Early Life and Education
The prince was born 30 November 1965 at the Aoyama Detached Palace in Tokyo. His given name is Fumihito. His childhood appellation was Prince Aya (礼宮 Aya-no-miya). He attended the elementary and secondary departments of the Gakushuin.
In April 1984, he entered the Law Department of Gakushuin University, where he studied law and biology. After graduating from the university, he studied the taxonomy of fish at St John's College, Oxford in the United Kingdom from October 1988 to June 1990. In 1996, he was awarded a PhD degree from the National University for General Research.
Upon the death of his grandfather, the Emperor Shōwa, in January 1989, he became second-in-line to the throne after his elder brother, Crown Prince Naruhito.
Prince Fumihito received another PhD degree, this time in ornithology from the Graduate University for Advanced Studies in October 1996. His doctoral dissertation was titled, "Molecular Phylogeny of Jungle Fowls, genus Gallus and Monophyletic Origin of Domestic Fowls." He conducted field research in Indonesia in 1993 and 1994, in Yunnan Province in the People's Republic of China. When the current Emperor was still Crown Prince, he introduced tilapia to Thailand as an important source of protein. Tilapia can be easily cultured and Prince Fumihito, who is also known as "catfish specialist," has managed to maintain and expand the aquacultural studies with the people of Thailand.
He is a big fan of the Beatles and an avid tennis player. As a student, Prince Fumihito ranked among the top ten in the tennis doubles players in the Kanto Region.
He is also known as a successor to Arisugawa school of calligraphy.
Read more about this topic: Prince Akishino
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