根据美国为日本制定的战后宪法，天皇仅仅是“国家的象征 ” ， 但他仍具有重大的影响力，因为日本人十分崇敬帝国皇朝 — — 世界上最古老的持续世袭君主制，其源头可追溯到公元前660年。
While the emperor is merely the “symbol of the state” under Japan’s US-imposed postwar constitution, he retains significant influence, owing to Japanese veneration of the imperial dynasty – the world’s oldest continuous hereditary monarchy, the origins of which can be traced to 660 BC.