Japan’s imperial family latest royals to join Instagram

In 1926, when Japanese Emperor Hirohito ascended the Imperial throne, he was revered by millions of Japanese people as a living god. Almost 100 years later, Japan’s imperial family – the world’s oldest continuing monarchy – is sporting a very different look.

His grandson, Emperor Naruhito had vowed to bring the country’s royal family into the modern age when he took over from his father five years ago.

And now, the royal household has taken a very definite step into the 21st Century: as of Monday, the family is on Instagram. The move comes some 15 years after Britain’s royals first made their social media debuts.

“The [Japanese] were perhaps the last notable royal family not to fully engage the digital era,” notes social media analyst Andrew Hughes.

But it was an inevitable move. The family had made clear their wish to engage with younger generations and stay relevant; and given those subjects increasingly only get content through their phones, the family would also have to go online.

But for those hoping to get a more authentic glimpse into Imperial Family’s day-to-day lives, the 48-hour presence of the @kunaicho_jp account so far might disappoint. “When I heard [they] created an Instagram, I quickly checked it out. But of course the emperor wouldn’t post ‘today’s lunch (heart emoji)’ or anything like that,” one fan wrote online.

In the 70 pictures and five videos uploaded across the kunaicho_jp [Imperial Household] profile so far, Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their widely adored only child, the 22-year-old Princess Aiko feature prominently.