How to read our name records

What each source establishes

Source-backed dictionary records remain outside the sitemap until a detail page has enough editorial context to stand on its own. They can still support generator breadth because their spelling and reading are directly documented.

Editorial guidance and evidence

Editorial selection describes our browsing order, not a popularity ranking. Style, naturalness, and usage estimates are editorial guidance unless a specific supporting source is given. The general Jōyō Kanji table does not verify every personal-name reading, gender association, or frequency of use.

Dictionary glosses can include senses used in abbreviations or unrelated contexts. We keep those senses in character notes rather than joining them into an asserted name meaning. A spelling-and-reading record is evidence that a dictionary records the pair, not evidence of a particular person’s naming intention.

Display method updated September 9, 2026: separated general character glosses from name meanings and labeled editorial usage estimates.

What confidence labels mean

A literal kanji interpretation is not automatically an origin story. We separately label well-documented material, common interpretations, multiple possible origins, literal-only readings, and uncertainty. No label implies that every person with the same surname shares one ancestor.