Edo Period Name Generator
Samurai, townsfolk and courtesan names from Tokugawa Japan
Generate authentic Edo period (1603-1868) Japanese names: daimyo and hatamoto with formal two-kanji given names, commoners called Gonbei and Okiku, merchant shop names like Izumiya Tobei, geisha and Yoshiwara courtesan names, and samurai-class women.
About Edo period names
Edo period names tell you a person's class before anything else. Samurai carried a surname plus a formal two-character given name (nanori) built from inherited elements such as Tada, Masa, Nobu, Yoshi and Naga, so a retainer of the Matsudaira might be Matsudaira Tadanori and his son Tadakiyo. In daily life the same man went by a common name ending in -emon, -bei, -nosuke, -zaemon or -taro, which is why a hatamoto can be both Egawa Tarozaemon and Egawa Hidetatsu. Commoners were not allowed surnames and used only the common form: Gonbei, Hachibei, Kichiemon, Manjiro, Tomekichi.
Women of the towns were known by a short name with the polite prefix O-: Okiku, Osen, Oharu, Oyuki, Oshin. Samurai women used the bare form (Chiyo, Hatsu, Tsuru, Kiku) and a daimyo's daughter added -hime. Merchants traded under a shop name ending in -ya, often a province or auspicious word, combined with the owner's name: Izumiya Tobei, Kagaya Rihei, Daikokuya Hikobei. Geisha took stage names like Kosome and Ichimaru, while Yoshiwara courtesans inherited poetic house names such as Takao, Usugumo and Hanaogi.
For fiction, samurai-type names suit officials and swordsmen, O-names and -kichi names suit tradespeople, and -ya names suit shopkeepers and moneylenders.
How to choose Edo period names
- Decide the character's class first: surname + formal name (Kuramochi Tadafusa) for samurai, a single common name (Rokusuke, Okon) for townsfolk and farmers, and a shop name + given name (Sagamiya Magobei) for merchants.
- Samurai family lines reuse one character across generations; if you name a father Tadanori, give the son Tadakiyo or Tadatomo so the lineage reads correctly.
- Give a samurai a second, everyday name ending in -emon, -nosuke or -zaemon for dialogue; nobody called Matsudaira Tadanori by his formal name to his face.
- For women, the O- prefix marks a commoner or servant (Oharu) and its absence marks rank (Haru); add -hime only for a daimyo's or shogun's daughter.
- Surname first, given name second, is the period-correct order; keep it that way in prose unless you are deliberately writing for readers who expect Western order.
Frequently asked questions
Why do so many Edo period male names end in -emon, -bei or -suke?
Those are zokumyo, everyday names that were once court-office titles (saemon, hyoe, suke). By the Edo period they had become ordinary name suffixes used by both samurai and commoners, which is why Gonbei, Kichiemon and Shinnosuke all sound equally period-correct.
Did Edo period commoners have surnames?
Officially no: the right to bear a surname and wear swords was reserved for samurai, although wealthy merchants and village headmen sometimes received the privilege. Most townsmen were known by a single name, and merchants were identified by their shop's -ya name instead.
What were women called in the Edo period?
Town and country women had short names usually written in kana, such as Kiku, Sen, Haru or Yuki, and were addressed with the prefix O-: Okiku, Osen. Samurai-class women kept the bare name, and high-ranking women were known by a residence or Buddhist title like Kenshoin after marriage or widowhood.
Can I use these names for a samurai character in Ghost of Tsushima, Sekiro or a tabletop game?
Yes. The samurai names follow the real Tokugawa-era pattern of surname plus a two-element formal name, so they fit any feudal Japanese setting. The famous shoguns, rebels and artists are left out so you will not accidentally name a character after a real historical figure.
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All 500 Edo period names
A: 18 names
- Agemaki
- Akimoto Yasutomo
- Akitaya Kuroemon
- Akizuki Tanenaga
- Amano Gennai
- Amano Yasukage
- Ando Jirokichi
- Ando Shigenobu
- Anzai Yasaburo
- Aoyama Tadatoshi
- Aoyama Yoshinari
- Arakida Moheiji
- Arima Toyouji
- Asai Chozaemon
- Asano Nagaakira
- Asazuma
- Ashina Morihisa
- Awaya Kyuemon
B: 1 name
- Bunkichi
C: 3 names
- Chitose
- Chobei
- Chushichi
D: 6 names
- Daikichi
- Daikokuya Hikobei
- Daisuke
- Date Munemura
- Denbei
- Doi Toshifusa
E: 5 names
- Ebisuya Yosaburo
- Echigoya Gohei
- Eikichi
- Eishoin
- Ezaki Kichinosuke
F: 7 names
- Fujinami
- Fujita Tokinosuke
- Fukuda Gengo
- Fukuko
- Funaki Seinosuke
- Furuta Matabei
- Fuyu
G: 6 names
- Genpachi
- Gensuke
- Genta
- Gonbei
- Gorobei
- Goto Tamijiro
H: 46 names
- Hachibei
- Hachisuka Mitsutaka
- Hamaguchi Kyusuke
- Hamaji
- Hanabusa Shume
- Hanada Tomoaki
- Hanamurasaki
- Hanaogi
- Hanaoka Kenzo
- Hanasuke
- Hanazono
- Hanbei
- Hanshichi
- Hanzo
- Harimaya Gohei
- Hasebe Tadakiyo
- Hatakeyama Sukenobu
- Hatsu
- Hatsune
- Hatsuyu
- Hayakawa Genjiro
- Hayashi Tadahiro
- Heihachi
- Heikichi
- Hidaya Kansuke
- Higoya Tomekichi
- Hiketa Kunimasa
- Hikoemon
- Hikoroku
- Hikozo
- Hinazuru
- Hirano Mosuke
- Hiraoka Yorikatsu
- Hirasawa Ihachiro
- Hirayama Toranojo
- Hirose Tanomo
- Hirota Hikoshiro
- Hizenya Sashichi
- Honda Tadamasa
- Honda Tadatoki
- Honjo Munesuke
- Hori Chikayoshi
- Hoshino Yashichi
- Hosokawa Tadatoshi
- Hosokawa Tsunatoshi
- Hotta Masanobu
I: 27 names
- Ichibei
- Ichimaru
- Ichitaro
- Ichizo
- Ihei
- Iida Masuemon
- Iijima Tosuke
- Ikoma Chikamasa
- Inaba Masanori
- Inaba Masayasu
- Inagaki Isaburo
- Inagaki Shigetsuna
- Inomata Saheiji
- Inoue Ichinoshin
- Isaburo
- Iseya Chubei
- Ishida Sadaemon
- Ishiguro Yasutane
- Ishizuka Kumanosuke
- Isobe Yonosuke
- Isogai Ryonosuke
- Itakura Shigemune
- Ito
- Iwamoto Zusho
- Iwasaki Shinpei
- Izumiya Tobei
- Izumoya Shinsuke
J: 4 names
- Jinbei
- Jinroku
- Jokoin
- Jubei
K: 71 names
- Kagamiyama Tomonaga
- Kagawa Masakiyo
- Kagaya Rihei
- Kame
- Kamehime
- Kamei Koretsune
- Kamei Masanori
- Kamekichi
- Kameya Seibei
- Kamiya Tatsunosuke
- Kanbayashi Gonnojo
- Kanbei
- Kanda Matahachi
- Kaoru
- Karauta
- Kariya Shinzaemon
- Kasai Yaemon
- Katagiri Gentaro
- Kato Akinari
- Kawaguchi Denemon
- Kawamura Hyobu
- Kawano Sanjuro
- Kenshoin
- Kihei
- Kiku
- Kikuchi Rihei
- Kikuhime
- Kikuji
- Kikuyu
- Kinjiro
- Kinoshita Nagatsugu
- Kinshiro
- Kinzo
- Kitagawa Tokubei
- Kitami Shigemasa
K, continued
- Kiyo
- Kiyoshichi
- Kobayashi Tarokichi
- Koga Sanzaemon
- Kohagi
- Koharu
- Koide Hidemasa
- Koito
- Kojuro
- Kokichi
- Koman
- Kondo Kyuemon
- Kosome
- Kosugi Sadanoshin
- Kosuke
- Kotoyu
- Kozakura
- Kubota Kichizaemon
- Kuhei
- Kumagai Suzunosuke
- Kumakichi
- Kumazo
- Kuramochi Tadafusa
- Kurihara Tadatsugu
- Kuroda Naoyuki
- Kuroda Tadayuki
- Kuroiwa Jubei
- Kurokawa Hyoe
- Kuwabara Ryohei
- Kuwahara Shinzaemon
- Kuze Hiroyuki
- Kyogoku Takakazu
- Kyogoku Takatomo
- Kyoya Kanbei
- Kyubei
- Kyujiro
M: 44 names
- Maeda Toshiharu
- Maeda Toshitsune
- Maeda Tsunanori
- Makino Narisada
- Makino Tadanari
- Manabe Akifusa
- Manjiro
- Manryu
- Mashiko Jinzaemon
- Matsu
- Matsudaira Sadanaga
- Matsudaira Sadayuki
- Matsudaira Tadanori
- Matsudaira Yorishige
- Matsugoro
- Matsuhime
- Matsukaze
- Matsukichi
- Matsukura Katsuie
- Matsumae Kinhiro
- Matsuoka Yozaemon
- Mikami Kageyu
- Mikawaya Jinbei
- Mitsu
- Mitsuhashi Kyunosuke
- Mitsui Tadaoki
- Miura Sonosuke
- Miyagi Kazunari
- Miyake Tozaemon
- Miyako
- Miyazaki Kinnojo
- Mizuno Katsunari
- Mizuno Tadaharu
- Mizuno Tadamoto
- Mochizuki Tenzen
- Mogi Seishichi
- Mohei
- Mori Hidemoto
- Mori Tsunahiro
- Morikawa Shigetoshi
- Morishima Kiheiji
- Morita Magoemon
- Muramatsu Shinjuro
- Musashiya Heiemon
N: 27 names
- Nabeshima Katsushige
- Nabeshima Mitsushige
- Nabeta Yaheiji
- Nadaya Mohei
- Nagai Masanao
- Nagai Naomasa
- Nagai Naoyuki
- Nagao Gorozaemon
- Nagasaka Sakyo
- Nagasawa Jirozaemon
- Nagata Seiemon
- Naito Nobunari
- Naito Tadaoki
- Nakagawa Hisakiyo
- Nakai Kageyu
- Nakamura Kuroemon
- Nakano Shinjiro
- Nakazawa Sakon
- Nanbu Toshinao
- Naniwaya Shichibei
- Natsu
- Negishi Yasumori
- Niimi Kunitaro
- Nishikigi
- Niwa Shinzo
- Noguchi Gemba
- Nomura Hidenaga
O: 82 names
- Obata Sakunojo
- Ochiai Matsubei
- Odagiri Sukezaemon
- Ofuji
- Ofumi
- Ogasawara Nagashige
- Ogasawara Tadazane
- Ogawa Yukimune
- Ohana
- Oharu
- Ohashi Tomonoshin
- Ohatsu
- Oito
- Okabe Nobukatsu
- Okaji
- Okame
- Okamura Izumi
- Okane
- Okayo
- Okazaki Sahei
- Oki Sakubei
- Okichi
- Okiku
- Okiyo
- Okochi Masahisa
- Okon
- Okoto
- Okubo Tadatomo
- Okudaira Nobumasa
- Okuma
- Okuni
- Omasa
- Omatsu
- Omine
- Omiya Sobei
- Onaka
- Onatsu
- Onizuka Gorota
- Onobu
- Onoe Sadatsugu
- Onui
O, continued
- Oraku
- Oriku
- Orin
- Oryo
- Osada
- Osai
- Osaki
- Osato
- Osen
- Oshige
- Oshika
- Oshin
- Oshino
- Oshizu
- Osuga Yasutaka
- Osugi
- Osuzu
- Otae
- Otaka
- Otama
- Otani Kuranosuke
- Otawara Sukekiyo
- Oteru
- Otokichi
- Otomatsu
- Otomi
- Otori
- Otoyo
- Otsune
- Otsuru
- Otsuta
- Oume
- Owaka
- Owariya Tokubei
- Oyae
- Oyasu
- Oyone
- Oyoshi
- Oyuki
- Ozaki Hayato
- Ozeki Narifusa
R: 4 names
- Risuke
- Riyo
- Rokusuke
- Rokuzaemon
S: 62 names
- Sachihime
- Sadakichi
- Sadako
- Sagamiya Magobei
- Sagara Nagatsune
- Sakagami Naizen
- Sakai Tadazane
- Sakichi
- Sakuemon
- Sakuma Heizaemon
- Sakuma Nobutada
- Sakuzo
- Sanjo Narimichi
- Sanpei
- Santaro
- Sanukiya Yasuke
- Satake Yoshinobu
- Seibei
- Sekiguchi Ujinori
- Sekine Sukejiro
- Sengoku Masatoshi
- Serizawa Mondo
- Settsuya Jirobei
- Shibata Katsunaga
- Shibata Tonomo
- Shichibei
- Shigeko
- Shigezo
- Shigure
- Shimada Toranosuke
- Shimaya Kyubei
S, continued
- Shimazu Mitsuhisa
- Shimazu Tsunataka
- Shimekichi
- Shimizu Kahei
- Shinanoya Rokuemon
- Shinbei
- Shinmi Masanobu
- Shino
- Shinroku
- Shinsuke
- Shiokawa Gonbei
- Shirai Tadatake
- Shirakawa Tango
- Shiratama
- Shishido Mototsugu
- Shizu
- Shohachi
- Shokichi
- Soma Daihachi
- Somekichi
- Sone Genpachiro
- Sosuke
- Suganuma Tobei
- Sugatano
- Sugawara Kageyuki
- Sugimoto Hachirobei
- Sugizo
- Sukejuro
- Sumiya Tokuemon
- Surugaya Chobei
- Suzuki Shigenaga
T: 57 names
- Tachikawa Shinnojo
- Tadokoro Shinpachi
- Tae
- Tajimaya Yohei
- Takagi Masatsugu
- Takahashi Kiichiro
- Takao
- Takase Hanzaemon
- Takashima Kihei
- Takeda Gennosuke
- Takichi
- Takizawa Shuzen
- Tama
- Tamagiku
- Tamakoto
- Tamazusa
- Tanabe Rokuzo
- Tanaka Kahei
- Tanbaya Kuhei
- Tarozaemon
- Tasuke
- Tateishi Genshiro
- Tazaki Sanai
- Terazawa Hirotaka
- Teru
- Teruhime
- Teruko
- Tetsugoro
- Tobei
- Toda Tadamasa
- Toda Ujikane
- Todo Takatsugu
- Togashi Tsunetomo
- Tokichi
- Tokita Kanpachi
- Tokunaga Heisuke
- Tokura Norishige
- Tomekichi
- Tomi
- Tomiemon
- Tomiyu
- Tomohime
- Torii Tadamasa
- Tose
- Tsuchiya Kazunao
- Tsuchiya Shume
- Tsugaru Nobuhira
- Tsukahara Tadatoki
- Tsukamoto Kiyotaka
- Tsukasa
- Tsukuda Kanjuro
- Tsunako
- Tsune
- Tsuru
- Tsuruhime
- Tsuruya Kizaemon
- Tsutsui Masanori
U: 8 names
- Ueda Sanshiro
- Uemura Shingoro
- Uesugi Tsunakatsu
- Umekichi
- Umemura Gonzaemon
- Umezawa Tojuro
- Umezu Tatewaki
- Ushimatsu
W: 5 names
- Wakabayashi Sadatomo
- Wakamurasaki
- Wakana
- Wakasaya Hanbei
- Wakisaka Ukyo
Y: 16 names
- Yae
- Yagi Kinnosuke
- Yahachi
- Yaichi
- Yamaoka Tesshin
- Yamatoya Sukeemon
- Yamauchi Tadayoshi
- Yasaku
- Yasubei
- Yasugoro
- Yohachi
- Yohei
- Yokoyama Moritsugu
- Yorozuya Kinbei
- Yoshino
- Yugiri