The prime minister of Japan (Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: Naikaku Sōri-Daijin) is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of State. The prime minister also serves as the commander-in-chief of the Japan Self Defence Forces and as a sitting member of the House of Representatives (the lower house). The individual is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being nominated by the National Diet (the parliament); he or she must retain the nomination of the lower house, and answer to parliament to remain in office. The position and nature of this title allow the holder to reside in and work at the Prime Minister's Official Residence in Nagatacho, Chiyoda, Tokyo, close to the National Diet Building. Fumio Kishida is the current prime minister of Japan, replacing Yoshihide Suga on 4 October 2021. As of , there have been 102 prime ministers. Designation Abbreviations In Japanese, due to the special nature of the work of the head of government, the prime minister's titles vary depending on context, sometimes demonstrating his/her role. Since the inception of the cabinet system, the prime minister is known in Japanese as Naikaku Sōri-Daijin (内閣総理大臣) whenever he is referred to as the head of the Cabinet. However, this title is usually abbreviated to Sōri-Daijin (総理大臣). Other abbreviations include Sōri (総理), Shushō (首相) or even Saishō (宰相). English notation The official English rendering is 'Prime Minister'. This English translation was informally used as the English translation of 'Grand Minister' before the introduction of the cabinet system. However, this was not the original English translation of 'Prime Minister', and a German translation, 'Minister President of the State', was also used in the past. History Before the adoption of the Meiji Constitution, Japan had in practice no written constitution. Originally, a Chinese-inspired legal system known as ritsuryō was enacted in the late Asuka period and early Nara period. It described a government based on an elaborate and rational meritocratic bureaucracy, serving, in theory, under the ultimate authority of the emperor; although in practice, real power was often held elsewhere, such as in the hands of the Fujiwara clan, who intermarried with the imperial family in the Heian period, or by the ruling shōgun. Theoretically, the last ritsuryō code, the Yōrō Code enacted in 752, was still in force at the time of the Meiji