Princess Ayako, the third daughter of Princess Hisako and the late Prince Takamado, Emperor Akihito's cousin, will marry a 32-year-old worker at shipping firm NYK Line in October, the Imperial Household Agency announced Tuesday.
The future husband of the 27-year-old princess is Kei Moriya, a commoner and graduate of Keio University in Tokyo, who met the princess for the first time in December last year through an introduction by Princess Hisako.
Their engagement will be formally announced next Monday, and the couple is set to hold a news conference later that day at the Imperial Household Agency.