View Comments (51)

• I am a 70-year-old New Englander who greatly appreciates Japanese history and culture, especially Japanese art, architecture, and crafts, e.g., woodworking, textiles of all kinds, pottery, etc. So, naturally I find myself exploring various Japanese websites. However, one constant surprise is that I still encounter, now in 2024, so many bizarre mistranslations of language, including here in your website. I am 100% certain that in Japan and abroad, there are countless Japanese and native English speakers who study and practice translation and interpretation. Please find someone! :) Note that my experience of these mistranslations never ruin my day, rather they are often hilarious. I just don't get it! All the best to you, Peter

• Hello, I was wondering if there is a way for me to get in touch with my family Kamon?
  SHIMAZAKI
  Grandfather was from Kumamoto
  Grandmother was from Fukuoka
  Thank you,
  Keith

• Hi!
  I am looking for any information as well as the kamon for (Shinpei? Tomikichi? Tokuichi, Shigeo, Haruo) Sakata from Kawasekomura Hiroshimaken, Japan. I am also searching for my grandmother, Suye Sakata ‘s family kamon. She was also born in Hiroshima but I have no other information about her except that her father or grandfather was possibly a mayor or had a position of standing and respect in their community. If you can possibly help I am happy to hire you for your services. Thank you!

  • p.s. also Kiyoko Nakatsu, born Yamagata-Gun, Hiroshima-Ken
    🙏🏼

    • Hello Susan,

      Thank you for your comment! I have related information about both the Sakata (坂田) and Nakatsu (中津) families in Hiroshima Prefecture, including their origins and Kamon. The Sakata family has two roots with two Kamon, and the Nakatsu family has one origin with one Kamon. Although I can’t narrow it down to one origin and one Kamon about the Sakata family, I can still write a report with two potential roots and Kamon for your reference. Please understand I can’t guarantee this information is 100 % accurate for your families since my resources are based on the prefectural level.

      Please let me know if you have any questions via the email below.
      patternz.jp{at}gmail.com

      I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

      Hiroko

• Hello, I would like to know if the kamon are registerd after they have been created

  Thank you

  • Hi Juan,

    Thanks for the comment! There's no such thing as a registry for Kamon. We have a "Past Book" (Kakocho,) which keeps information about deceased family members that are kept at each temple or the head family. It happens to record the Kamon, but it's just a record for each family.

    I hope this helps, and please let me know if you have any other questions via the email address below.
    patternz.jp{at}gmail.com

    Have a wonderful day!

    Hiroko

• Hello, My mother married a Dutch sailor and left Japan 53 years ago. I recently went to my mother's birthplace Sasebo in Japan to retrieve ancestral records because that is where they came from. My grandmother's family name was Matsunaga. My grandmother's records were missing. Probably destroyed during WW2. Would you still be able to do research on the her family line if i only can give you references about her from my grandfather's koseki and Joseki and an old address? (I did not find a family crest on family photo's).

• Hello,
  I am looking for the exact family crest for Tateoka. My family found a butterfly, but they were unsure of the exact one. The one found was a butterfly with a big nose :( , so I’m glad that is not the one. My daughter’s friend from Japan (elementary school age) said he had seen it before and it was prettier the than one she had shown him. I hope you can help.
  Thank you.

  • Hi Lisa,

    Thanks for the comment! I can look up in my resources to see whether I have the related information about your Tateoka family once you tell me the kanji characters of the Tateoka family and the family domicile. Also, can you send me the photo of the butterfly your family found? Where did your family find this butterfly? Such as on some kimono or other items?

    You can write me back via the email address below.
    patternz.jp{at}gmail.com

    I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
    Hiroko

• I am so excited that I found this site. I am Sansei living in Los Angeles, CA. My mother's maiden name is Arima. Her parents were both were from Satsuma District and lived in Kagoshima. My Grandmother's Maiden name was Taniguchi and a long line of Shinto priests. She was sent to American as a picture bride and worked in Salinas on the strawberry farms. My father's parents were from the same area. They met in Washington and married there and settled in Colorado. And the interesting thing is my grandfather's sur name was Zinzo Arima, but his wife was a family of women so he took her last name Hashi. I am interested in finding the kamon of both.

  • Hi Linda,

    Thanks for the comment! So that you want to know the Kamon for the Arima and Taniguchi families. I have the related information about both of them in my resources.
    The Arima (有馬) family has three different origins and seven family crests while the Taniguchi (谷口) family has an origin with two different family crests. Or would you like to know about the Hashi family? In that case, unfortunately I don't have any related information about it.

    I can compile the reports for the Arima and Taniguchi families if you wish. Although I can't narrow it down to one family crest, I can still write the report for your reference.
    Please let me know if you have any questions via the email address below.
    patternz.jp{at}gmail.com

    I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
    Hiroko

• Hi I am looking for my family crest, my last name is Nakata and I used to have a picture of it but I lost it unfortunately. All I remember is that there was some kind of flower in it. Thank you for your help

  • Hi Atlas,

    Thank you for the comment! Could you tell me about your Nakata family domicile (such as prefecture)? Then I can look up in my resources whether I have any related information about your family crest.
    You can write me via the email address below.
    Patternz.jp{at}gmail.com

    I’m looking forward to hearing from you!
    Hiroko

• As I search for more history of my family it ha become even harder with the bitcoin craziness. Is Nakamoto such a common last name like Smith is in the US?

  • Hi Ron,

    Thanks for the comment! The family name Nakamoto is not as common as Smith since it is not in the top 100. Yet, I don't say it's unusual since everybody knows the name.

    I hope it helps!
    Hiroko

• Hi,
  I’ve always been really interested in my Japanese family history and always associated the family Kamon that we were shown our whole lives, but was very confused once I found this site as it is the same Tsuta-mon (ivy) that is displayed as the logo on the site. The family name is Nakata. I read that it was normal for multiple families to have the same kamon, but I am still confused and wanted to make sure there’s not some mix up. Really appreciate it!

  • Hi Matthew,

    Thanks for the comment! I understand your apprehension. But it is completely normal that we share the same Kamon with different family names and different family origins since popular ones are shared among many.

    Please feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.
    Hiroko