Home / Japanese Names Meaning River
Japanese Names Meaning River
A river is å· (kawa) or æēģ (kawa). Many surnames end in -kawa, such as Nakagawa and Ogawa.
First names
Last names
| Name | Kanji | Reading | Literal meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kono | æēģé | ãããŪ | river + plains |
| Kochi | æēģå | ããããĄ | river + inside |
| Koga | åĪčģ | ãã | old + congratulations |
| Kohata | éŦį | ãããŊã | tall + farm |
| Kobata | å°įŦŊ | ãã°ã | little + edge |
| Togawa | æļå· | ãĻãã | door + stream |
| Togo | æąé· | ãĻããã | east + home town |
| Hikawa | æĨå· | ãēãã | day + stream |
| Okawa | åĪ§å· | ãããã | large + stream |
| Kokawa | å°å· | ããã | little + stream |
| Yoshikawa | åå· | ãããã | four + stream |
| Kawai | å·äž | ããã | stream + meeting |
| Ogawa | å°å· | ããã | little + stream |
| Fukawa | äļå· | ãĩãã | negative + stream |
| Kogawa | åå· | ããã | child + stream |
| Kawato | å·äšš | ãããĻ | stream + person |
| Toga | åé | ãĻã | change + interval |
| Aisawa | įļå· | ãããã | inter- + stream |
| Egawa | äžå· | ããã | meeting + stream |
| Kawashima | éå | ããããū | gold + child |
| Nagawa | é·å | ãŠãã | long + harmony |
| Oikawa | įå· | ãããã | life + stream |
| Ozawa | å°å· | ããã | little + stream |
| Sogawa | åå· | ããã | ten + stream |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| å· | stream, river, river or three-stroke river radical (taught in grade 1) | ãŧãģããã | 3 | Togawa, Hikawa, Okawa |
| æēģ | river (taught in grade 5) | ãŦããã | 8 | Kono, Kochi, Saika |
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 river?
A river is å· (kawa) or æēģ (kawa).
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