193+ Japanese Last Names With Meanings

Japanese surnames, known as Myoji, are deeply rooted in the natural world and the historical landscape of the archipelago. Unlike many Western names that describe occupations, the vast majority of Japanese last names describe topography, such as mountains, rice fields, and forests, reflecting the agrarian history of ancient Japan.

In 2026, as Japanese culture continues to influence global media, technology, and art, these 193+ Japanese last names provide an authentic look into a naming tradition that balances poetic beauty with ancestral geography.

The Rising Sun Registry: A to Z

A to G – Fields, Bridges, and Ancient Groves

1. Abe (阿部) – Meaning “Peaceful” or “To visit.”
2. Adachi (足立) – Meaning “Standing feet.”
3. Akagi (赤木) – Meaning “Red tree.”
4. Akamine (赤嶺) – Meaning “Red peak.”
5. Akimoto (秋元) – Meaning “Autumn origin.”
6. Akiyama (秋山) – Meaning “Autumn mountain.”
7. Amari (甘利) – Meaning “Sweet profit.”
8. Ando (安藤) – Meaning “Peaceful wisteria.”
9. Aoki (青木) – Meaning “Green/Blue tree.”
10. Aoyama (青山) – Meaning “Green mountain.”
11. Aragaki (新垣) – Meaning “New stone wall.”
12. Asano (浅野) – Meaning “Shallow field.”
13. Azuma (東) – Meaning “East.”
14. Baba (馬場) – Meaning “Horse riding ground.”
15. Bando (坂東) – Meaning “East of the slope.”
16. Chiba (千葉) – Meaning “Thousand leaves.”
17. Chinen (知念) – Meaning “Knowledge/Wisdom feeling.”
18. Date (伊達) – Meaning “Showy” or “Gallant” (Famous samurai clan).
19. Deguchi (出口) – Meaning “Exit.”
20. Doi (土井) – Meaning “Earth well.”
21. Ebina (海老名) – Meaning “Shrimp name.”
22. Eguchi (江口) – Meaning “Mouth of the river.”
23. Endo (遠藤) – Meaning “Distant wisteria.”
24. Enomoto (榎本) – Meaning “Origin of the nettle tree.”
25. Fujii (藤井) – Meaning “Wisteria well.”
26. Fujimoto (藤本) – Meaning “Origin of the wisteria.”
27. Fujita (藤田) – Meaning “Wisteria rice field.”
28. Fujiwara (藤原) – Meaning “Wisteria plain” (Ancient noble clan).
29. Fukuda (福田) – Meaning “Blessed rice field.”
30. Fukui (福井) – Meaning “Blessed well.”
31. Fukushima (福島) – Meaning “Blessed island.”
32. Furukawa (古川) – Meaning “Old river.”
33. Gomi (五味) – Meaning “Five tastes.”
34. Goto (後藤) – Meaning “Behind the wisteria.”

H to M – From Flowers to Sacred Mountains

1. Hada (羽田) – Meaning “Feather field.”
2. Hagiwara (萩原) – Meaning “Bush clover plain.”
3. Hamada (浜田) – Meaning “Seashore rice field.”
4. Hara (原) – Meaning “Field” or “Plain.”
5. Harada (原田) – Meaning “Plain rice field.”
6. Hasegawa (長谷川) – Meaning “Long valley river.”
7. Hashimoto (橋本) – Meaning “Base of the bridge.”
8. Hata (秦) – Referring to the ancient Hata clan.
9. Hayashi (林) – Meaning “Forest.”
10. Hidaka (日高) – Meaning “High sun.”
11. Higashi (東) – Meaning “East.”
12. Hino (日野) – Meaning “Sun field.”
13. Hirano (平野) – Meaning “Peaceful/Flat field.”
14. Hirose (広瀬) – Meaning “Wide torrent.”
15. Honda (本田) – Meaning “Root rice field.”
16. Hori (堀) – Meaning “Moat.”
17. Hoshino (星野) – Meaning “Star field.”
18. Ichikawa (市川) – Meaning “Market river.”
19. Ida (井田) – Meaning “Well rice field.”
20. Igarashi (五十嵐) – Meaning “Fifty storms.”
21. Iida (飯田) – Meaning “Boiled rice field.”
22. Ikeda (池田) – Meaning “Pond rice field.”
23. Imai (今井) – Meaning “Now well.”
24. Imamura (今村) – Meaning “Now village.”
25. Inoue (井上) – Meaning “Above the well.”
26. Ishida (石田) – Meaning “Stone rice field.”
27. Ishii (石井) – Meaning “Stone well.”
28. Ishikawa (石川) – Meaning “Stone river.”
29. Ishizaki (石崎) – Meaning “Stone cape.”
30. Ito (伊藤) – Meaning “This wisteria.”
31. Iwai (岩井) – Meaning “Rock well.”
32. Iwasaki (岩崎) – Meaning “Rock cape.”
33. Iwata (岩田) – Meaning “Rock rice field.”
34. Izumi (和泉) – Meaning “Spring” or “Fountain.”
35. Jin (神) – Meaning “God” or “Spirit.”
36. Kagawa (香川) – Meaning “Fragrant river.”
37. Kamada (鎌田) – Meaning “Sickle rice field.”
38. Kaneko (金子) – Meaning “Golden child.”
39. Kanzaki (神崎) – Meaning “God’s cape.”
40. Kato (加藤) – Meaning “Increasing wisteria.”
41. Kawaguchi (川口) – Meaning “Mouth of the river.”
42. Kawakami (川上) – Meaning “Above the river.”
43. Kawasaki (川崎) – Meaning “River cape.”
44. Kikuchi (菊地) – Meaning “Chrysanthemum earth.”
45. Kimura (木村) – Meaning “Tree village.”
46. Kinoshita (木下) – Meaning “Under the tree.”
47. Kita (北) – Meaning “North.”
48. Kitagawa (北川) – Meaning “North river.”
49. Kitamura (北村) – Meaning “North village.”
50. Kobayashi (小林) – Meaning “Small forest.”
51. Koga (古賀) – Meaning “Old celebration.”
52. Koizumi (小泉) – Meaning “Small spring.”
53. Kojima (小島) – Meaning “Small island.”
54. Komatsu (小松) – Meaning “Small pine tree.”
55. Kondo (近藤) – Meaning “Near wisteria.”
56. Koyama (小山) – Meaning “Small mountain.”
57. Kubo (久保) – Meaning “Long-time maintenance.”
58. Kudo (工藤) – Meaning “Artisan wisteria.”
59. Kuroda (黒田) – Meaning “Black rice field.”
60. Kurosawa (黒沢) – Meaning “Black marsh.”
61. Maeda (前田) – Meaning “Previous rice field.”
62. Makino (牧野) – Meaning “Pasture field.”
63. Maruyama (丸山) – Meaning “Round mountain.”
64. Masuda (増田) – Meaning “Increasing rice field.”
65. Matsubara (松原) – Meaning “Pine tree plain.”
66. Matsuda (松田) – Meaning “Pine tree rice field.”
67. Matsui (松井) – Meaning “Pine tree well.”
68. Matsumoto (松本) – Meaning “Root of the pine tree.”
69. Matsumura (松村) – Meaning “Pine tree village.”
70. Matsuo (松尾) – Meaning “Tail of the pine tree.”
71. Matsuoka (松岡) – Meaning “Pine tree hill.”
72. Matsushita (松下) – Meaning “Under the pine tree.”
73. Matsuura (松浦) – Meaning “Pine tree bay.”
74. Minami (南) – Meaning “South.”
75. Miura (三浦) – Meaning “Three bays.”
76. Miyake (三宅) – Meaning “Three houses.”
77. Miyamoto (宮本) – Meaning “Base of the shrine.”
78. Miyazaki (宮崎) – Meaning “Shrine cape.”
79. Miyoshi (三好) – Meaning “Three goodnesses.”
80. Mizuno (水野) – Meaning “Water field.”
81. Mori (森) – Meaning “Forest.”
82. Morimoto (森本) – Meaning “Origin of the forest.”
83. Morita (森田) – Meaning “Forest rice field.”
84. Murakami (村上) – Meaning “Above the village.”
85. Murata (村田) – Meaning “Village rice field.”

N to Z – From Rivers to the Great Valleys

1. Nagai (永井) – Meaning “Eternal well.”
2. Nagano (長野) – Meaning “Long field.”
3. Nagasawa (長沢) – Meaning “Long marsh.”
4. Nagata (永田) – Meaning “Eternal rice field.”
5. Naito (内藤) – Meaning “Inside wisteria.”
6. Nakagawa (中川) – Meaning “Middle river.”
7. Nakajima (中島) – Meaning “Middle island.”
8. Nakamura (中村) – Meaning “Middle village.”
9. Nakano (中野) – Meaning “Middle field.”
10. Nakata (中田) – Meaning “Middle rice field.”
11. Nakayama (中山) – Meaning “Middle mountain.”
12. Nishida (西田) – Meaning “West rice field.”
13. Nishikawa (西川) – Meaning “West river.”
14. Nishimura (西村) – Meaning “West village.”
15. Noguchi (野口) – Meaning “Mouth of the field.”
16. Nomura (野村) – Meaning “Field village.”
17. Obara (小原) – Meaning “Small field.”
18. Oda (織田) – Meaning “Woven rice field.”
19. Ogawa (小川) – Meaning “Small river.”
20. Ohara (大原) – Meaning “Great plain.”
21. Okada (岡田) – Meaning “Hill rice field.”
22. Okamoto (岡本) – Meaning “Root of the hill.”
23. Okamura (岡村) – Meaning “Hill village.”
24. Okazaki (岡崎) – Meaning “Hill cape.”
25. Ono (小野) – Meaning “Small field.”
26. Ota (太田) – Meaning “Plump rice field.”
27. Otani (大谷) – Meaning “Great valley.”
28. Ozawa (小沢) – Meaning “Small marsh.”
29. Saito (斎藤) – Meaning “Purified wisteria.”
30. Sakai (酒井) – Meaning “Sake well.”
31. Sakamoto (坂本) – Meaning “Root of the slope.”
32. Sakurai (桜井) – Meaning “Cherry blossom well.”
33. Sano (佐野) – Meaning “Help field.”
34. Sasaki (佐々木) – Meaning “Help wood.”
35. Sato (佐藤) – Meaning “Help wisteria” (The most common surname).
36. Sawada (沢田) – Meaning “Marsh rice field.”
37. Shibata (柴田) – Meaning “Brushwood rice field.”
38. Shimada (島田) – Meaning “Island rice field.”
39. Shimizu (清水) – Meaning “Pure water.”
40. Shinohara (篠原) – Meaning “Bamboo grass plain.”
41. Sugawara (菅原) – Meaning “Sedge plain.”
42. Sugimoto (杉本) – Meaning “Root of the cedar.”
43. Sugiyama (杉山) – Meaning “Cedar mountain.”
44. Suzuki (鈴木) – Meaning “Bell tree” (Second most common name).
45. Takahashi (高橋) – Meaning “High bridge.”
46. Takagi (高木) – Meaning “Tall tree.”
47. Takeda (武田) – Meaning “Warrior rice field.”
48. Takeuchi (竹内) – Meaning “Inside the bamboo.”
49. Tamura (田村) – Meaning “Rice field village.”
50. Tanaka (田中) – Meaning “Middle of the rice field.”
51. Taniguchi (谷口) – Meaning “Mouth of the valley.”
52. Tokunaga (徳永) – Meaning “Virtuous eternity.”
53. Toyoda (豊田) – Meaning “Abundant rice field.”
54. Tsuboi (坪井) – Meaning “Pot well.”
55. Uchida (内田) – Meaning “Inside rice field.”
56. Ueda (上田) – Meaning “Upper rice field.”
57. Ueno (上野) – Meaning “Upper field.”
58. Wada (和田) – Meaning “Harmonious rice field.”
59. Watanabe (渡辺) – Meaning “To cross the border.”
60. Yagi (八木) – Meaning “Eight trees.”
61. Yamada (山田) – Meaning “Mountain rice field.”
62. Yamaguchi (山口) – Meaning “Mouth of the mountain.”
63. Yamamoto (山本) – Meaning “Root of the mountain.”
64. Yamanaka (山中) – Meaning “Inside the mountain.”
65. Yamashita (山下) – Meaning “Under the mountain.”
66. Yamazaki (山崎) – Meaning “Mountain cape.”
67. Yokoyama (横山) – Meaning “Side mountain.”
68. Yoshida (吉田) – Meaning “Lucky rice field.”
69. Yoshimura (吉村) – Meaning “Lucky village.”
70. Yoshino (吉野) – Meaning “Lucky field.”

The Landscape of the Name: Kanji and Meaning

Japanese surnames are typically composed of two Kanji (characters). Understanding these components allows you to decode the meaning of almost any Japanese name.

1. The “Wisteria” Connection (藤 – To/Do)

The character for wisteria, Fuji, is extremely common because it was the signature flower of the Fujiwara clan, the most powerful noble family of ancient Japan. Many families added “To” (the Mandarin-derived pronunciation of wisteria) to their name to signify their connection to this clan.

• Sato, Kato, Ito, and Ando all feature this character.

2. The Agricultural Core (田 – Ta/Da)

The character for rice field (Ta) appears in countless surnames. It highlights the importance of rice cultivation in Japanese history.

• Tanaka, Yamada, and Matsuda all reference different placements or types of rice fields.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions

Summary

From the noble echoes of Fujiwara to the natural simplicity of Tanaka, Japanese surnames capture a vast spectrum of history and geography. They provide a solid foundation for understanding lineage and identity in the Land of the Rising Sun. In 2026, these names continue to bridge ancient traditions with a modern, globalized identity.