The Nobel Prize award ceremony was held on the evening of December 10th, or early on December 11th in Japan, at the Stockholm Concert Hall, where King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden presented the highest honors — the medal and certificate — to Osaka University specially appointed professor Shimon Sakaguchi, 74, the recipient of this year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and Kyoto University distinguished professor Susumu Kitagawa, 74, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. (News On Japan)

A strong earthquake that registered an intensity of 6-plus on the Japanese seismic scale struck Hachinohe in Aomori Prefecture, and as daily routines slowly resumed on December 10th with schools reopening, workers and local representatives at Chōjazan Shinto Shrine spent the morning dealing with extensive damage, including fallen stone lanterns, as they worked urgently to clear debris and restore the grounds. (News On Japan)

The Imperial Household Agency has released uncut footage of Princess Kiko, Princess Aiko and Prince Akishino offering greetings to invited guests at the 2025 autumn Garden Party, marking the first time that their spoken exchanges have been officially recorded through microphones and made fully public. (News On Japan)

The most popular baby names of 2025 were led by Minato for boys and Sui for girls, according to rankings released by Meiji Yasuda Life, which highlighted continued enthusiasm for certain kanji characters and showed how naming trends have evolved since the survey began in the first year of the Taisho era. (News On Japan)

The appeal trial of Sudo, the former wife accused of killing the wealthy businessman known as the Kishu Don Juan, began on December 8th and concluded on the same day after prosecutors sought to overturn the lower court’s acquittal but all requested witness examinations and newly submitted evidence were rejected. (News On Japan)

A 37-year-old man who allegedly broke into a high school in Yachiyo, Chiba was arrested on December 6th after teachers discovered him inside the building holding multiple pairs of school-designated indoor shoes, according to local police. (News On Japan)

A former elementary school teacher in Yokohama City has been arrested for the seventh time in connection with a voyeurism case involving a group of teachers. (News On Japan)

The severed remains of an infant less than one year old were discovered inside a freezer at an adult entertainment business office in Tokyo’s Sumida Ward on the night of December 6th, with subsequent investigations revealing that the entrance to the office had been left unlocked at all times. (News On Japan)

A festival praying for children’s healthy growth and a bountiful harvest was held on Sunday at Kibaha Shrine in Kushimoto, Wakayama Prefecture, where the traditional “Nenneko Festival” took place as local first-grader Hamaguchi Rikka, age 7, served as the “rice-bearing shrine maiden” and walked through the grounds in a kimono with an ohitsu container holding rice, mochi, and sakaki branches balanced on her head as she joined Shinto priests in a ceremonial procession. (News On Japan)

Kamakura City, known internationally as the setting for the hit anime “SLAM DUNK,” plans to halt the issuance of its popular local license plates at the end of January 2026, raising debate among residents who question why a design long cherished by locals must be discontinued. (News On Japan)

A growing number of families across Japan are choosing to close ancestral graves, and concerns over long-term upkeep have become a widespread source of anxiety. Now, even one of the country’s most storied lineages has begun confronting both the end of its line and the closure of its grave. (News On Japan)

Archaeological surveys conducted in Gose City, Nara Prefecture, have uncovered additional burial remains that, when combined with previously excavated sites in the area, have revealed what is now understood to be the largest communal cemetery ever found in the prefecture. (News On Japan)

As Japan enters what many now call the “100-year life era,” the question of how to finance a much longer old age has become unavoidable, with rising living costs and modest pensions leaving many seniors struggling to make ends meet and searching for ways to supplement their income. (News On Japan)

Police have arrested a man in his 30s after he allegedly entered a banquet hall at Hotel MiraCosta inside Tokyo DisneySea on December 1st while carrying what appeared to be a knife before fleeing the scene, with authorities locating him the following day in Kawasaki City. (News On Japan)

A bear was caught on camera intruding into a residential property in Yamagata on November 30th, underscoring how reports of bear damage continue even as the winter season takes hold and conditions grow colder. (News On Japan)

Two male workers died after becoming trapped beneath a vacuum truck on a municipal road in Hita, Oita, with emergency responders confirming on December 1st that both had suffered fatal injuries after the vehicle appeared to move unexpectedly while they were preparing to begin waste collection work. (News On Japan)

A group of motorbikes roaring through the streets of Matsuyama late at night was witnessed in June 2025, as riders ignored police warnings and sped erratically through the city, weaving across lanes and provoking officers by taking off their shirts and swinging their jackets while continuing to ride through red lights in a display that put both themselves and nearby pedestrians at risk. (News On Japan)

A fire broke out recently in Kyoto’s Pontocho district, yet despite the area’s narrow alleyways and tightly packed wooden buildings, the damage was limited to the complete loss of a single establishment with no injuries reported. (News On Japan)

A series of torrential rains have triggered what authorities describe as the worst flooding in years across Southeast Asia, leaving more than 600 people dead and forcing Japanese nationals in several countries to flee for safety. JNN reporters gained access to heavily damaged areas in southern Thailand, where the impact has been severe. (News On Japan)

Princess Aiko, the eldest daughter of the Emperor and Empress, celebrated her 24th birthday on December 1st after a year marked by a series of first-time imperial events, public duties and her inaugural overseas official visit, according to the Imperial Household Agency. (News On Japan)