Japan's enthronement combines legend and the spiritual with modernity, similar to coronations used by monarchies worldwide. These ceremonies tend to be described as "traditional" — but the term is overused and rarely properly defined in reference to Japan's enthronement, Sokui no Rei.

The imperial house, however, has long survived not because of its stubborn attachment to traditions but quite the opposite — because it has changed to suit evolving social conditions throughout its history.

The present enthronement ceremony does, in an expansive sense, date back more than a millennium. But it was thoroughly overhauled during the Meiji Era (1868-1912) at a time when the emperor was made into the apex of the newly formed nation-state, a position he does not hold under the postwar system.