Japan Studies: Names and biographies

John Weatherhill, 1972.
A very convenient reference for English speakers. The volume's approximately 36,000 names may be searched by stroke count or Romanized reading. Each entry is designated as a family, personal, place, literary, historical, or artistic name.

Saur, 1998. 2 vols in 3.
East Asian reference tool for surnames only. Vol. 1, separated into 2 parts and arranged by stroke count: search by character. Vol. 2, arranged in alphabetical order: search by Romanized reading.

Nichigai Asoshiētsu, 2004. 2 vols.
These two Japanese-language volumes contain given names and surnames, respectively. Search by kana, kanji , or radical. Many entries give examples of famous historical or cultural figures with their names and occupations (e.g., politician, novelist, poet).

To find the kanji and kana readings for personal, family, and place names, perform a “Word Search” in Romaji under the “enamdict” dictionary file. Entries for famous personages include birth and death dates. To avoid a failed search, experiment with different Romanization styles (e.g., Abe Koubou, Abe Kobo) or choose the “Romaji” function instead of “text (J/E).”

Useful for its Romanized readings of titles and authors, you can conduct searches in romaji, kana, or kanji.

CiNii is an online union catalog for academic libraries in Japan. It provides information on library holdings in Japan, including detailed information on the library. One can use this database to confirm bibliographic information on particular documents including contents, readings of the title and author, and how one item fits in a larger series.

Most citations in this database for scholarly journal articles include author name readings in kana. These readings, especially those of little-known authors, may be otherwise impossible to find, since Waseda and NACSIS only contain the names of book authors and journal editors/institutions.

A large online collection of language dictionaries, encyclopedias, and other Japanese reference works that you can search in one easy step. Searches are only possible in Japanese

As one of the most comprehensive biographical dictionaries of Japan, the resource includes more than 65,000 names both of real persons in history and of fictional characters (from the mythical age of Kojiki to the present stories and novels).

The first two volumes in this six-volume biographical dictionary series includes 61,905 important Japanese personages from ancient, medieval, and early modern periods. Very brief entries, arranged in gojūon order, include birth/death dates, significance, major accomplishments, and dictionaries for more information.

A list of senior counselors and ministers of the Council of State holding the third rank or higher from the era of Emperor Jimmu to the first year of the Meiji period.

Hasshō was the central administrator of the ancient and medieval periods. Based on historical records of the Nara and Heian periods, Hasshō Bunin lists government officials of Nakatukasa, Shikibu, Minbu, Hyobu, Gyobu, Ohkura, Kunai ministry.

Index to records of assigned posts in Shikibushō (Ministry of Ceremonial) from 990 to 1336 and compiled from over 200 historical documents. It includes genealogical and antecedent information of each person. May be used as a biographical dictionary.

Up-to-date, quick and useful online resource that provides accounts of the people in the “spotlight” in every field. The list is updated daily.

The series continues with 47,146 important Japanese figures from Meiji, Taishō, and prewar Shōwa periods.

The final two volumes in this series cover 65,382 important Japanese figures from postwar Shōwa and Heisei periods.