1926 in Japan

Incumbents

• Emperor:
• *Taishō: until December 25
• *Shōwa: starting December 25
• Regent: Hirohito until December 25
• Prime Minister:
• *Katō Takaaki: until January 28
• *Wakatsuki Reijirō: starting January 30

  Events

• January 12 - Toray was founded.
• January 28 - Prime Minister Katō Takaaki dies in office. Wakatsuki Reijirō serves as acting Prime Minister until assuming the office proper on January 30.
• March 12 - Japanese warship bombards the Taku Forts in China, killing several Guominjun troops guarding the forts. Guominjun troops fired back in retaliation and drive the warship out of the Tanggu harbor.
• May 24 - A volcano eruption hit in Mount Tokachi, Hokkaido, according to Japanese government official document figure showed, 144 persons were fatalities, 21 persons missing, about 200 persons were hurt.
• June 10 - June 10th Movement: public displays of Korean resistance organized by students against Japanese rule take place in Korea.
• June 12 - The Japan Amateur Radio League, anational non-profit organization for amateur radio enthusiasts, is founded by Japanese radio communication enthusiasts whose stated aim was to promote the development and utilization of radio wave technology as a medium.
• June 23 - Kuraray, founded in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture.
• September 16
• * Shin-Etsu Chemical founded in Nagano City.
• * Mikasaya Department Store, as predecessor of Kintetsu Department Store Osaka Uehonmachi was officially open in Tennoji-ku, Osaka.
• October 23 - Meiji Jingu Stadium was officially open.
• November 18 - Inventor and industrialist Sakichi Toyoda founds the Toyota Industries, the company from which Toyota Motor Corporation would develop.
• December 25 - Emperor Taishō dies and is succeeded by his son Hirohito who becomes Emperor Shōwa. This event marks the end of the Taishō period and the beginning of the Shōwa period. Emperor Shōwa reigned as Emperor of Japan until his death in 1989.
• Unknown date - Nippon Shokubai was founded, as predecessor name was Yosame Sulfuric Acid Industry.

  Births

• January 12 - Shumon Miura, writer
• January 25 - Gaisi Takeuti, mathematician
• February 5 - Seiichi Miyake, inventor
• February 24 - Taeko Kono, writer
• February 25 - Akira Tago, psychologist
• February 28 - Kin Sugai, actress
• April 7 - Miyoko Asō, actress and voice actress
• May 19 - Tadashi Sawashima, film and theater director
• June 12 - Noriko Ibaragi, poet, playwright, essayist and translator
• June 19 - Ōuchiyama Heikichi, sumo wrestler
• June 28 - Mitsugi Ohno, glassblower
• September 6 - Shinichi Hoshi, novelist and writer
• September 15 - Shohei Imamura, film director
• December 9
• *Michiyoshi Doi, film director
• *Keiji Sada, actor
• December 25 - Hitoshi Ueki,

  Deaths

• January 28 - Katō Takaaki, politician and 24th Prime Minister of Japan
• February 1 - Ishibashi Ningetsu, author and literature critic
• February 14 - Enkichi Ōki, politician
• March 9 - Mikao Usui, founder of Reiki
• April 7
• *Ozaki Hōsai, poet
• *Hozumi Nobushige, statesman and jurist
• April 28 - Kawamura Kageaki, field marshal
• June 28 - Hirai Seijirō, railroad engineer
• July 4 - Ushinosuke Mori, anthropologist and folklorist
• July 9 - Fujii Kōichi, admiral
• July 23 - Fumiko Kaneko, anarchist
• September 8 - Thomas Kurihara, actor and film director
• September 11 - Matsunosuke Onoe, kabuki and silent film actor
• September 28 - Satarō Fukiage, rapist and serial killer
• November 28 - Takahira Kogorō, diplomat and ambassador
• December 25 - Emperor Taishō, 123rd Emperor of Japan