A.  Reading and Writing Japanese Names

1.   Japanese Names: A Comprehensive Index by Characters and Readings.

O’Neill, Patrick Geoffrey.  NY: Weatherhill, 1972.

2.   Jinmei yomikata jiten. 　人名よみかた辞典

       Tokyo: Nichigai Asoshietsu, 1983. 2v.

3.   Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan Choshamei Tenkyoroku: Meiji Ikō Nihon Jinmei. 　国立国会図書館著者名点享禄　：　明治以降日本人名

Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan (Japan).  Tokyo: Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan: Kinokuniya Shoten Hatsubai, 1991.  Name authority list for National Diet Library from 1868-1984.

4.   Nihon choshamei jinmei tenkyoroku.  日本著者名人名典拠錄．Nichigai Asosheitsu: Hatsubaimoto Kinokuniya Shoten, 1989.

5.   Nihon jinmei tenkyoroku.  Index to Jinbutsu refarensu jiten. 　日本人名典拠錄. 人物レファレンス事典

Tokyo: Nichigai Associates, 1983.

6.   Jitsuyō Nandoku Kisei jiten.  実用難読奇姓辞典

Shinozaki Teruo.  Nihon Kajo Shuppan, 1967.

7.   Dōsei iyomi jinmei jiten.　　同姓意読み人名辞典．　A Dictionary of Famous Japanese People with the Same Written Surname. 

       Nichigai Asoshietsu: Hatsubaimoto Kinokuniya Shoten, 1988.

8.   Kanwa jiten．　漢和辞典． (various exist which can be useful)

9.   Card catalog/online catalog (can give you the characters and readings for author’s name)

10. Shuppan nenkan. 　 出版年鑑 (Tokyo, Japan : 1951)

      Shuppan nyūsusha, 1951- , Annual for hard to read publisher names

11  Nihon shoseki sōmokuroku. 　日本書籍総目錄 [Japanese Books in Print]. 

       Nihon Shoseki Shuppan kyōkai,  1977-, Annual author index in gojuon order

B.  Who’s Who

1.   Gendai Nihon Jinmeiroku. 　現代日本人名錄

      Tokyo: Nichigai Asoshietsu, 1987-

2.   Gendai Nihon Shippitsusha Daijiten. 　現代日本執筆者大事典 Contemporary Writers of Japan.

      Tokyo: Nichigai Associates,  Biographical dictionary of writers in humanities and social sciences

3.   Jinji kōshinroku. 　人事興信錄 (RJ 2281.8/3572) 

      Tokyo:Jinji Kōshinjo, 1903-, Biennial who’s who.

4.   Shokuinroku. 　職員錄

       Ōkurashō Insatsukyoku, 1886 -, Government officials

5.   Zenkoku Daigaku Shokuinroku. 　全国大学職員錄

      Tokyo: Kojunsha, 1958-. University faculty

6.   Kenkyūsha, Kenkyū Kadai Sōran. 　研究者・研究課題総覧  Directory of University Professors and Researchers in Japan 1990.

      Monbusho Gakujutsu Kokusaikyoku kanshō. Nihon Gakujutsu Shinkokai, 1990.

7.   Chosakuken daichō/Bunka jinmeiroku. 　著作權臺帳 : 文化人名錄  Who’s who of copyright holders, and other central figures.

       Tōkyō : Nihon Chosakuken Kyōgikai, 1955-

8.   Daibukan. 　大武鑑  3 v. Hashimoto Hiroshi.

       Meichō kankōkai, 1965.

Useful for identifying warrior officials from Kamakura times to 1868.

9.   Kansei chōshū shokafu, 　寬政重修諸家譜 [1812]. Hayashi Jussai, et. al.

      Zoku gunsho ruijū kanseikai, 1964.  

Useful for identifying warriors in Edo period.

C.  Biographical Dictionaries

1.   Daijinmei jiten　　大人名辞典

      Tokyo: Heibonsha, 1953-55.  10 vols.

Covers persons deceased prior to 1953; vols. 7 & 8 cover foreigners; gendai vol. spans 1938-1978; has cross references; standard tool.  index: Japanese names, surnames, given names and pen names; arranged in Japanese syllabary order and by stroke count; alphabetical index of foreigners. 

2.   Kadokawa Nihon seishi rekishi jinbutsu daijiten.　 角川日本姓氏歴史人物大辞典 47 vols.Takeuchi, Rizo, 1907-. 

      Tokyo: Kadokawa Shoten, 1989-1992. 

      Arranged by prefecture, each volume covers the history and famous people of each village, town and ward, provides biographical sketches of each notable from the prefecture, covers family names, their origins and spread and provides various tables covering not only a chronology for the prefecture, charts of important lineages and a list of Tokugawa domain lords but also lists of governors, of factory owners in Meiji 42 and of illustrious people arranged by city/village and a bibliography of relevant materials.

3.   Nihon Jinmei Jiten.   Haga Yaichi. 　日本人名辭典 芳賀矢一 .

      Sōbunkaku, 1915.

      Useful for looking up people who do not use surnames, who are remembered by their given names, studio names or pseudonyms.  Also for identifying first names such as nanori, tsōshō , gagō, and geimei. Arranged by Japanese syllabary, with a stroke index in front.

4.   Nihon josei jinmei jiten.  Haga, Noboru (Kanshu).　 日本女性人名辞典 / 監修芳賀登.

       Tokyo: Nihon Tosho Senta, 1993

7000 women from ancient to modern

5.   Umi o koeta Nihon jinmei jiten. 　海を越えた日本人名事典

       Biographical dictionary of Japanese travelers to the Occident, 1551-1897.Tomita, Hitoshi, 1933-  

      Nichigai Asoshietsu: Hatsubaimoto Kinokuniya Shoten, 1985.

6.   Meiji jinmei jiten I. 　明治人名辞典 I. Furubayashi Kamejiro henshu. Reprint.  Originally published: Gendai jinmei jiten. Tokyo: Chuo Tsushinsha, 1912.

7.   Meiji jinmei jiten II. 　明治人名辞典 II.  Tanaka Jusaku, ed.  Reprint.

      Originally published as: Nihon genkon jinmei jiten. 

      Tokyo: Nihon Genkon Jinmei Jiten Hakkojo, Meiji 33 [1900].  Tokyo: Nihon Tosho Senta, 1988

8.   Taisho jinmei jiten. Igarashi Eikichi hen. 　大正人名辞典. 五十嵐栄吉編.

Reprint. Originally published: Dai 4-ban. Tokyo: Toyo Shinposha, 1918.

Tokyo: Nihon Tosho Senta, 1987.

9.   Taisho jinmei jiten. 　大序人名辞典．Ino Saburo hen.

Reprint. Originally published: Tokyo: Toyo Shinposha, 1928.

Tokyo: Nihon Tosho Senta, 1989.

10  Showa jinmei jiten. 　昭和人名辞典．Tani Genji hen.  Vols. 2-4 edited by : Tani Sakayo.

Reprint. Originally published: Taishu jinjiroku.  Dai 14-ban.  Tokyo: Teikoku Himitsu Tanteisha, Showa 17-18. [1942-43]

Tokyo: Nihon Tosho Senta, 1987.

v. 1 Tokyo hen -- v. 2. Hokkaido, Ou, Kanto, Chubu hen -- v. 3. Kinki, Chugoku, Shikoku, Kyushu hen -- v. 4. Gaichi, Man-Shi, Kaigai hen.

11  Showa jinmei jiten II. 　昭和人名辞典 II. Hirose Hiroshi kanshu.

Reprint.  Originally published: Taishu jinjiroku. Dai 19-han. Tokyo: Teikoku Himitsu Tanteisha, Showa 31 [1956]. Tokyo: Nihon Tosho Senta, 1989.

v. 1. Tokyo hen -- v. 2. Higashi Nihon hen -- v. 3. Nishi Nihon hen.

12  Nihon Shakai undō jinmei jiten.　 日本社会運動人名辞典.　

       Shioda Shōhei  ed. Aoki shoten, 1979.

      Excellent biographicial dictionary of prewar social movement activists.

13  Sekai jinmei jiten. 　世界人名辞典．Seiyō hen. Tōyō hen. Nihon hen. Kawabe Toshio and Hosaka Eiichi, eds. Tokyodō, 1971.

14. Chūgoku jinmei jiten. Kodai kara gendai made. 　中国人名辞典 : 古代から現代まで

       Tokyo: Nichigai Associates, 1993.

15. Gendai Chūgoku jinmei jiten.  Gaimushō, Ajia kyoku kanshū. 　現代中国人名辞典／ 外務省アジア局監修

       Kazan, 1972.

16  Gendai Kankoku jinmei jiten. 　現代韓国人名辞典．Gaimushō, Ajia koku hen. Kasumigaseki kabushiki kaisha, 1971.

17  Biographical Dictionary of Japanese History  Iwao, Seiichi, ed. Burton Watson trans. Kodansha International with the International Society for Educational Information, 1978.

18  Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Literature  Hisamatsu, Sen’ichi ed. International Society for Educational Information, 1976.

19  A Dictionary of Japanese Artists  Roberts, Laurence P.  New York: Weatherhill, 1976.

20  Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Art   Yukata Tazawa, ed.  Tokyo: Kodansha International in collaboration with the International Society for Educational Information; New York: Distributed by Kodansha International/USA, through Harper & Row, 1981.

D.  Personal Names and Indexes

1.   Jinbutsu refarensu jiten. 　人物レファレンス事典． Tokyo: Nichigai Associates, 1983.

　　　Sakuhinmei kara hikeru Nihon bungaku zenshū annai.　　作品名から引ける日本文学全集案内．

2.   Sakuhinmei kara hikeru Nihon bungaku nyōron shisōka kojin zenshō annai．　作品名から引ける日本文学尿論思想化個人全焼案内．        

 　　　Title index to the contents of each Japanese critic’s complete works.  Nichigai Asoshietsu: Hatsubaimoto Kinokuniya Shoten, 1992.

3.   Sakuhinmei kara hikeru Nihon bungaku sakka shosetsuka kojin zenshō annai．　作品名から引ける日本文学作家諸説か個人全焼案内． 

　　　Title index to the contents of each Japanese novelist’s complete works.  Nichigai Asoshietsu: Hatsubaimoto Kinokuniya Shoten, 1992.

4.   Sakuhinmei kara hikeru Nihon bungaku shiika haijin kojin zenshō annai.　 作品名から引ける日本文学詩歌俳人個人全焼案内．

 　　　Title index to the contents of each Japanese poet’s complete works.  Nichigai Asoshietsu: Hatsubaimoto Kinokuniya Shoten, 1992.

E.   Genealogies

1.   Seishi kakei daijiten. 　姓氏家系大辭典． Ōta Akira.  Tokyo: Seishi Kakei Daijiten Kankōkai, 1934-36.

F.   Bibliographies of Biographies

1.   Nihon jinbutsu bunken mokuroku = Annual Bibliography of Personals.　 人物文献目錄． Nichigai Asoshietsu: Hatsubaimoto, Kinokuniya shoten, 1991-.  Annual index to biographical articles (biographies, diaries, recollections, travel accounts, critical studies, chronologies and bibliographies) in journals and books.