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Japanese Names Meaning Mountain
A mountain is 山 (yama). It is very common in surnames such as Yamamoto and Yamada, and sometimes in boys' names.
First names
Last names
| Name | Kanji | Reading | Literal meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Koyama | 小山 | こやま | little + mountain |
| Oka | 岡 | おか | mount |
| Toyama | 外山 | とやま | outside + mountain |
| Kayama | 下山 | かやま | below + mountain |
| Kiyama | 生山 | きやま | life + mountain |
| Hiyama | 日山 | ひやま | day + mountain |
| Yamaki | 山来 | やまき | mountain + come |
| Akamine | 明峰 | あかみね | bright + summit |
| Hataya | 端谷 | はたや | edge + valley |
| Suyama | 数山 | すやま | number + mountain |
| Yoshiyama | 四山 | よしやま | four + mountain |
| Hayama | 早間 | はやま | early + interval |
| Aoki | 青木 | あおき | blue + tree |
| Komiyama | 込山 | こみやま | crowded + mountain |
| Soyama | 相山 | そうやま | inter- + mountain |
| Inoue | 井上 | いのうえ | well + above |
| Katayama | 方山 | かたやま | direction + mountain |
| Sando | 三度 | さんど | three + degrees |
| Takamine | 高峰 | たかみね | tall + summit |
| Fukuyama | 副山 | ふくやま | vice- + mountain |
| Hachiya | 八谷 | はちや | eight + valley |
| Sakiyama | 前山 | さきやま | in front + mountain |
| Seyama | 政山 | せやま | politics + mountain |
| Shoyama | 生山 | しょうやま | life + mountain |
Kanji behind these names
These are the characters in the names above that carry this meaning, with their readings. Mix them to see why one reading can have many spellings.
| Kanji | Meaning | Readings | Strokes | Seen in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 山 | mountain (taught in grade 1) | サン、セン、やま | 3 | Koyama, Toyama, Kayama |
| 岡 | mount, hill, knoll (taught in grade 4) | コウ、おか | 8 | Oka, Yoshioka, Okada |
| 坂 | slope, incline, hill (taught in grade 3) | ハン、さか | 7 | Kosaka, Sakamoto |
| 峰 | summit, peak (secondary school) | ホウ、みね、ね | 10 | Akamine, Takamine |
How to choose a spelling
When two spellings share the same sound, compare the literal meanings in the table and say both aloud. Pick the one whose meaning you like and whose characters look balanced together. If the name is for something permanent, ask a native speaker to read it back to you.
Questions
What is the Japanese word for mountain?
A mountain is 山 (yama).
Can any kanji be used in a name?
No. Japanese law limits given names to an approved list of about three thousand kanji, so names are built from those characters.
Related pages
More: girl names · boy names · unisex names · names by meaning