Noriko Senge

Noriko Senge (千家 典子, Senge Noriko, born 22 July 1988), formerly Princess Noriko of Takamado (典子女王, Noriko Joō), is a former member of the Imperial House of Japan and the second daughter of Norihito, Prince Takamado and Hisako, Princess Takamado.[1] She married Kunimaro Senge, a commoner, on 5 October 2014. As a result, she gave up her imperial title and left the Japanese Imperial Family, as required by law.

The native form of this personal name is Senge Noriko. This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.
Noriko Senge
Noriko in 2013
Born
Princess Noriko of Takamado (典子女王)

(1988-07-22) 22 July 1988
Aiiku Hospital, Minami-Azabu, Tokyo, Japan
Spouse
Kunimaro Senge
​
(m. 2014)​
Parents
RelativesImperial House of Japan

Biography
Orchids, designated imperial personal emblem of Noriko

Princess Noriko was born on 22 July 1988 at Aiiku Hospital in Minami-Azabu, Tokyo. After her birth, her father, Prince Takamado, chose her name. She went to Gakushuin Kindergarten. After that she attended the prestigious Gakushuin School for her primary, junior high, and high school education.

In April 2007, Princess Noriko enrolled in the Gakushuin University, Faculty of Letters, Department of Psychology, and expressed her intent to pursue studies in the field of clinical psychology.[2]

In July 2008, she came of age and attended official ceremonies in Japan with the other members of the Imperial Family. She attended official functions at the palace and accompanied her mother to some other official events, as well as attending some on her own. On 20 March 2011, she graduated from Gakushuin University with the B.A. degree in Psychology.

Marriage

On 27 May 2014, Princess Noriko announced her engagement to Kunimaro Senge (千家国麿, Senge Kunimaro, born (1973-09-02)2 September 1973), a kannushi for the Izumo-taisha shrine.[3] The two married on 5 October at the shrine.[4][5]

Senge Kunimaro is the eldest son of Senge Takamasa, the head priest of the Izumo Grand Shrine. The Senge family have been hereditary administrators of the shrine for generations.[4] Though legally commoners today, the heads of the family held the title of baron in the Imperial Japanese peerage (kazoku) before its abolition in 1947. Senge Kunimaro is a second cousin (twice removed) of the present Emperor and a distant cousin twice over of Princess Noriko. He and Noriko are third cousins once removed by their shared descent from Prince Kujō Michitaka, who was the father of the Empress Teimei, Princess Noriko's great-grandmother and Senge Kunimaro's great-great-aunt.[6] The couple are also fifth cousins through their shared descent from Marquis Nakayama Tadayasu, the maternal grandfather of the Meiji Emperor.[7] By birth, Kunimaro is also related to other members of the imperial family. He is a sixth cousin once removed of his grandmother-in-law, Princess Mikasa, a third cousin twice removed of Princess Hitachi and a cousin of the late Princesses Takamatsu and Chichibu (a second cousin thrice removed and a fourth cousin thrice removed, respectively).[6][7]

After the wedding, Princess Noriko lost her imperial status. This change in her status is mandated by the Imperial Household Act of 1947 that requires females of the Imperial Family to relinquish their title from birth, official membership in the Imperial Family, and allowance from the state upon marriage to a commoner. At 26 years of age, she became the seventh female member born into the Japanese Imperial Family to marry a commoner since the passage of the Imperial Household Law in 1947, and the first member of the family to lose her royal status since the marriage of Sayako, Princess Nori, Emperor Akihito's daughter, in 2005. The government decided to bestow a one-time ¥106.75 million allowance on the couple.[4]

Titles and styles
Styles of
Princess Noriko of Takamado
(before her marriage)
Takamado no miya mon
Takamado no miya mon
Reference styleHer Imperial Highness
Spoken styleYour Imperial Highness
  • 22 July 1988 – 5 October 2014: Her Imperial Highness Princess Noriko of Takamado
  • 5 October 2014 – present: Mrs. Kunimaro Senge

Ancestry

References
  1. "Funeral held for Japan's prince". BBC Online. 29 November 2002. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
  2. "Personal History of Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado and her family". Imperial Household Agency. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
  3. "Wedding Bells to Ring for Japanese Princess". Wall Street Journal Japan.
  4. "Princess Noriko marries son of Izumo Taisha priest, relinquishes royal status". 5 October 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  5. "Marriage of Her Imperial Highness Princess Noriko of Takamado - Wedding Ceremony at the Izumo Oyasahiro Shrine in Shimane Prefecture". The Imperial Household Agency. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  6. "千家家（出雲国造家） (Senge genealogy)". Reichsarchiv (in Japanese). Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  7. 中山家（羽林家）. Reichsarchiv (in Japanese). Retrieved 17 May 2017.
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