What's in a name? The 10 most common surnames in Japan (and their meanings) soranews24.com

It’s a little-known fact that until the Meiji era (1868-1912), the ordinary men and women of Japan did not have surnames.
There are an estimated 100,000 family names in Japan — much more than in many Western countries, and vastly more than in neighbouring Korea and China — however what’s curious is that of these surnames 10 are incredibly common, with millions of people sharing the exact same moniker.
In ascending order, the most common Japanese surnames today:10.
ItōPersons with name: 1,080,000Written: 伊藤Meaning: The first kanji character, 伊 is also used to denote Italy, but historically speaking 伊 literally means ‘this’ or ‘that one’.
There you have it, folks, the 10 most common Japanese family names.