruhito shall be known as Naruto no Hi, and everyone shall ninja run whenever they go anywhere. Let it be sou desu

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I like that idea.

They can also choose some popular name, honouring the fact that the Simpsons have outlasted Akihito (The Simpsons series debuted in December 1989 but their first appearance was on The Tracey Ullman Show in 1987).

So maybe the next emperor will be シンプソン天皇.

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Are you trying to suggest that the next era name will be Francis?

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We already have 2 popes named John Paul. Maybe the next pope should be Pope George Ringo? I mean come on, let’s not overlook the fact that there are 4 Beatles.

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Many are saying it will start with an ‘a’ at least because that hasn’t been used for era names (recently?)

I bet it will start with an ‘a’ for that reason but I’m really curious about what it will actually be

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安久 certainly meets the other criteria as well: good meaning, easy to write, easy to say, etc.

But many other possible names also do.

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What if it means cheap forever? Discounts abound!

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My vote would go toward 幻想, because it can be taken both literally as we enter a fantastical new future, as well as extremely sarcastically

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安久時代 sounds great but how about 外人時代 :thinking:

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外国人時代, gotta be polite

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I think さんきゅう is more polite (compared to あんきゅう).

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I was gonna suggest that. 山久? Mountains forever?

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It’s a little on the nose, but…血縁? Ketsuen? I’m sure the Japanese conservatives would love it. Kings, emperors, they’re are all about those blood ties. It’s not too hard to write.

No way 外国人時代 is happening. :stuck_out_tongue: ~plays the cynic~

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I mean, that’s like, your opinion man. lol

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I think we can all see the hand writing on the wall, but I’m still in denial.

Aha, there we go. Emperor 手垣 (Shuen). How about that? I think it’s more suitable for the Tokugawa era, like a fancy stop sign, but better anachronistic than never.

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At least make sure your joke entries don’t fail the “has a different initial letter” test!

How about the 歌手 Emperor, then the rest of the world will call him the Cashew Emperor

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How about 想念? It can encourage people to be more thoughtful, while also skyrocketing an already popular phrase

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