1946 in Japan
Encyclopedia
Events in the year 1946 in Japan
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Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
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Incumbents
- EmperorEmperor of JapanThe Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
: HirohitoHirohito, posthumously in Japan officially called Emperor Shōwa or , was the 124th Emperor of Japan according to the traditional order, reigning from December 25, 1926, until his death in 1989. Although better known outside of Japan by his personal name Hirohito, in Japan he is now referred to... - Prime MinisterPrime Minister of JapanThe is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...
: Kijuro ShideharaKijuro ShideharaBaron was a prominent pre–World War II Japanese diplomat and the 44th Prime Minister of Japan from 9 October 1945 to 22 May 1946. He was a leading proponent of pacifism in Japan before and after World War II, and was also the last Japanese prime minister who was a member of the kazoku...
, Shigeru YoshidaShigeru Yoshida, KCVO was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954.-Early life:... - Supreme Commander Allied Powers: Douglas MacArthurDouglas MacArthurGeneral of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
Events
- April 10: The Diet elections(a lower House of Representatives and upper House of Peers. Liberal PartyLiberal Party (Japan)Liberal Party is the name of different political parties in different time periods in Japan.They are:*Liberal Party of Japan , founded by Itagaki Taisuke in October 1881. The party stood for popular rights and espoused the philosophy of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. The main objective of the party in the...
wins 141 of 466 Diet seats, followed by the Progressive Party with 94 and the Socialist Party with 93. - April 16: Kijuro ShideharaKijuro ShideharaBaron was a prominent pre–World War II Japanese diplomat and the 44th Prime Minister of Japan from 9 October 1945 to 22 May 1946. He was a leading proponent of pacifism in Japan before and after World War II, and was also the last Japanese prime minister who was a member of the kazoku...
resigns as president of the Progressive Party, and as prime minister effective April 22. - April 22: Sazae-sanSazae-sanis a Japanese comic strip created by Machiko Hasegawa. It was first published in Hasegawa's local paper, the , on April 22, 1946. When the wished to have Hasegawa draw the comic strip for their paper, she moved to Tokyo in 1949 with the explanation that the main characters had moved from Kyūshū to...
is first published. - May 2: Ichiro HatoyamaIchiro Hatoyamawas a Japanese politician and the 52nd, 53rd and 54th Prime Minister of Japan, serving terms from December 10, 1954 through March 19, 1955, from then to November 22, 1955, and from then through December 23, 1956.-Personal life:...
receives imperial order to form a cabinet. - May 3: International Military Tribunal for the Far EastInternational Military Tribunal for the Far EastThe International Military Tribunal for the Far East , also known as the Tokyo Trials, the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, or simply the Tribunal, was convened on April 29, 1946, to try the leaders of the Empire of Japan for three types of crimes: "Class A" crimes were reserved for those who...
convenes. - May 4: SCAP purges Hatoyama.
- May 7: Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo, the predecessor of SonySony, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
, is founded. - May 16: Shigeru YoshidaShigeru Yoshida, KCVO was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954.-Early life:...
receives imperial order to form a cabinet. - May 22: Yoshida cabinet announced.
- June 20: Emperor Hirohito submits a revision of the Imperial Constitution to the Diet.
- August 16: Keidanren established.
- August 20: Serial killerSerial killerA serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
Yoshio KodairaYoshio Kodairawas a Japanese rapist and serial killer. He killed one person in 1932 and was later sentenced to death after being convicted of killing seven others in 1945 and 1946.- Life as a soldier :...
is arrested. - November 3: Constitution of JapanConstitution of JapanThe is the fundamental law of Japan. It was enacted on 3 May, 1947 as a new constitution for postwar Japan.-Outline:The constitution provides for a parliamentary system of government and guarantees certain fundamental rights...
promulgated. - December 21: The Nankai earthquake1946 Nankaido earthquakeThe 1946 Nankaidō earthquake was a great earthquake in Nankaidō, Japan. It occurred on December 20, 1946 at 19:19 UTC. The earthquake measured between 8.1 and 8.4 on the moment magnitude scale, and was felt from Northern Honshū to Kyūshū...
strikes Wakayama PrefectureWakayama Prefectureis a prefecture of Japan located on the Kii Peninsula in the Kansai region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Wakayama.- History :Present-day Wakayama is mostly the western part of the province of Kii.- 1953 Wakayama Prefecture flood disaster :...
, killing 1,443.
Births
- January 2: Gorou IbukiGorou Ibukiis a Japanese actor. He is known for his parts in jidaigeki film, but is known as part of the cast of Samurai Sentai Shinkenger as Hikoma Kusakabe.-Television:*Samurai Sentai Shinkenger - Hikoma Kusakabe...
, actor - February 3: Takako IidaTakako Iidais a Japanese volleyball player and Olympic champion.She was a member of the Japanese winning team at the 1976 Olympic games.- References :...
, volleyball player - February 19: Hiroshi FujiokaHiroshi Fujioka, better known by his stage name , is a Japanese actor known for playing the hero Takeshi Hongo in the tokusatsu superhero series Kamen Rider, and later the Sega Saturn mascot Segata Sanshiro. Fujioka is a cultural icon in Japan, even having the minor planet 12408 Fujioka, discovered by Akimasa...
, actor - February 22: Kumiko SatoKumiko Sato, née was a Japanese figure skater who is now a coach. She is one of the more successful coaches in Japan. Her husband is Nobuo Sato, and their daughter is Yuka Sato....
, figure skater - June 1: Yūko Shiokawa, violinist
- June 2: Tomomichi NishimuraTomomichi Nishimurais a Japanese voice actor who works for Arts Vision. He is most known for the roles of the narrator of YuYu Hakusho, Anzai-sensei , Shibaraku Tsurugibe , and Jamitov Hymem...
, voice actor - July 1: Masaharu SatōMasaharu Satois a Japanese voice actor currently working for Aoni Production.Along with the late Kōji Totani, he is considered the No. 1 supporting actor of the Japanese voice acting world....
, voice actor - August 6: Ichikawa DanjūrōIchikawa Danjuro XIIis a Japanese actor. He is the twelfth kabuki actor to hold the illustrious name Ichikawa Danjūrō.He is the eldest son of Ichikawa Danjūrō XI. He first appeared on stage in 1953 under his birth name Natsuo Horikoshi, and in 1958 took the name Ichikawa Shinnosuke...
, actor - August 21: Norio Yoshimizu, football player
- October 10: Naoto KanNaoto Kanis a Japanese politician, and former Prime Minister of Japan. In June 2010, then-Finance Minister Kan was elected as the leader of the Democratic Party of Japan and designated Prime Minister by the Diet to succeed Yukio Hatoyama. On 26 August 2011, Kan announced his resignation...
, politician - October 11: Sawao KatoSawao KatoSawao Kato is a Japanese gymnast and one of the most successful athletes of all time at the Olympic Games...
, gymnast - October 30: Katsuhisa Hōki, actor and voice actor
- November 4: Isamu SonodaIsamu Sonodais a retired judoka who competed in the middleweight division.-Biography:Sonoda was born in Yanagawa, Fukuoka, Japan. He attended the Fukuoka Institute of Technology, and won a gold medal at the 1969 World Judo Championships along with his older brother, Yoshio, who won the gold medal in the...
, judoka - November 6: Tsuguhiko KozukaTsuguhiko Kozukais a Japanese figure skater who is now a coach. He won the three-time Japan Figure Skating Championships. He placed 18th in the 1968 Winter Olympic Games. He is the father of Takahiko Kozuka.He is now an International Judge for Japan.-Results:-References:...
, figure skater - November 13: Reiko Ohara, actress (d. 20092009 in Japan- Incumbents :* Emperor – Akihito* Prime Minister – Taro Aso until September 16, Yukio Hatoyama * Chief Cabinet Secretary: Takeo Kawamura until September 16, Hirofumi Hirano* Governor of Tokyo: Shintaro Ishihara-January:...
) - November 14: Kai AtōKai Atois a male Japanese actor and TV presenter. His real name is , and his former stage name was using different kanji characters.-History:As a kid, Atō was a baseball player in his hometown...
, actor and TV presenter - November 22: Mitsuko Baisho, actress
- November 28: Kazuhiro NinomiyaKazuhiro Ninomiyais a retired judoka who competed in the 1976 Summer Olympics.-Biography:After graduating from Tenri University, Ninomiya entered the Shoki Juku under the instruction of Isao Okano. He joined the Fukuoka Prefecture police force in April, 1972, and placed third in the All-Japan Judo Championships...
, judoka - December 4: Yō Inoue, voice actress (d. 20032003 in JapanEvents in the year 2003 in Japan.-Incumbents:* Emperor: Akihito* Prime Minister: Junichiro Koizumi* Chief Cabinet Secretary: Yasuo Fukuda* Governor of Tokyo: Shintaro Ishihara-Events:*January - Toyota launches all-new Avensis to be built in Britain....
) - December 14: Hiroshi NagakuboHiroshi Nagakubois a Japanese retired pair skater who now works as a coach. He is one of the more successful coaches in Japan. As a skater, he is the 1967-1971 Japanese national champion with partner Kotoe Nagasawa. They placed 16th at the 1972 Winter Olympics....
, pair skater
Deaths
- February 10: Mushitaro Oguri, novelist
- February 13: Tamotsu OishiTamotsu Oishiwas a career officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.-Biography:In Kōchi prefecture, Oishi graduated from the 48th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1920, with a ranking of 13th out of a class of 171 cadets. As a midshipman, he served on the cruiser and battleship...
, career officer