Reiwa

Reiwa is the current era of Japan's official calendar, or gengo. It began on May 1, 2019, when Emperor Naruhito ascended the throne following the abdication of his father, Emperor Akihito, marking the end of the Heisei era. As the era name, Reiwa is used in civil life on calendars, government documents, and many forms of identification, alongside the Gregorian calendar.

The name is composed of two kanji characters: 令 (rei) and 和 (wa). The character 令 conveys auspice, order, or good omen, while 和 signifies harmony or peace. The government explained that the name expresses the aspiration for a society of "beautiful harmony." The two characters were selected from candidates by a national committee and drawn from classical literature, with the official source linked to a waka poem in the ancient anthology Manyōshū.

Since its introduction, Reiwa has been used to label years, for example Reiwa 2 corresponds to 2020 in the Gregorian calendar. The era affects official records, education, business, and international communications in Japan. In practice, both the era name and the Western year are used in parallel, especially in formal contexts and international contexts.

Reiwa is intended to reflect values of order and harmony in Japanese society and culture, as well as continuity with Japan's literary heritage. It is a major cultural and political symbol of modern Japan.