Princess Aiko Joins New Year’s Lecture Audience at Imperial Palace in Tokyo

The Yomiuri Shimbun

20:00 JST, January 12, 2024

Princess Aiko joined other Imperial family members for the first time in observing New Year’s lectures from top authorities of the academic world at the Imperial Palace in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, on Thursday.

The annual event, called Koshohajime-no-gi, was held at the palace’s Matsu-no-ma hall.

The three lectures this year were given by Satoshi Kinsui, 67, a professor emeritus of Osaka University, who presented on stereotypes conveyed by words in “role language;” Masahito Inoue, 74, a professor emeritus of the University of Tokyo, who spoke on developments and challenges in criminal investigation methods; and Keiko Nishikawa, 75, a professor emeritus of Chiba University whose lecture was focused on probing the structure of matter through fluctuation.

The lectures were attended by eight Imperial household members, including the Emperor, the Empress, Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko.