Japanese Last Names List: Surnames A–Z

This is the full alphabetical index of the 1,000 Japanese surnames on NihonNames. Every entry shows the most common kanji spelling, how it is read, and the literal meaning of each character, and links to a page with all the spellings we list.

How to use this list

Pick a letter to browse names in alphabetical order, or start with the most popular names below. Names are spelled in the Hepburn style used in English writing, so a long vowel such as Ryu is written without a macron. If you are looking for a name by meaning instead, try the theme pages or the search.

How the list is built

Names, readings and kanji come from the JMnedict names dictionary, and kanji meanings come from KANJIDIC2. We keep names that use common kanji, group each reading into one page, and order the spellings by how common the characters are. Meanings are literal translations of each kanji, so they describe the characters, not what a particular family intended.

Letters

Popular last names

These names can be written with the most different kanji combinations, which is a good sign that they are widely used.