Record Numbers of Japanese People Living Alone
Almost 18.5 million people in Japan were living alone in 2023, according to government data.
That's the highest figure since records began in 1986 — and it means more than one-third of Japanese households consisted of just one person.
The survey was done on June 1, 2023, when there were almost 54.5 million households in the country.
Single-person households were the most common, and the number of people living alone has increased over the years.
In 2001, there were only around 11 million single-person households.
Part of the reason for the increase may be that people are living a little longer. About 46% of the people living alone last year were aged 65 and over.
However, experts say the number of single-person households has also increased because fewer young people are getting married.
Some have said it's too expensive to get married and start a family.
This is a situation the government has been trying to change, to help improve the country's low birth rate.
The government data, which was published in July this year, also found that 13.5 million households included a married couple and their unmarried children.
Xinhua News Agency reported that there were fewer households with children under the age of 18 than ever before.
Another 13.4 million households consisted of just a married couple.
The average number of people living in Japan's households was 2.23, which is just a little lower than the previous year.
