Japanese names and surnames are a realy sometimes very interesting object of studies. A few days ago, I sent a package to Hokkaido Island to a man named Iwao. The name means nothing until you see the hieroglyph. His name was written as 五輪夫, directly translated as “man of five rings”. Not an unringed bird and not the lord of rings, but a man born in 1966, the year of the first Tokyo Olympics. If anyone lacks ingenuity you can name your son Iwao during the Olympic years.
What are the most popular Japanese surnames – who are Smith or Johnson. Sato is definitely the most common Japanese surname you’ll come across in Japan, and it doesn’t mean sugar, which sounds exactly the same. To be honest, there are two typical Sato surnames, but the most popular with about 1.8 million surname bearers is 佐藤.
The second hieroglyph represents the Fuji flower, known in our country as wisteria. Hieroglyph Fuji is primarily associated with the Fujiwara clan. It is an aristocratic family from the Heian period. There is another parde, the fifth most popular Ito – 伊藤. Again the second hieroglyph is Fuji. All these people were under the Fujiwara clan.
The second place goes to the famous Suzuki 鈴木、we know by the name of motorcycle or car Suzuki. The first part is a bell, the second hieroglyph is a tree.
Third place goes to Takahashi 高橋 which means high bridge.
Well, how will we manage without Tanaka 田中 in the middle of the rice field, I know maybe twenty Tanakas. Thus, one out of a hundred Japanese will definitely have the surname Tanaka.
And yet, if you lack creativity when looking for suitable names for children, I suggest you get wisdom from the Japanese. The first boy in the family is Ichiro , the second Jiro (jiro), the third Saburo, the fourth Shiro , the fifth Goro. No headache – the boy will be born Ichiro, the first girl born will be Hatsue and so you can drive endlessly and endlessly…
