Japan's Princess Kiko gave birth on Wednesday to a baby boy - the first male heir to be born into the ancient imperial family in more than four decades, the Imperial Household Agency said on Wednesday.
Japanese Princess Kiko.
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The birth of a boy, who will be third in line after his uncle and his father, is likely to dampen debate on letting women inherit the throne .
An Imperial Household Agency official told reporters Kiko had given birth by a Caesarean operation to the 2,558 gram boy at 8:27 a.m. (2327 GMT).
Kyodo news agency quoted sources as saying both mother and baby were fine.
No imperial boys had been born since Kiko's husband, Prince Akishino, in 1965, raising the possibility of a succession crisis. Crown Prince Naruhito, 46, and Crown Princess Masako, 42 have one child, 4-year-old Princess Aiko.
Japanese emperors are no longer worshipped as gods since Hirohito renounced his divinity after Japan's defeat in World War Two, and have no political authority.
But the monarchy remains rich with symbolism and ritual and the birth of a possible imperial heir had mesmerized the media.
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi had planned to revise the law to give women equal rights to ascend the throne, but Kiko's pregnancy had already put the proposal on hold .
Not all Japanese, however, were likely to be equally gleeful about the birth of a boy, which is expected to scuttle prospects for a reform that would have allowed Aiko to become Japan's first reigning empress since the 18th century.
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