TOKYO | Japan’s population of people aged 100 and older has surpassed 100,000 for the first time, reaching a record 107,677 as of September 1, according to figures released Tuesday by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, underscoring the country’s extraordinary longevity as its overall population continues to shrink.
The number of centenarians increased by 7,914 from a year earlier, marking the 56th consecutive year that Japan has recorded an increase in people aged 100 or older. Women accounted for 94,298, or 87.6 percent, while men numbered 13,379.
The figures were released ahead of Respect for the Aged Day, a Japanese national holiday observed on the third Monday of September. The annual government count has become one of the clearest indicators of Japan’s rapidly aging population.
Japan’s centenarian population has grown dramatically since the government began keeping nationwide records in 1963, when only 153 people were known to be at least 100 years old. The number passed 10,000 in 1998 and exceeded 50,000 in 2012 before reaching this year’s milestone.
The increase reflects major improvements in public health, medical care and living conditions over the decades. Japan has one of the world’s highest life expectancies, but the demographic shift also presents difficult economic and social challenges as the number of elderly people grows while the working-age population declines.
Japan’s broader population trend illustrates the contrast. Government data showed that the number of Japanese residents fell below 120 million for the first time in more than four decades, reaching about 119.74 million as of January 1, 2026. The Japanese population has declined for 17 consecutive years after peaking in 2009.
The growing number of very old people is therefore occurring alongside a sustained decline in births. That combination is placing greater pressure on pensions, health care, long-term care and the labor force, while increasing the importance of policies aimed at supporting older people and maintaining economic productivity.
Japan’s oldest living resident is currently Fuyo Kishimoto of Kyoto, who is 114. The Health Ministry confirmed her status after 115-year-old Shigeko Kagawa died on August 27. Kishimoto was born on December 20, 1911, making her the last known living Japanese person born during the Meiji era, which ended in 1912.
The milestone also highlights a striking gender difference in longevity. Nearly nine out of every 10 Japanese centenarians are women, a pattern consistent with the substantially longer average life expectancy of Japanese women compared with men.
Japan’s experience offers an early view of a demographic challenge increasingly facing other developed societies. Longer lives are a major achievement of modern health and social systems, but sustaining those gains will require countries to adapt their health care, pension systems, workforce policies and communities to populations that are living much longer than previous generations.
For Japan, the crossing of the 100,000-centenarian threshold is both a landmark of longevity and another reminder of the profound demographic transformation reshaping the country.
Paraluman P. Funtanilla
Paraluman P. Funtanilla is Tutubi News Magazine's Marketing Specialist and is a Contributing Editor. She finished her degree in Communication Arts in De La Salle Lipa. She has worked as a Digital Marketer for start-up businesses and small business spaces for the past two years. She has earned certificates from Coursera on Brand Management: Aligning Business Brand and Behavior and Viral Marketing and How to Craft Contagious Content. She also worked with Asia Express Romania TV Show.
- Paraluman P. Funtanilla
- Paraluman P. Funtanilla
- Paraluman P. Funtanilla
- Paraluman P. Funtanilla
