Japanese Princess Aiko Turns 21

Tokyo, Dec. 1 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Princess Aiko, the only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, turned 21 on Thursday.

After becoming an adult member of the Imperial Family a year ago, Princess Aiko joined the New Year's celebration ceremony at the Imperial Palace and held a press conference for the first time.

She has also taken part in Imperial rituals for the first time over the past year, learning the correct behavior for the events from her parents.

Currently in her third year at the Faculty of Letters at Gakushuin University in Tokyo, the princess specializes in classics such as "Genji Monogatari" (The Tale of Genji) and "Oku no Hosomichi" (the Narrow Road to the Deep North). She is still taking classes online, according to the Imperial Household Agency.

For her first-ever press conference in March, the princess spent a lot of time preparing notes and practiced until the last minute. At the press conference, she said that "I would like to cherish each of my duties and perform them as hard as possible."

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]