Traditional Japanese Male Names
Classic Japanese boy names with kanji, readings and meanings, plus how -ro son names, -hiko endings and one-kanji virtue forms sound traditional.
100 names with kanji, readings and meanings
Each card pairs a given name with a surname. Tap a card for the kanji breakdown.
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About this list
In this list
The best 100 of 146 matching given names, each shown with one of 40 surnames.
Typical length
Mostly 4 beats. The shortest has 2, the longest 5.
Kanji you will see most
彦 (young man) ×22, 郎 (name ending) ×21, 夫 (name ending) ×10, 吉 (fortune) ×9
Gender of the names
100 masculine
Meanings and spellings of these names
Each name has a page with its kanji spellings, what the kanji mean and how to say it.
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Female Japanese Name GeneratorSon-order names ending in -ro: Taro, Jiro and the brothers after him
A familiar traditional pattern is the given name that marks birth order with 郎, read as -ro. Taro (太郎) is eldest son, Jiro (次郎) second, Saburo (三郎) third, Shiro (四郎) fourth and Goro (五郎) fifth. In 次郎 through 五郎, a numeral kanji marks the place in line; 太郎 is the usual eldest-son form with 太, not the digit 一. 郎 is a conventional masculine ending, not a word you translate in everyday speech. Families once reused the pattern across brothers, so Jiro (次郎) or Saburo (三郎) can suggest an old-style household name rather than a random two-kanji pick. The same readings can be written with different middle kanji, as in Taro (太郎) beside Taro (多郎), but the plain numeral spellings are the ones people picture first.
-hiko, -suke and 夫: suffixes that still sound masculine
Beyond -ro, several suffixes mark a boys' name as traditional. 彦 (-hiko) closes names such as Katsuhiko (加津彦) with the kanji for a young man, often as the third character. 助 (-suke) turns up in Shinnosuke (新之助), five beats, where 新 means new and 之 and 助 are conventional name material. 夫 caps masculine names like Sadao (貞男), where 貞 is faithful and 男 is a solid masculine ending. Listeners still tie these endings to men's names that sound deliberately old-fashioned rather than clipped and neutral.
Ten traditional men's names: -ro brothers, long -suke and virtue pairs
Son-order names open the group: Taro (太郎), Jiro (次郎), Saburo (三郎) and Goro (五郎) mark birth order with 郎, while Kojiro (小次郎) adds 小, small, before 次郎 for a second son. Shinnosuke (新之助) runs five beats through 新, 之 and 助. Hideyoshi (秀吉) pairs excel 秀 with fortune 吉; Musashi (武蔵) stacks martial 武 on storehouse 蔵. Naoki (直樹) holds honest 直 and tree 樹, and Yamato (大和) pairs big 大 with harmony 和. Taro is three beats, Shinnosuke five, Yamato three.
| Kanji | Reading | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 太郎 | たろう | Taro | Eldest son |
| 次郎 | じろう | Jiro | Second son |
| 三郎 | さぶろう | Saburo | Third son |
| 五郎 | ごろう | Goro | Fifth son |
| 小次郎 | こじろう | Kojiro | Little second son |
| 新之助 | しんのすけ | Shinnosuke | New helper |
| 秀吉 | ひでよし | Hideyoshi | Excellent fortune |
| 武蔵 | むさし | Musashi | Martial storehouse |
| 直樹 | なおき | Naoki | Honest tree |
| 大和 | やまと | Yamato | Great harmony |
One-kanji given names: loyalty, courage and a calm surface
Traditional men's names are not all long. A single kanji can carry the whole given name: Tadashi (忠) for loyalty, Takeshi (武) for martial tone, Makoto (誠) for sincerity, Shin (信) for trust, Jin (仁) for benevolence, Ken (健) for health, Tsuyoshi (剛) for strength and Isamu (勇) for courage. Most are two or three beats. Suzuki Tadashi (鈴木忠) or Tanaka Takeshi (田中武) show how one virtue kanji sits beside an ordinary surname without an old-fashioned suffix.
Same reading, different kanji: when Taro and Makoto are spelling choices
One reading often has more than one kanji spelling. Saburo (三郎) can share its reading with Saburo (佐武郎); Shiro (四郎) sits beside Shiro (司郎) on the same sound. Makoto (まこと) splits between Makoto (誠), sincerity, and Makoto (真), truth, two one-kanji names with the same sound. Ichiro (伊千郎) and Ichiro (以知郎) are attested spellings for the reading いちろう, which many people tie to a first son even when the kanji are not plain 一 and 郎. Pick the kanji you are willing to explain, and keep the listed reading and romaji; do not invent extra spellings. For a baby or a character sheet, the plainer numeral or virtue kanji usually needs less commentary than a decorative middle character.
How this list is chosen
Every given name here is a real Japanese given name. It is on our hand-reviewed core list, or it is listed in JMnedict, the open Japanese name dictionary, with one consistent gender. Surnames come from a directory of common family names.
A name’s meaning is built from what each of its kanji means by itself, so Mizuki (美月) reads as beauty and moon. When parents chose a kanji for its sound, or a kanji is only a name ending, the card says so instead of inventing a meaning.
Topic pages put names whose kanji or shape fit the topic first, then rank them by how widely each name is known. Being on a list is not a popularity ranking for Japan, and an unusual spelling is still a real name, not a recommendation.
Read the full method · Content last reviewed: 2026-11-08.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Taro (太郎) have to mean the parents' first son?
The kanji spell out eldest son, and the name grew up in families that named sons in order with -ro. Today many men called Taro (太郎) simply have parents who liked the sound and the kanji, not a statement about siblings. If you are writing historical fiction, the link to birth order is fair; for a modern character, treat it as a traditional flavor unless the story says otherwise.
What is the difference between Makoto (誠) and Makoto (真)?
The reading is the same three beats: まこと. Makoto (誠) uses the kanji for sincerity; Makoto (真) uses the kanji for truth. Both are one-kanji given names and sound equally traditional. Choose the kanji whose gloss you prefer when someone asks what the name says on paper, and check official forms accept that spelling for the reading.
Are names like Takeshi (武) and Hiroshi (宏) too dated for a new baby?
They sound like familiar men's names from an earlier generation, which is why many listeners abroad hear them as traditional. Parents in Japan sometimes still choose them for a clear virtue kanji or a family pattern. If you want the traditional feel without sounding like a grandfather on the page, a less common spelling of the same reading, or a two-kanji name such as Kazuya (和也), can sit in the middle.
How many beats do traditional boys' names usually have?
Japanese counts mora, not English syllables. Many traditional men's names land at three or four beats: Jiro (次郎) is three, Goro (五郎) three, Hideyoshi (秀吉) four, Shinnosuke (新之助) five. Single-kanji names such as Ken (健) are two. Longer names often shorten in daily life, but the full form is what goes on formal documents.
Can I use Kotaro (小太郎) instead of Taro (太郎)?
Kotaro (小太郎) adds 小, small, before 太郎, and means little eldest son in the usual gloss, not a different birth-order rule. Kojiro (小次郎) does the same for a second son with 小 before 次郎. Use either when you want the -ro pattern with 小 in front.
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