Masako

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History & Society

Masako

empress of Japan

Also known as: Owada Masako

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Mar 29, 2024 • Article History

Naruhito and Masako

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Category: History & Society

Original name:: Owada Masako

Born:: December 9, 1963, Tokyo, Japan (age 60)

Title / Office:: empress (2019-), Japan

Notable Family Members:: spouse Naruhito

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Masako (born December 9, 1963, Tokyo, Japan) Japanese diplomat who became the crown princess of Japan when she married Crown Prince Naruhito in 1993. She became empress of Japan in May 2019. Owada Masako was the daughter of Owada Hisashi, a high-ranking official of the Japanese government’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As a child she lived in the Soviet Union and in the United States, where her father was on diplomatic missions. In 1985 she graduated from Harvard University with a major in economics, and the following year she enrolled at the University of Tokyo. Having passed the diplomatic service ...(100 of 700 words)

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