Japanese Eras
Six Tests Before Two Kanji Are Approved
Two characters, easy to write, never used before, no clash with a famous name, and no repeat of the initials M, T, S, H or R. The shortlist Reiwa beat.
Japan Know How archive
Reiwa meaning
Japanese Eras
The First Era Name Not Taken From China
Every earlier era name traced back to a Chinese classic. Reiwa was pulled from an eighth-century Japanese poetry preface, and that was the whole point.
Japanese Eras
Choosing Two Kanji for the Next Thirty Years
Scholars submit candidates, a cabinet picks one, and a country repaints its forms. The rules a new era name must pass and who actually signs off.