Japan Genealogical Records

Japan Birth & Baptism Records

Miscellaneous Births & Baptisms Index (1534-1983)

A small index to several-hundred-thousand records from select countries.

Japan Marriage & Divorce Records

Miscellaneous Marriage Index (1662-1945)

An index to more than 30,000 marriage records, including personal details, names of relations and particulars of marriage.

Japan Death & Burial Records

Jewish Online Worldwide Burial Registry (1550-Present)

A searchable database of over 1 million Jewish burials with photographs of the matzevot.

Newspapers Covering Japan

Newspaper Archive: Japan (1920-1999)

Text-searchable copies of millions of Japanese newspaper articles.

Name Card Index to AP Stories (1905-1990)

An index to over 2.1 million people mentioned in Associated Press stories, including name, subject, location, date and a reference to the article.

Subject Card Index to AP Stories (1937-1985)

An index to around 500,000 Associated Press articles.

AP Stories & Newsfeatures (1937-1985)

An index to and digital images of hundreds-of-thousands of world newspaper articles.

Japan Immigration & Travel Records

Japan Passenger Lists (1893-1941)

An index to and images of passenger lists and emigration records. They list name, address, date of birth, destination and more.

Japan Military Records

Japanese Marines Tried by The US (1941-1945)

Legal case files relating to crimes committed during World War II by Japanese sailors, prosecuted under US military law.

Japanese Air Target Analyses (1942-1945)

Contemporary analyses of the Allied bombing strategy in aerial attacks on Japanese targets during World War II. Tactical mission reports, aircraft action reports, tabulations of attack and bombing data, and photo intelligence reports detail effects on the Japanese infrastructure, including the petroleum, shipping, armament, and transportation industries. Hundreds of aerial photographs and many maps are included.

Japanese Soldiers Tried by The US (1941-1945)

Legal case files relating to crimes committed during World War II by Japanese soldiers, prosecuted under US military law.

Japan WWII Photos (1940-1945)

A small collection of photographs depicting life and war in Japan during World War II.

Japanese Marines Tried by The US (1941-1945)

Legal case files relating to crimes committed during World War II by Japanese sailors, prosecuted under US military law.

Japanese Soldiers Tried by The US (1941-1945)

Legal case files relating to crimes committed during World War II by Japanese soldiers, prosecuted under US military law.

Japan Directories & Gazetteers

CIA World Factbook (1994)

A statistic and descriptive gazetteer of nations.

Medical Directory (1915)

Contains a gazetteer of places, a directory of doctors, lists of institutions, regulations, obituaries and more.

Loxton's Medical Directory (1911)

Contains a gazetteer of places, a directory of doctors, lists of institutions, regulations, obituaries and more.

World Foreign Gazetteer (1998)

Useful for locating places, this searchable gazetteer gives brief details, latitude and longitude for more than 1.5 million features, places and regions throughout the world.

Japan Cemeteries

Billion Graves (1200-Present)

Photographs and transcriptions of millions of gravestones from cemeteries around the world.

Japan Obituaries

Medical Directory (1915)

Contains a gazetteer of places, a directory of doctors, lists of institutions, regulations, obituaries and more.

Loxton's Medical Directory (1911)

Contains a gazetteer of places, a directory of doctors, lists of institutions, regulations, obituaries and more.

Japan Histories & Books

Ancestry Member Stories (6000 BC-Present)

Over 7 million remembrances and historic details submitted by Ancestry members. Useful for local historians.

Ancestry Member Photos & Documents (6000 BC-Present)

Over 60 million historic photographs and documents submitted to Ancestry. This rich collection contains many rare sources of interest to local historians and will be relevant to most genealogical research.

Japan WWII Photos (1940-1945)

A small collection of photographs depicting life and war in Japan during World War II.

Japan Occupation & Business Records

Medical Directory (1915)

Contains a gazetteer of places, a directory of doctors, lists of institutions, regulations, obituaries and more.

Loxton's Medical Directory (1911)

Contains a gazetteer of places, a directory of doctors, lists of institutions, regulations, obituaries and more.

Crockford's Clerical Directory (1929)

A directory listing Anglican parishes and other divisions of the Church or England hierarchy and their various religious officers. The directory covers the UK and Anglican churches throughout the world.

Cricket Archive (1844-Present)

A database of cricket scores and players.

Pedigrees & Family Trees Covering Japan

FamilySearch Community Trees (6000 BC-Present)

A searchable database of linked genealogies compiled from thousands of reputable and not-so-reputable sources. Contains many details on European gentry & nobility, but covers many countries outside Europe and people from all walks of life.

Ancestry Member Family Trees (6000 BC-Present)

A compilation of lineage-linked family trees submitted by Ancestry users. The database contains over 2 billion individuals and is searchable by numerous metrics.

Genealogics (1400 BC-Present)

A searchable database of linked families. It largely covers royalty and nobility, but also contains actors, footballers and American presidents.

Ancestry World Tree (6000 BC-1997)

A collection of legacy trees submitted by Ancestry users containing nearly 400 million individuals.

Japan Royalty, Nobility & Heraldry Records

FamilySearch Community Trees (6000 BC-Present)

A searchable database of linked genealogies compiled from thousands of reputable and not-so-reputable sources. Contains many details on European gentry & nobility, but covers many countries outside Europe and people from all walks of life.

Genealogics (1400 BC-Present)

A searchable database of linked families. It largely covers royalty and nobility, but also contains actors, footballers and American presidents.

Japan Church Records

Crockford's Clerical Directory (1929)

A directory listing Anglican parishes and other divisions of the Church or England hierarchy and their various religious officers. The directory covers the UK and Anglican churches throughout the world.

Japan Maps

Old Maps Online (1497-2010)

An interactive index to thousands of maps covering the world, continents, countries and regions. The majority of maps cover Britain and Ireland.

Japanese Air Target Analyses (1942-1945)

Contemporary analyses of the Allied bombing strategy in aerial attacks on Japanese targets during World War II. Tactical mission reports, aircraft action reports, tabulations of attack and bombing data, and photo intelligence reports detail effects on the Japanese infrastructure, including the petroleum, shipping, armament, and transportation industries. Hundreds of aerial photographs and many maps are included.

Historical Description

This Island on the East is situate over against China.

Natures of the People

The nature and qualities the Inhabitants do some what participate: It is in length 200 leagues, and in breadth in some places 30 in others not above 10. It is devided into 66 Shires or petty Kingdoms.

Fertility

The Soyl is not very fruitfull subject to much Snow, but the air is very wholesome, and the Bowels of the Earth inriched with divers Metals

On this Island are two high Mountains, one of which casteth forth Flames, on the top whereof the Devil useth to shew himself in a bright Cloud, to them that by long fasting have prepared themselves for the sight. The other called Figeniaris is by some leagues higher than the Cloud. The chief Cities are Meaco and Bandum an University.

This Island is said to be frequented by the Jesuites of whom 200 is said to live here.

A Geographical Description of the World (1671) by George Meriton

The Japanese Empire, which has long borne the title of “The England of the East," is a wonderfully progressive country, and of recent years has shown a remarkable power of adopting the ways and methods of the West. Korea which was annexed to Japan in 1910 is also being rapidly developed, and the favourable tariffs in operation prior to the annexation are to remain in force until 1920. Great Britain and her Colonies take the lead by a long way in the foreign trade carried on by Japan, America coming second, with China third. The staple articles of import into Japan from the United Kingdom are cotton yarn and cotton piece goods, and woollen and mixed cotton and woollen fabrics, metals, drugs, electrical apparatus motors and machinery, and those of export, silk, straw plaiting, fish and tea. The Imports from the United Kingdom in 1920 amounted to £28,006,070 and the Exports to this country, £29,699,321. The area of the empire is 235,886 square miles, and the population (1918) 79,636,126. Tokyo, 2,347,41 (1918); Osaka, 1,641,580; Kioto, 670,357; Nagoya 436,909; Kobe, 592,726; Yokohama, 447,423; Hiroshima, 162,391 ; Nagasaki, 198,147. Dairen (population 70,000) which is situated in the Liaotung Territory China, is leased by Japan.

The Newspaper Press Directory and Advertisers' Guide (1922)

Most Common Surnames in Japan

RankSurnameIncidenceFrequency
1Sato1,957,2221:65
2Suzuki1,889,3101:68
3Tanaka1,414,3061:90
4Watanabe1,364,2641:94
5Takahashi1,343,4961:95
6Ito1,240,1791:103
7Yamamoto1,131,3741:113
8Nakamura1,123,8051:114
9Kobayashi1,075,4571:119
10Saito1,037,6541:123
11Kato936,2161:137
12Yoshida866,8561:147
13Yamada847,5341:151
14Sasaki707,0081:181
15Matsumoto684,5761:187
16Yamaguchi673,5971:190
17Inoue648,7881:197
18Kimura601,4991:213
19Shimizu574,0211:223
20Hayashi571,9651:224
21Abe547,6011:233
22Ono523,1061:244
23Mori521,1711:245
24Nakajima505,3771:253
25Hashimoto472,8211:270
26Ikeda467,6631:273
27Yamazaki451,8521:283
28Ishikawa449,4141:284
29Yamashita438,3611:292
30Ogawa429,0581:298
31Ishii419,4071:305
32Sakamoto407,9661:313
33Goto403,6801:317
34Maeda401,2831:319
35Okada398,2151:321
36Hasegawa392,5041:326
37Fujita390,1771:328
38Kondo387,2211:330
39Sakai385,4831:332
40Murakami372,1861:343
41Ota365,9171:349
42Kikuchi357,1031:358
43Ueda351,3801:364
44Arai347,4411:368
45Endo346,5891:369
46Aoki343,2921:372
47Takeuchi334,3321:382
48Nakano330,3451:387
49Fujii326,9441:391
50Fukuda324,6311:394
51Kaneko322,7791:396
52Nishimura322,4771:396
53Okamoto318,9861:401
54Nakagawa316,6761:404
55Fujiwara314,9491:406
56Miura305,8551:418
57Harada302,2351:423
58Matsuda300,6051:425
59Kojima294,9671:433
60Morita292,2341:437
61Tamura291,5751:438
62Nakayama288,1511:444
63Ishida279,0661:458
64Wada278,3401:459
65Shibata267,5371:478
66Masuda259,7471:492
67Hara259,5491:493
68Ando256,9291:498
69Uchida254,4731:502
70Shimada245,9141:520
71Yokoyama244,3311:523
72Miyamoto244,2591:523
73Honda233,1441:548
74Koyama227,1931:563
75Takagi227,0631:563
76Miyazaki226,4301:565
77Taniguchi226,3091:565
78Ueno224,3881:570
79Imai222,6431:574
80Maruyama220,2501:580
81Kudo219,0431:584
82Sugiyama218,9331:584
83Fujimoto218,8751:584
84Kawamura218,7661:584
85Kono217,4991:588
86Murata215,3161:594
87Kubota213,0391:600
88Hirano212,5091:602
89Otsuka211,9541:603
90Noguchi209,5231:610
91Takeda208,3111:614
92Matsui207,3691:617
93Sakurai205,6971:622
94Chiba201,7561:634
95Ida201,7151:634
96Kubo200,9311:636
97Sugawara200,8331:637
98Kinoshita198,5681:644
99Takada195,6641:653
100Nomura195,6111:654
101Kawai194,3961:658
102Sano193,9261:659
103Sugimoto193,1571:662
104Ichikawa191,4971:668
105Matsuo191,4291:668
106Oya190,5611:671
107Nagai189,4891:675
108Furukawa188,8251:677
109Adachi186,3181:686
110Nakata185,5981:689
111Onishi185,0441:691
112Yoshikawa182,8911:699
113Iwasaki182,7661:699
114Yasuda180,9961:706
115Mizuno180,7191:707
116Kawaguchi179,8781:711
117Tsuchiya178,7161:715
118Fukushima172,9741:739
119Hino172,7691:740
120Nishida171,2101:747
121Kitamura171,1911:747
122Yamauchi170,4721:750
123Nishikawa170,0471:752
124Takano169,2131:756
125Kawakami166,4851:768
126Ozawa165,7701:771
127Hamada165,4761:773
128Komatsu165,0201:775
129Seki164,0251:779
130Oda161,3211:792
131Nakanishi161,0091:794
132Igarashi160,1831:798
133Hirata159,7551:800
134Morimoto159,3951:802
135Hattori157,4321:812
136Higashi156,6611:816
137Akiyama156,6171:816
138Kawasaki156,5851:816
139Tomita156,5281:817
140Tsuji156,3261:818
141Sawada156,2531:818
142Tanabe155,8301:820
143Iwata155,8121:821
144Yoshimura154,9121:825
145Yamanaka153,3231:834
146Taguchi153,2091:834
147Oshima152,5611:838
148Higuchi151,6531:843
149Okubo149,4501:855
150Hirose148,2191:863
151Ishihara148,0761:863
152Matsuoka147,8731:865
153Baba147,6571:866
154Ohashi146,8751:870
155Asano145,9161:876
156Yoshioka144,4481:885
157Yano144,4251:885
158Matsushita142,7071:896
159Araki142,3661:898
160Koike141,9301:901
161Hoshino141,9051:901
162Noda140,8251:908
163Ohara140,7361:908
164Sudo140,6991:909
165Kawashima140,5271:910
166Uemura138,1561:925
167Ozaki137,0701:933
168Matsuura136,5171:936
169Naito136,2221:938
170Kumagai135,5731:943
171Iwamoto134,7961:948
172Kuroda133,0961:961
173Hori131,4591:973
174Nagata130,6281:979
175Matsumura129,5531:987
176Kurihara129,3761:988
177Ogura129,3121:989
178Nishiyama128,9791:991
179Hayakawa128,1121:998
180Hirai127,9711:999
181Mochizuki127,3961:1,004
182Doi127,3801:1,004
183Yoshino126,1121:1,014
184Yokota125,4291:1,019
185Ishibashi125,1241:1,022
186Koga123,7201:1,033
187Katayama123,6771:1,034
188Sakaguchi123,5911:1,034
189Osawa123,5631:1,035
190Sekiguchi121,7971:1,050
191Kamata120,0151:1,065
192Hagihara119,9231:1,066
193Oishi119,5821:1,069
194Miyata119,2611:1,072
195Konno117,9721:1,084
196Kodama117,9571:1,084
197Uehara117,2351:1,090
198Minami116,8041:1,095
199Konishi115,9181:1,103
200Shoji114,8761:1,113