• Statues of oxen have been erected at shrines around Japan to mark the start of the Year of the Ox in 2021. | KYODO
    Statues of oxen have been erected at shrines around Japan to mark the start of the Year of the Ox in 2021. | KYODO

    • JIJI

    The number of people in Japan born in the Year of the Ox, the latest iteration of which starts on Friday, is estimated at 10.66 million, the internal affairs ministry said Thursday.

    They account for 8.5% of the country’s population of 125.56 million estimated as of Friday, the ministry said.

    Of people born in the Year of the Ox, one of the 12 signs of the Chinese zodiac, 5.17 million are men and 5.49 million are women.

    Of those people, 2.11 million were born in 1949 in the “first baby boom” generation and who will turn 72 in 2021, making up the largest group.

    The second-largest group is the 2.03 million people who were born in 1973 in the “second baby boom” generation and who will turn 48. The third-largest group is the 1.49 million people who were born in 1961 and will turn 60.

    The number of people who were born in 2009 and will turn 12 accounts for 1.06 million, fewer than the 1.09 million who were born in 1937 and who will turn 84.

    Japanese celebrities and athletes born in the Year of the Ox include tennis star Naomi Osaka, who was born in 1997, sumo yokozuna grand champion Hakuho, born in 1985, and actor Masato Sakai, born in 1973.

    The number of people who were born in 2000 and who have newly reached adulthood is estimated at 1.24 million, an increase of 20,000 from a year before. Of them, 640,000 are men and 600,000 are women.

    New adults account for 0.99% of the country’s population, an increase of 0.02 percentage point thanks chiefly to a rise in the number of non-Japanese residents, including students. The share of new adults is below 1% for the 11th year in a row.