Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan soranews24.com

Myoji Yurai Net, a Japanese surname database, recently released the results of a study in which researchers analyzed data from government statistics and phone books in order to compile a list of the 30 rarest Japanese family names.
Akasofu / 赤祖父Meaning: red grandfatherWhile many Japanese names are reflections of the natural environment, ones that reference people are much rarer, much less one with a specific color.
Botan / 牡丹Meaning: peonyReferences to trees are common in Japanese names.
Chiba (“thousand leaves”) and Matsumoto (“original pine”) are often-heard family names, but they’re also a prefecture and city, respectively.
Momo / 百百Meaning: Hundred hundredMomo is also the Japanese word for “peach,” but in the case of the fruit, the kanji 桃 is used instead.