Japan's Princess Kiko gave birth to a boy early Wednesday， providing the centuries-old Chrysanthemum Throne（1） with its first male heir（2） in more than 40 years， the palace announced.

    The birth came about an hour after Kiko， 39， was reported to have undergone a Caesarean（3） section. The boy is the third in line to the throne（4）， after Crown Prince（5） Naruhito and Kiko's husband， Prince Akishino.

    The infant（6）， the first male heir born in Japan since Akishino in 1965， was born at 8：27 a.m. and weighed 5.64 pounds， the Imperial Household Agency（7） said. It said that both mother and child were in good condition afterward.

    Kiko， who already had two daughters， was hospitalized on Aug. 16 after showing symptoms of partial placenta（8） previa.

    The gender of the baby had been a closely guarded palace secret， though Japanese tabloids speculated（9） the child will be a boy.

    The arrival of a royal boy forestalled（10） a looming（11） succession（12） crisis for the royal family. Japan's 1947 succession law allows only males to ascend（13） the throne.

    The last potential male heir born was Akishino himself， in 1965. Emperor Akihito's eldest son， Naruhito， has a daughter with his wife Masako， but the couple have no sons， meaning there is no one to inherit（14） the throne after he and his brother. Kiko， likewise， had no sons.

    The looming succession crunch（15） had prompted serious discussion of changing the law to allow a female to assume the throne. The proposal had the support of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and a majority of the public.

    Even before the 1947 law， reigning（16） empresses were rare， usually serving as stand-ins（17） for a few years until a suitable male can be installed.

    The last reigning empress was Gosakuramachi， who assumed the throne in 1763.

    Debate over the succession law was divisive and emotional. Some conservatives proposed a revival of concubines to produce imperial heirs， and others argued that allowing a woman on the throne would destroy a precious Japanese tradition.

    But support began to wane（18） when the debate early this year became too fractious. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's government put the reform aside after Kiko announced her pregnancy.

    1. Chrysanthemum Throne 指日本皇朝，其家徽为菊纹。 “Chrysanthemum”是“菊花”的意思。

    2. heir 继承人

    3. Caesarean 剖腹产

    4. throne 王座

    5. Crown Prince 皇太子。“crown”指王冠。

    6. infant 婴儿

    7. Imperial Household Agency 宫内庁

    8. placenta 胎盘

    9. speculate 推测

    10. forestall 阻止

    11. looming 海市蜃楼

    12. succession 继承

    13. ascend 攀登

    14. inherit 继承

    15. crunch 咬碎

    16. reign 统治

    17. stand-in 替身，代替演员

    18. wane 变小，亏缺

    日本皇室宣布王妃秋筱宫纪子于周三早晨诞下一子， 给这个有几个世纪历史的以菊花为家徽的日本皇族带来了40多年以来的第一位男性继承人。

    据报道39岁的秋筱宫纪子是在接受剖腹产手术一个小时后生下这个孩子。这个男孩在皇位继承人中排行第三，前面是德仁皇太子和秋筱宫纪子的丈夫文仁亲王。

    这个婴儿是自1965年文仁亲王出生后问世的第一个男性继承人。宫内庁称，他在早上8：27出生，重5.64镑，母子平安。

    已经是两个女儿的母亲的秋筱宫纪子在出现部分性前置胎盘征兆后于8月16日入院。

    胎儿的性别被皇室严格封锁消息，尽管日本多家小报推测出孩子将是男性。

    皇孙的降生避免了日本皇室无后的危机。日本1947年颁布的继承法只允许男性登上王位。

    在此之前最后一个有可能的王位继承人是1965年出生的文仁本人。明仁天皇的长子德仁与妻子雅子育有一女，但没有儿子，也就是说在他和胞弟之外没有其他人继承皇位。那时秋筱宫纪子同样也没生儿子。

    皇室无后的可能已经引发有关修改法律以便使女性也能登上王位的严肃讨论。这一动议得到过首相小泉纯一郎和大部分民众的支持。

    即使在1947年法律颁布前也很少有女性天皇统治日本，有也是在找到一位合适的男性登基前临时代替几年。

    最后一位亲政的女皇是1763年登基的后桜町天皇。

    有关继承法的讨论可谓泾渭分明，十分动情。一些保守派建议恢复纳妾制度以便生出皇室继承人，其他的争辩说让女性继承王位将破坏宝贵的日本传统。

    但是当今年早些时候争论变得白热化时，支持女性的声音变小了。在王妃秋筱宫纪子宣布怀孕之后，首相小泉纯一郎政府将这项改革搁置起来。