The are a set of 863 Chinese characters known as "name kanji" in English. They are a supplementary list of characters that can legally be used in registered personal names in Japan, despite not being in the official list of "commonly used characters" ( kanji). " kanji" is sometimes used to refer to the characters in both the and lists because some Japanese names do not require the specified kanji and are written entirely in kanji. Hence, kanji can also be viewed as a subset of kanji.

A ministerial decree of 1946 limited the number of officially sanctioned kanji for public use to the 1,850 kanji. Only kanji on this list were acceptable as registered names, despite the fact that the list excluded many kanji frequently used in names up to that point. However, on May 25, 1951, the cabinet extended the set of characters usable in names by specifying the first 90 kanji.

Over the years, the Minister of Justice has increased the number of name kanji, and has a plan for further addition in response to requests from parents. As of April 30, 2009, there were 985 kanji, but this number was reduced to 861 in late 2010 when 129 characters were transferred to the kanji list, and 5 characters were transferred from the kanji list to characters. In 2015 and 2017, 2 kanji in total were added to the list, making the total number 863.

In Japan, name kanji are taught at the junior-high level.

History

{| class="wikitable"

! rowspan="2" |Date

! colspan="2" | kanji

! colspan="2" | kanji outside of kanji

! rowspan="2" |Grand total

! rowspan="2" |Changes

|-

!Unique letters

!Variants

!Unique letters

!Variants

|-

|1946

|1,850

| -

|0

| -

|1,850

|A list of kanji was established

|-

|January 1, 1948

|1,850

| -

|0

| -

|1,850

|Characters outside of kanji were not allowed in naming children

|-

|May 25, 1951

|1,850

| -

|92

| -

|1,942

| +92

丑 丞 乃 之 也 亙 亥 亦 亨 亮 仙 伊 匡 卯 只 吾 呂 哉 嘉 圭 奈 宏 寅 尚 巌 巳 庄 弘 弥 彦 悌 敦 昌 晃 晋 智 暢 朋 杉 桂 桐 楠 橘 欣 欽 毅 浩 淳 熊 爾 猪 玲 琢 瑞 甚 睦 磨 磯 祐 禄 禎 稔 穣 綾 惣 聡 肇 胤 艶 蔦 藤 蘭 虎 蝶 輔 辰 郁 酉 錦 鎌 靖 須 馨 駒 鯉 鯛 鶴 鹿 麿 斉 龍 亀

|-

|July 30, 1976

|1,850

| -

|120

| -

|1,970

| +28

佑 允 冴 喬 怜 悠 旭 杏 梓 梢 梨 沙 渚 瑠 瞳 紗 紘 絢 翠 耶 芙 茜 葵 藍 那 阿 隼 鮎

|-

|October 1, 1981

|1,945

|195

|166

|10

|2,316

| kanji list introduced

-8 absorbed into 仙 尚 杉 甚 磨 斉 龍 悠

+54 伍 伶 侑 尭 孟 峻 嵩 嶺 巴 彬 惇 惟 慧 斐 旦 昂 李 栗 楓 槙 汐 洵 洸 渥 瑛 瑶 璃 甫 皓 眸 矩 碧 笹 緋 翔 脩 苑 茉 莉 萌 萩 蓉 蕗 虹 諒 赳 迪 遥 遼 霞 頌 駿 鳩 鷹

|-

|March 1, 1990

|1,945

|195

|284

|10

|2,434

| +118

伎 伽 侃 倖 倭 偲 冶 凌 凜 凪 捺 於 旺 昴 晏 晟 晨 暉 曙 朔 凱 勁 叡 叶 唄 啄 奎 媛 嬉 宥 崚 嵐 嵯 巽 彗 彪 恕 憧 拳 捷 杜 柊 柚 柾 栞 梧 椋 椎 椰 椿 楊 榛 槻 樺 檀 毬 汀 汰 洲 湧 滉 漱 澪 熙 燎 燦 燿 爽 玖 琳 瑚 瑳 皐 眉 瞭 碩 秦 稀 稜 竣 笙 紬 絃 綜 綸 綺 耀 胡 舜 芹 茄 茅 莞 菖 菫 蒔 蒼 蓮 蕉 衿 袈 裟 詢 誼 諄 邑 醇 采 雛 鞠 颯 魁 鳳 鴻 鵬 麟 黎 黛

|-

|December 3, 1997

|1,945

|195

|285

|10

|2,435

| +1 琉

|-

|February 23, 2004

|1,945

|195

|286

|10

|2,436

| +1 曽

|-

|June 7, 2004

|1,945

|195

|287

|10

|2,437

| +1 獅

|-

|July 12, 2004

|1,945

|196

|289

|10

|2,440

| +3 毘 瀧 駕

|-

|September 27, 2004

|1,945

|209

|755

|19

|2,928

| +488

串 乎 云 些 仔 佃 俄 俠 俣 俐 侶 俺 俱 倦 僅 傭 儲 兎 兜 其 冥 凄 凛 凧 凰 函 刹 劉 劫 勃 勾 匂 勿 廿 卜 卿 厨 厩 叉 叢 吞 吻 哨 哩 喧 喰 喋 嘩 嘗 噌 噂 圃 坐 堯 坦 埼 埴 堆 堰 堺 堵 塙 塞 塡 壕 壬 夷 奄 套 妖 娃 姪 姥 娩 宋 宛 宕 寓 寵 尖 尤 屑 岡 峨 崖 已 巷 巾 帖 幌 幡 庇 庚 庵 廟 廻 弛 徠 忽 恢 恰 惚 悉 惹 惺 憐 戊 或 戚 戟 戴 托 按 拶 拭 挨 捉 挺 挽 掬 捲 捻 捧 掠 揃 摑 摺 撒 撰 撞 播 撫 擢 孜 斑 斡 斧 斯 昊 昏 昧 晄 晒 晦 曖 曝 曳 曾 杖 杭 杵 枕 杷 枇 柑 柴 柵 柿 柘 栃 柏 桧 檜 桔 桁 栖 梗 梛 梯 桶 梶 椛 梁 椅 棲 椀 楯 楚 楕 楢 榎 榊 槇 槍 槌 樫 樟 樋 樽 橙 檎 櫂 櫛 櫓 歎 此 殆 汝 汎 汲 沌 沓 沫 洛 浬 淵 淀 淋 湘 湊 湛 溢 溜 漕 漣 濡 瀕 灘 灸 灼 烏 焰 焚 煌 煎 煤 煉 燕 燭 爪 牒 牙 牟 牡 牽 犀 狼 玩 珂 珈 珊 珀 琥 琶 琵 瓜 瓢 瓦 甥 畏 畠 畢 畿 疋 疏 瘦 瞥 砦 砥 砧 硯 碓 碗 磐 祇 祢 禰 禱 禽 禾 秤 稟 稽 穿 窄 窟 窪 窺 竪 竺 竿 笈 笠 筈 筑 箕 箔 箸 篇 篠 簞 簾 籾 粥 粟 糊 紐 絆 綴 縞 徽 繫 繡 纂 纏 羚 羨 而 耽 肋 肘 肴 脇 腔 腎 膏 膳 臆 臥 臼 舷 舵 芥 芯 芭 芦 苔 苺 茨 茸 荻 莫 菅 萄 菩 萠 萊 菱 葦 葛 萱 葺 董 葡 蓋 蓑 蒐 蒲 蒙 蔭 蔣 蓬 蔓 蕎 蕨 蕃 蕪 蔽 薙 蕾 藁 薩 蘇 蜂 蜜 蝦 螺 蟬 蟹 蠟 袖 袴 裡 裾 裳 襖 訊 訣 註 詣 詮 詫 諏 誰 謂 諺 諦 謎 讃 豹 貌 貰 貼 賑 跨 蹄 蹟 蹴 輯 輿 轟 辻 迂 迄 辿 迦 這 逞 逗 逢 遙 遁 遡 遜 祁 鄭 酎 醐 醒 醍 醬 釉 釘 釜 釧 鋒 鋸 錐 錆 錫 鍋 鍵 鍬 鎧 閃 閏 閤 闇 阜 阪 陀 隈 隙 雀 雁 雫 鞄 鞍 鞘 鞭 韓 頁 頃 頓 頗 頰 顚 餅 饗 馴 馳 驍 魯 鰯 鱒 鱗 鳶 鴨 鵜 鷗 鷲 鷺 麒 麓 鼎 榮 圓 薗 駈 實 嶋 盃 冨 峯 萬 埜 凉 禮

|-

|April 30, 2009

|1,945

|209

|756

|20

|2,930

| +2 祷 穹

|-

|November 30, 2010

|2,136

|212

|631

|18

|2,997

| kanji reform

removed 5 kanjis, added 191 kanjis (129 of those was from )

+5 removed from , allocated to 勺 匁 脹 銑 錘

-129 absorbed into 串 伎 侶 俺 僅 冥 冶 凄 刹 勃 勾 匂 呂 唄 埼 堆 塞 塡 奈 妖 媛 宛 岡 崖 嵐 巾 弥 憧 戚 戴 拶 拭 挨 拳 捉 捻 斑 旦 旺 昧 曖 曽 枕 柵 柿 栃 桁 梗 梨 椅 椎 汎 沙 汰 湧 煎 熊 爪 爽 牙 玩 瑠 璃 瓦 畏 畿 眉 睦 瞳 瞭 稽 窟 箸 羨 肘 脇 腎 膳 臆 臼 舷 艶 芯 茨 葛 蓋 蔽 藤 藍 虎 虹 蜂 蜜 袖 裾 詣 詮 誰 諦 謎 貌 貼 蹴 遡 遜 那 酎 醒 采 釜 錦 鍋 鍵 鎌 闇 阜 阪 隙 韓 頃 須 頓 頰 餅 駒 鶴 鹿 麓 亀

|-

|January 7, 2015

|2,136

|212

|632

|18

|2,998

| +1 巫

|-

|September 25, 2017 (Current state)

|2,136

|212

|633

|18

|2,999

| +1 渾

|}

Below is a list of changes made to the kanji list since its creation in 1951.

May 25, 1951

The first 92 characters of kanji were published:

:

This would include seven kanji which would become part of the original kanji in 1981:

:

...with the last one (dragon) also being simplified to (dragon).

This would also include fifteen kanji which would be transferred to the kanji in 2010:

:

July 30, 1976

28 kanji were added, for a total of 120 characters.

:

One would become part of the original kanji in 1981: .

October 1, 1981

The kanji list was introduced, which included seven of the original 92 kanji from 1951 (mentioned above), plus one of the 28 new kanji from 1976 (also mentioned above); those eight were thus removed from the kanji list.

54 other characters were added for a total of 166 name characters.

:

March 1, 1990

118 kanji were added for a total of 284 characters.

:

December 3, 1997

1 kanji was added, for a total of 285 characters.

:

February 23, 2004

1 kanji was added, for a total of 286 characters.

:

June 7, 2004

1 kanji was added, for a total of 287 characters.

:

June 11, 2004

No addition to the kanji was made on this date. However, a plan for 578 additions was put forward to the council on kanji of the legislative council of the Ministry of Justice. The list included certain characters in strong demand by parents for use in their children's names, such as:

  • (, "strawberry")
  • (, "distant", traditional variant)
  • (, "scintillating")
  • (, "fang")

Many others were included not for their potential uses in names (as is noted), but rather because of their frequent use and being easy to read and write. Examples include:

  • (, "excrement")
  • (, "curse")
  • (, "corpse")
  • (, "cancer")

At this same council, the decision was made to call for suggestions on characters to be included or excluded via the Ministry of Justice website, until July 9, 2004.

July 12, 2004

3 kanji were added, for a total of 290 characters.

:

July 23, 2004

No additions were made. After sharp protests, the council decided to withdraw nine characters from the 489 whose inclusion had been discussed. These nine characters were:

  • (, "excrement")
  • (, "curse")
  • (, "corpse")
  • (, "cancer")
  • (, "rape, seduction")
  • (, "obscene")
  • (, "resentment")
  • (, "hemorrhoids")
  • (, "concubine")

The 480 other characters still remained under consideration for inclusion, with one additional character added to them, namely (, "to draw up water with one's hands").

September 27, 2004

488 characters and variant forms of 209 kanji were added, bringing the total number of the kanji to 983.

April 30, 2009

2 more characters were added for a total number of 985 characters.

:

November 30, 2010

In late 2010, the Japanese government added 196 characters to the kanji list. The list now includes 129 characters previously classified as kanji, 11 of which are currently used in Japanese prefectures or nearby countries:

  • ( in , Ibaraki Prefecture)
  • ( in , Ehime Prefecture)
  • ( in , Shizuoka Prefecture)
  • ( in , South Korea)
  • ( in , Kumamoto Prefecture)
  • ( or ) in , Saitama Prefecture)
  • ( in , Tochigi Prefecture)
  • ( in , Nara Prefecture)
  • ( in , Yamanashi Prefecture)
  • ( in , Osaka)
  • ( in , Gifu Prefecture)

At the same time, 5 characters deleted from the kanji list were added to the kanji list, making the total number of kanji 861:

  • ( (), an old unit of measure approx. 18ml in volume, or 0.033m<sup>2</sup> in area)
  • ( () or (), a spindle or weight)
  • ( (), pig iron)
  • ( () or (), to swell or bulge; mostly used in the compound , normally rewritten with instead)
  • ( (), a unit of weight approx 3.75g)

January 7, 2015

1 kanji was added, for a total of 862 characters.

  • ( (), spiritual medium, oracle, shaman, shrine maiden)

September 25, 2017

1 kanji was added, for a total of 863 characters.

:

List of kanji

The list is split into two parts:

  • 633 characters which do not appear in the list of kanji (regular-use kanji). 18 of these have a variant, bringing the number of character forms to 651.
  • 212 characters which are traditional forms () of characters present in the list of kanji.

kanji not part of the kanji

Variants are given in parentheses.

:

Below are the 18 characters that are variant forms of characters in the list above. For each variant form, the corresponding standard form ("non-variant" form) is in parentheses.

:

Traditional variants of kanji

The modern form (), which appears in the kanji list, is given in brackets.

:

Actual usage in names

Usage of the kanji in Japanese names varies widely. For example, , is used in over 6,000 names, and the 53 kanji used most commonly in names are all in over 500 names each.

See also

  • Inmyongyong chuga hanjapyo (Korean names)
  • List of Kanji (Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs)
  • List of Kanji (Japanese Ministry of Justice)

References