--- description: Every Japanese person who turned 100 used to receive a commemorative silver cup: no longer. There are simply too many of them title: Japan Can't Afford to Give Centanarians Gifts Any More image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt199cce1a6c0d6115/698860292dce0163269e52b5/455466430.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Japan Can't Afford to Give Centenarians Gifts Anymore Because There Are Too Many of Them by [Joanna Plucinska](/author/joanna-plucinska/) ## Joanna Plucinska Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 20, 2015 7:30 AM CUT  Elderly residents rest in the grounds of a temple in Tokyo on Sept. 15, 2014, as the country marks Respect for the Aged Day Elderly residents rest in the grounds of a temple in Tokyo on Sept. 15, 2014, as the country marks Respect for the Aged DayYoshikazu Tsuno—AFP/Getty Images by [Joanna Plucinska](/author/joanna-plucinska/) ## Joanna Plucinska Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 20, 2015 7:30 AM CUT Every year on Senior’s Day, new Japanese centenarians receive a special _sakazuki_ — a silver cup valued at around $64\. But as the country’s population continues to grow, the Japanese government has realized that it simply can’t afford to be giving out such lavish gifts any longer. According to Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, 29,357 people over the age of 100 were registered in the country last year. When the _sakazuki_ program began over 50 years ago in 1963, there were only 153, the _Japan Times_ reports. The gift program’s cost has risen to over $2 million in 2014 alone. Japan is renowned for the longevity of its elders, breaking the world record repeatedly for longest-living population. The gift dilemma signals a larger trend for the country, as its [demographics](http://www.economist.com/blogs/banyan/2014/03/japans-demography "undefined") continue shifting toward an increasingly aging population. The government expects that, by 2018, the country will have around 39,000 centenarians, the _Times_ says. The government doesn’t want to leave centenarians unacknowledged altogether though — instead, it’s considering making the _sakazuki_ from a cheaper material or simply sending a congratulatory letter, according to the _Times_. \[[_Japan_ _Times_](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/08/19/national/japan-downgrade-gift-centenarians-population-ages/#.VdVnvlOqpBe "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4004281/japan-centenarian-gift-seniors-day-sakazuki/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4004281/japan-centenarian-gift-seniors-day-sakazuki/"},"headline":"Japan Can't Afford to Give Centenarians Gifts Anymore Because There Are Too Many of Them","datePublished":"2015-08-20T07:30:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T10:18:17.945Z","description":"29,357 centenarians as of 2014, to be exact","url":"https://time.com/4004281/japan-centenarian-gift-seniors-day-sakazuki/","keywords":["Japan","Longevity","Elderly"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt199cce1a6c0d6115/698860292dce0163269e52b5/455466430.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Joanna Plucinska","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/joanna-plucinska/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt199cce1a6c0d6115/698860292dce0163269e52b5/455466430.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"JAPAN-SOCIETY-SENIOR-CITIZENS-POPULATION","caption":"JAPAN-SOCIETY-SENIOR-CITIZENS-POPULATION","creditText":"Yoshikazu Tsuno—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4004281/japan-centenarian-gift-seniors-day-sakazuki/","name":"Japan Can't Afford to Give Centenarians Gifts Anymore Because There Are Too Many of Them"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Island That Holds the Secret to Long Life","description":"Here's how the people of Ikaria, Greece reach old age","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/orlnwhNb/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-05-23T20:32:12.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/orlnwhNb.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4004281/japan-centenarian-gift-seniors-day-sakazuki/","duration":"PT7M8S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4004281/japan-centenarian-gift-seniors-day-sakazuki/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```