Hope is growing that Japan will begin allowing married couples to use different surnames as Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga recently suggested he remains committed to introducing the option.
The Civil Code requires married couples to have the same surname, and conventionally, it has forced women to adopt the name of their husbands.
The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has recommended a revision to the law, saying it is discriminatory toward women, and surveys in recent years have shown many in Japan are in favor of having the option of keeping their birth name even after marriage.