日本新年號為“令和” 5月1日啟用

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga announces the new era name "Reiwa" during a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo, April 1,2019. [Photo/IC]

The reign of Japan’s next emperor will be known as the Reiwa era, after the new imperial name was unveiled before an expectant nation on Monday morning.

4月1日上午，在全國民眾的期盼中，日本下一任天皇的年號正式公布，為“令和”。

The new era will begin on May 1, a day after the emperor, Akihito – whose era is known as Heisei (achieving peace) – makes way for his eldest son, Crown Prince Naruhito, in Japan’s first imperial abdication for more than 200 years.

日本現(xiàn)任明仁天皇，年號“平成”，將在4月30日退位，皇太子德仁將于5月1日即位新天皇，當日零時開始正式啟用新年號。這也是200多年以來日本天皇首次退位變更。

日本官房長官菅義偉透露，新年號的出處是日本古籍《萬葉集(Manyoshu)》中的詩句“初春令月，氣淑風(fēng)和”，《萬葉集》是現(xiàn)存最古老的日本詩歌總集(the oldest existing compilation of Japanese poetry)。

這也是日本年號首次取自日本典籍，之前的年號漢字均選自中國典籍。比如，當前正在使用的“平成(Heisei)”年號來自中國《史記》“內(nèi)平外成”及《尚書》“地平天成”之說，此前的“昭和”則來自于《尚書》中“百姓昭明，協(xié)和萬邦”之語。

日本政府于當?shù)貢r間4月1日上午9點半起在首相官邸召開關(guān)于年號的專家懇談會(penal discussion)，就新年號原案征求意見。為了防止泄密，內(nèi)閣成員在參與決定前必須交出手機和移動設(shè)備，并一直留在決策室中，直到正式宣布為止。一旦有候選年號被泄露給媒體，則立即失去候選資格(any names leaked to the media ahead of the announcement would immediately be withdrawn)。

People try to receive a copy of extra edition of Mainichi Shimbun newspaper reporting the name of new era "Reiwa" in Tokyo, April 1, 2019. [Photo/IC]

對于年號的選擇，日本首相安倍晉三表示，這個詞代表日本豐富的國民文化和悠久的傳統(tǒng)(our nation’s profound public culture and long tradition)。

他說：

Just like amazing plum flowers in full bloom that signal the arrival of spring after bitter cold, each and every Japanese person can hope for the future and make their own flowers blossom.

就像美麗的梅花綻放象征著寒冬之后春天的到來，每一個日本民眾也可以期待未來，讓他們自己的花綻放。

Our nation is facing up to a big turning point, but there are lots of Japanese values that shouldn’t fade away. We are very proud of our history, culture and tradition, and this term expresses the Japan of tomorrow, the one we want to build for future generations. That was the most decisive point in making the choice.

我們國家正在面臨一個巨大的轉(zhuǎn)折點，但很多日本的價值觀不該淡化。我們?yōu)槲覀兊臍v史、文化和傳統(tǒng)感到自豪，而這個詞表達的是日本的明天，是我們想要為子孫后代建設(shè)的日本。這就是我們做出這個選擇的決定性因素。

日本官房長官表示，不會公布新年號的提供者姓名(the identity of the expert who suggested the new gengo)，也不會公布其他候選年號(the other candidate names)。

An Otaria, South American sea lion poses after writing the Kanji of Japan's new era name "Reiwa" at Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea paradise in Kanagawa Prefecture on April 1, 2019. [Photo/IC]

Era names, or "gengo" as they are known in Japanese, are used in Japan for the length of an emperor's reign.

日本的年號用于天皇在位期間。

The new era name is usually announced after the accession of the new monarch, but the government decided to announce the new name in advance of the accession of the new Emperor.

新年號一般會在新天皇繼位之后宣布，不過這一次政府決定在新天皇繼位之前宣布新年號。

In this way companies and the general public have time to prepare for the change and disruption is kept to a minimum.

這樣，企業(yè)和民眾有時間提前準備，將各種可能的混亂影響降至最低。