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Updated June 9, 2019

Family name origins & meanings

  • Japanese : ‘(one who lives) near the forest’, or ‘(one who is) from the forest’; mostly found in western Japan and the island of Okinawa. A family of Settsu (now part of Hyōgo prefecture) descended from the Ono family, while another of Kai (now Yamanashi prefecture) descended from the Minamoto clan through the Takeda.

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