Family name origins & meanings
- Japanese (Kondō) : variously written, the most usual form being with characters meaning ‘nearby wisteria’, and actually designating ‘Fujiwara of Ōmi’ (Ōmi no Fujiwara). Kon (‘near’) is the Sino-Japanese pronunciation of chika, as in Chika-tsu-awa-umi (‘Nearer Lake’, now Shiga prefecture). The name refers to Lake Biwa and was shortened by usage to Ōmi. The surname is mostly found in the Tōkyō area.