In Japan, a royal wedding scheduled for 26 October is causing quite the stir. That's because it's the wedding of the Emperors' niece, and if you are female royalty in Japan and you get married, you're out of the family. It's an age-old rule and one that is now being challenged. So in this Squiz Shortcuts, we take you through how Japan's Imperial family works, their public life in Japan, and the background to the wedding that has brought the Japanese royal family back to the fore.

Squiz Shortcuts is your backstory to the big news stories.

Squiz recommends:

Watching: How Japanese citizens are reacting to princess' wedding date - CNN. It has lots of clips of the Japanese royals, Princess Mako and her husband to be, and it helps with putting names to faces.

Reading: The princess, the palace and the shrinking royal line - BBC. It's a great explainer on all the issues with Princess Mako's engagement and it's got a handy family tree so you can visualise it.

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