A century of suicide in Japan

By William Wetherall

Table 1

Male suicides per 100,000 population
Japan, 1899-1991, by age group for 5-year periods
early, prewar, postwar, recent, and present

Period 0-4 5-9 10-14 15-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65-69 70-74 75-79 80-84 85-89 90-94 95-99 100+ Period Notes
1900 0.027 0.063 3.1 14.1 28.8 23.7 20.3 22.0 25.1 30.7 36.0 40.9 46.5 56.9 66.1 + 1899-1902 2 4
1905 3.1 15.3 30.1 26.1 22.2 23.7 27.1 34.1 40.3 51.1 53.9 64.2 86.9 + 1903-1907 1 4
1910 3.2 20.0 38.4 29.9 24.1 24.1 27.3 32.8 38.6 48.5 58.8 67.5 78.1 96.9 90.9 49.1 + 1908-1912 1 4
1915 2.7 18.6 38.3 30.7 24.4 26.2 27.9 33.1 41.9 53.3 62.8 76.9 88.7 103.7 93.5 46.6 + 1913-1917 1 4
1920 2.1 19.2 39.9 32.5 25.7 26.8 28.2 33.0 40.7 48.8 65.6 - 100.0 - 127.3 + 1918-1922 1 5
1925 1.7 20.1 42.2 32.7 26.2 27.4 31.8 37.7 45.0 55.9 72.0 - 103.3 - 134.5 - 161.6 + 1923-1927 1 5
1930 1.5 23.1 46.2 35.1 26.7 28.7 30.5 43.2 50.3 60.6 79.9 - 110.9 - 129.4 - 141.4 + 1928-1932 1 5
1935 0.005 1.3 27.6 53.0 39.4 26.2 26.1 27.4 34.4 44.9 54.7 62.4 81.6 109.3 - 145.8 - 158.7 + 1933-1937 1 5
1940 0.9 12.4 30.2 26.2 18.3 18.9 19.4 25.3 31.6 39.7 50.1 63.4 93.9 - 130.4 + 1938-1942 1 5
1945 0.085 0.154 0.9 7.7 25.3 30.1 22.1 17.1 19.3 23.0 31.3 41.8 54.7 69.8 91.9 110.7 124.6 187.2 + 1943-1947 3 5
1950 0.017 0.6 16.1 38.9 31.3 21.5 19.5 21.7 28.2 36.9 50.2 58.0 77.9 95.7 112.7 139.8 145.3 149.7 537.2 800.0 1948-1952 1 5
1955 0.021 1.0 32.2 74.1 49.3 28.1 23.7 22.5 29.0 34.0 46.6 55.5 66.1 84.9 105.4 120.7 136.5 134.1 236.4 1953-1957 1 5
1960 0.030 0.9 23.8 58.5 43.0 23.5 19.6 18.6 23.5 29.6 40.0 48.2 62.3 73.1 96.3 107.0 103.3 117.2 108.1 1958-1962 1 5
1965 0.005 0.9 9.1 25.1 25.9 18.4 15.6 15.9 19.2 23.7 31.2 40.1 49.6 58.1 76.3 99.2 97.8 87.1 48.0 1963-1967 1 5
1970 0.010 1.1 10.2 19.9 22.2 19.0 18.4 17.3 19.5 23.3 29.0 35.7 45.8 57.5 71.0 87.4 110.0 98.5 88.1 307.7 1968-1972 1 5
1975 0.022 1.5 12.1 26.6 24.6 23.1 24.5 26.2 26.3 26.0 29.1 35.2 42.3 54.4 72.6 91.8 102.0 106.0 103.0 190.5 1973-1977 1 5
1980 0.023 1.2 10.5 23.9 26.3 23.3 26.2 32.1 34.7 33.4 32.1 32.6 35.9 46.6 63.3 79.9 97.0 98.4 102.6 1978-1982 1 5
1985 0.041 1.1 7.7 20.7 25.6 25.7 27.0 37.9 48.9 52.8 45.5 38.7 40.4 47.6 65.0 86.4 104.3 113.7 90.3 108.1 1983-1987 1 5
1988 0.051 1.0 5.6 15.9 21.9 21.8 25.2 28.1 37.9 44.8 41.0 33.9 37.3 41.5 58.7 79.3 101.2 124.3 + 1988
1989 0.8 5.4 14.6 20.7 19.2 22.3 25.2 30.8 36.0 35.2 31.9 33.7 45.5 57.5 73.7 92.8 93.4 + 1989
1990 0.7 4.8 13.9 17.2 19.5 20.4 22.5 30.4 33.8 33.8 31.2 32.8 42.1 50.7 69.8 90.0 95.5 + 1990 6
1991 0.5 4.9 13.6 18.1 18.0 20.5 22.4 30.8 36.1 36.9 32.2 31.1 34.0 48.1 67.2 72.6 85.9 + 1991 6
Early 0.006 0.013 3.0 17.2 34.2 27.8 22.9 24.1 26.9 32.8 39.4 48.8 56.0 66.9 82.0 + 1899-1917 7
Prewar 0.001 1.5 20.5 42.3 33.2 24.6 25.6 27.5 34.7 42.5 52.0 68.6 - 103.5 - 133.9 + 1918-1942 8
Postwar 0.016 0.9 18.3 43.3 34.3 22.1 19.4 19.2 23.9 29.5 39.4 47.5 60.3 73.8 92.3 110.8 118.6 117.3 203.6 221.5 1948-1972 8
Recent 0.029 1.3 10.1 23.7 25.5 24.0 25.9 32.1 36.6 37.4 35.6 35.5 39.5 49.5 66.9 86.0 101.1 106.0 98.6 99.5 1973-1987 9
Present 0.013 0.7 5.2 14.5 19.5 19.6 22.1 24.5 32.5 37.7 36.7 32.3 33.7 40.7 53.7 72.5 89.2 99.8 + 1988-1991 9
Age 0-4 5-9 10-14 15-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65-69 70-74 75-79 80-84 85-89 90-94 95-99 100+ Age

Notes

+ Indicates a rate for included and older age groups. For example, xx.x + between age groups 70-74 and 75-79 is a rate for age groups 70+.
- Indicates a rate for included age groups only. For example, yy.y - between age groups 60-64 and 65-69 is a rate for age group 60-69.

  1. Except as noted, suicide rates are average suicides per year for period, divided by population for central year.
  2. 1900 rate is based on 1899-1902 suicides and 1900 population. 1899 and 1900 suicides were about 25 percent under reported.
  3. 1945 rate is based on 1943, 1946, and 1947 suicides and 1945 population. 1946 suicides were estimated at four times last three months.
  4. 1900, 1905, 1910, and 1915 populations were estimated by author, by distributing total populations for these years (backward projected from 1920 census) in proportion to age group populations interpolated between 1898, 1903, 1908, 1913, and 1918 register populations.
  5. 1920 through 1940 populations, and 1950 through 1985 populations, were census counts. 1945 population was special survey count.
  6. 1988 and 1989 populations intercensal estimates projected from 1985 census. 1990 population preliminary census. 1991 rates preliminary.
  7. Early period rate was computed as an average over 19 years according to the formula (4*1900+5*(1905+1910+1915))/19.
  8. Prewar and postwar period rates were computed as averages over 25 years, by dividing the sum of the five component averages by five.
  9. Recent period rates are sums of three 5-year averages divided by three. Present period rates are sums of four annual rates divided by four.