Japan announces name of next Japanese Era

Islamabad: The Government of Japan announced that the new era of Japan, which begins May 1, will be named “Reiwa” following the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet decision to change the name of era, prior to the abdication of Emperor of Japan and the accession to the imperial throne by the Crown Prince of Japan. In Japan, new era name “Reiwa” will be used from May 1, 2019 when His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince of Japan will accede to the imperial throne. The term “Rei-wa” consists of two kanji characters: “rei” means beautiful, “wa”  means harmony. Moreover, this name “Reiwa” includes the meaning of culture coming into being and flourishing when people bring their hearts and minds together in a beautiful manner. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said that the name of new era was selected by his government with the hope of making Japan a nation where every person can achieve dreams, like the plum flowers that bloom beautifully after a severe winter to signal the start of spring. For the first time in the Japanese history, the name of an era is cited from Japanese own literature.”Reiwa” is quoted from Japan’s oldest poetry anthology “Manyoshu,” compiled more than 1,200 years ago.