ntroduced in the 6th century, the original population census in Japan was called the kōgo no nen jaku (庚午年籍?) or the kōin no nen jaku (庚寅年籍?). This census was introduced under the ritsuryō system of governance.[1] During the Bakufu, there were four major forms of population registration: the ninbetsuchō (人別帳?) (Registry of Human Categories), the shūmon jinbetsu aratamechō (宗門人別改帳?) (Religious Inquisition Registry) also called the shūmon aratamechō, the gonin gumichō (五人組帳?) (Five Household Registry) and the kakochō (過去帳?) (Death Registry). The shūmon jinbetsu aratamechō was created around 1670 and lasted almost 200 years. It combined social and religious registration, and data was renewed annually.[2] Several categories of outcasts were not registered at all under this system, or were registered in specific registers, for instance the burakumin.[3] The modern koseki, encompassing all of Japan's citizenry, appeared in 1872, immediately following the Meiji Restoration. This was the first time in history that all Japanese people were required to have family names as well as given names. Although all previous social categories were abolished and almost all Japanese people were recorded as heimin (commoners), some minorities became labelled as "new commoner" or "original eta" (shinheimin or motoeta),[3] and discrimination went on. Problems also happened at the edge of the national territory, for instance in the Ogasawara Islands.[3]
During the course of Japanese Empire, a number of reforms were carried out after 1910 to eliminate double standards in the koseki system. In general, though, residents of the Empire's colonies held external registries (gaichi koseki) (based on the preexisting Hoju) and Japanese held domestic registries (naichi koseki).[3]
In 2003, the "GID Law" was enacted, enabling people with "gender identity disorder" (GID) of gender dysphoria to change their gender on their koseki provided they meet certain conditions. Persons diagnosed with GID must seek an official diagnosis with letters of support from two independent psychiatrists to change their koseki gender.[4]
Privacy concerns[edit]
Information provided in koseki is detailed and sensitive and makes discrimination possible against such groups as burakumin or illegitimate children and unwed mothers, for example. As the burakumin liberation movement gained strength in postwar Japan some changes were made to family registries. In 1974 a notice that prohibited employers from asking prospective employees to show their family registry was released by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. In 1975 one's lineage name was deleted and in 1976 access to family registries was restricted. As of April 2007, anyone interested was eligible to get a copy of someone else's koseki. However, on May 1, 2008, a new law was implemented to limit the persons eligible for a copy to the persons whose names are recorded in a given koseki and those who need such a copy to exercise their due rights (debt collectors, executors of wills).[5][6] Anyone who is listed on a koseki, even if their name has been crossed off by reason of divorce and even if they are not a Japanese citizen, is eligible to get a copy of that koseki.[5] One can obtain a copy in person or by mail. Lawyers can also obtain copies of any koseki if a person listed is involved in legal proceedings.[7]
Koseki and citizenship[edit]
Only Japanese citizens may be registered in a koseki, because koseki serve as certificates of citizenship. Non-Japanese may be noted where required, such as being the spouse of a Japanese citizen[8] or the parent of a Japanese offspring, however they are not listed in the same fashion as Japanese spouses or parents.[9]
Note that the koseki system is different from the jūminhyō
