Will Reiwa era make Japan choose peace?

Despite many claiming the naming of Japan's new imperial era is a break with tradition, the two Chinese characters that make up Reiwa, the era beginning May 1, is as traditional as it could be. The new era begins with Crown Prince Naruhito ascending to the throne on the first day of next month to succeed his father Emperor Akihito, whose reign, the Heisei era, ends on the last day of this month.

Kanji is the Japanese system of writing based on borrowed or modified Chinese characters, or hanzi. And like the Chinese characters, when kanji characters are romanized, their pronunciations lose their tonal features.

So what should we make of Reiwa as the latest imperial era of Japan? To announce the coming of the new era, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga held a placard with two calligraphed characters, (rei wa). The two characters come from the preface of Manyoshu, a Japanese literary classic compiled in the 8th century, which sings paeans to the spirit of plums that survive the cold, harsh Japanese winter.