Emperor Shōwa was the 124th Emperor of Japan according to the traditional order reigning from December 25, 1926 until his death in 1989.

Among non-Japan specialists, the Emperor Shōwa is best known by his personal name Hirohito. The word Shōwa is the name of the era that corresponded with the Emperor's reign, and was made the Emperor's own name posthumously, the name by which he is now exclusively referred to in Japan, even in non-Japanese language texts. Although he often was and continues to be known as Hirohito , in Japan an emperor's personal name is never used.