There are now more than 100,000 centenarians in Japan, a record for a country famous for its longevity.
如今，日本的百岁老人数量已超过10万，在这个以长寿著称的国家，这一数字创下了新纪录。
Japan’s health ministry released data on Tuesday showing that there are now 107,677 people who are at least 100 years old, an increase of nearly 8,000 since last year. The oldest woman, Fuyo Kishimoto from Kyoto, is 114 and the oldest man, Hikaru Kato from Kumamoto, is 112. Women make up the vast majority of the group, at 88 percent.
日本厚生劳动省周二发布的数据显示，目前日本100岁及以上人口达107677人，比去年增加了近8000人。最长寿的女性是来自京都的岸本芙世（音），现年114岁；最长寿的男性是来自熊本的加藤光，现年112岁。女性占该群体的绝大多数，比例高达88%。
Japan’s health minister, Kenichiro Ueno, welcomed the news on Tuesday, and pledged to build a strong social security system that supports the elderly in living long and healthy lives. “I am very happy that so many people have been able to stay active for so long,” he said at a news conference in Tokyo.
日本厚生劳动大臣上野贤一郎周二对这一消息表示欢迎，并承诺建立一个强大的社会保障体系，以支持老年人过上健康长寿的生活。“看到这么多人能够长期保持活跃，我感到非常高兴，”他在东京的新闻发布会上说。
Stuart Gietel-Basten, a professor of social science at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, said the long lives of many Japanese could be attributed to healthy diet, active daily routines, and an affordable health system with regular check ups.
香港科技大学社会科学教授贝乐天(Stuart Gietel-Basten)表示，许多日本人的长寿可归因于健康的饮食、积极的日常生活，以及提供定期体检且费用可负担的医疗体系。
Women are overrepresented as centenarians because many men of that generation died in World War II, and those who survived smoked and drank more than women, he said. Men are also more likely to be involved in industrial work, which could have long-term health impacts. Many men became isolated after retirement or the loss of a spouse, he added, and women tended to be more engaged in their communities, which improved their mental health.
他说，女性在百岁老人中比例较高，是因为那一代的许多男性在第二次世界大战中丧生，而且那些幸存下来的男性吸烟和饮酒的习惯比女性更严重。男性也更有可能从事工业劳动，这可能会对健康产生长期影响。他还说，许多男性在退休或失去配偶后变得孤立，而女性往往更多地参与社区活动，这改善了她们的心理健康。
去年，佐藤哲夫（左）与儿媳的合影。Tetsuo Sato, 106, is one of the 100,000, living in the rice-growing village of Osonogo in the mountainous Niigata Prefecture with his son, daughter-in-law, dog and cat.
106岁的佐藤哲雄是这10万名百岁老人中的一员。他与儿子、儿媳以及猫狗一起，生活在新潟县山区种植水稻的迟乡。
Hard of hearing and visually impaired, Mr. Sato fills his days by making notebooks from old calendars and wrapping paper. He also tells stories about his experiences fighting in the Battle of Imphal during World War II.
尽管听力不佳且视力受损，佐藤哲雄每天都会用旧日历和包装纸制作笔记本。他还经常讲述自己二战期间在因帕尔战役中打仗的经历。
His daughter-in-law, Kuniko Sato, 68, said he was determined to be self-sufficient and continued to bathe himself without help.
他的儿媳、68岁的佐藤久仁子（音）说，他决心自己照顾自己，至今仍坚持不靠他人帮助，自己洗澡。
“When I injured my leg last year, Grandpa started washing his own rice bowls,” she said. “We ended up caring for each other in our old age.”
“去年我的腿受伤时，爷爷开始自己洗饭碗，”她说。“到了晚年，我们开始互相照顾。”
As well as a rapidly aging population, Japan is grappling with one of the lowest birthrates in the world, a predicament that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has called a “quiet emergency.”
除了人口迅速老龄化之外，日本还在努力应对世界上最低的出生率之一，首相高市早苗将这种困境称为“无声的紧急状态”。
Japan’s population peaked at 128 million in 2008, and is projected to drop to 87 million by 2070, according to government projections. The country now has roughly the same number of people as it did in 1989. For every new birth in the country, there are two deaths.
日本人口在2008年达到1.28亿的峰值，根据政府预测，到2070年将降至8700万。目前日本的人口数量大致与1989年持平。在这个国家，每出生一个新生儿，就有两人死亡。
The demographic crisis poses challenges for the government, as it drives up the tax burden on a shrinking work force. For decades, the Japanese authorities have tried to rebalance the rapidly aging population by encouraging couples to have more children, to little avail.
人口危机给政府带来了挑战，因为它加重了不断萎缩的劳动力的税收负担。几十年来，日本当局一直试图通过鼓励夫妇多生孩子来重新平衡迅速老龄化的人口结构，但收效甚微。
Some experts argue that Japan needs to allow more immigrants to offset the population decline. But a wave of nationalist sentiment has recently swept the country, with some activists calling for even stricter controls as part of a “Japan First” movement.
一些专家认为，日本需要允许更多移民来抵消人口下降的影响。但最近一股民族主义情绪席卷日本，一些活动人士呼吁实施更严格的控制措施，作为“日本优先”运动的一部分。
At the same time, the country’s centenarians are determined to remain active. Some are even still working.
与此同时，日本的百岁老人们决心保持活跃。有些人甚至还在工作。
In two days, Mr. Sato will turn 107. More than a dozen members of his family plan to celebrate at a traditional hot spring hotel, where they hope to photograph the four generations gathered together.
再过两天，佐藤哲雄将迎来107岁生日。他的十几位家人计划在一家传统的温泉酒店庆祝，他们希望在那里拍下四世同堂的合影。
Ms. Sato said her father-in-law “seems to feel a sense of responsibility, believing that a parent must always look out for their children, he likely feels he needs to stay strong and capable.”
佐藤久仁子说，她的公公“似乎有一种责任感，认为做父母的必须始终照看好自己的孩子，他可能觉得自己需要保持强健和能力。”
“His original goal was to live to 100, but now he aims to reach 110,” she added.
“他原本的目标是活到100岁，但现在他的目标是活到110岁，”她还说。