On Friday, October 17, 2025, Nippon TV reported that Masako Nozawa, who is best known as Goku’s voice actor in the Dragon Ball franchise, is among the 21 recipients of this year’s Persons of Cultural Merit honors and the Order of Culture award. This makes her the first voice actor to receive the distinction.
Established in 1951, the Persons of Cultural Merit is an official Japanese recognition of honor, awarded annually and designed to provide lifetime recognition of those who have contributed to the advancement and development of Japanese culture. As of 1985, the honorees receive a government pension set at 3.5 million yen (approximately US$23,300). Each year, 20 individuals are selected for this honor, with past recipients including haiku poet Tota Kaneko, author and translator Kyoko Matsuoka, Studio Ghibli film director and animator Hayao Miyazaki, The Poe Clan mangaka Moto Hagio, Nintendo game director and Mario developer Shigeru Miyamoto, and Gundam‘s Yoshiyuki Tomino.
Other Persons of Cultural Merit honorees this year include Year 24 Group mangaka and BL pioneer Keiko Takemiya, Honorary President Tadao Kakizoe of the National Cancer Research Center, playwright, director and actor Hideki Noda, and architect Shigeru Saka, and more. Recipients of the Order of Culture, one of Japan’s highest honors, are then chosen from the previous year’s Persons of Cultural Merit honorees. Both distinctions are awarded by the Prime Minister of Japan, who, since 2024, has been Shigeru Ishiba.
The recognition of Nozawa reflects a broader shift in how Japan honors contributions to its cultural identity, particularly from once-overlooked sectors like voice acting. Nozawa is best known for voicing Goku in the Dragon Ball franchise, Kitaro in GeGeGe no Kitaro, and numerous characters in the Doraemon series, including the title role in the 1973 and 1976 adaptations.
Nozawa released a comment about her honors:
I understand this honor is one I receive on behalf of the voice acting community. I feel immense pride that the spotlight of this award shines not only on myself, but also on my seniors, my peers, and the younger generation who will venture into the future of voice acting.
I also express my heartfelt gratitude to all the creators who have brought these works and characters to life, and to the fans who continue to support us unwaveringly. It is only through your existence that “culture” is nurtured, and that our journey as voice actors continues to be made possible.
My only real asset is my energy, so I intend to keep delivering my “voice” with all my might, hoping to contribute even a little to repaying my debt to culture.
Both the Persons of Cultural Merit honors and the Order of Culture award ceremonies will be held on November 3, 2025.
Source: Nippon TV
Image Credit: Agency Website
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