Surname Tanaka - Meaning and Origin

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V. Tanaka

Tanaka: What does the surname Tanaka mean?

Tanaka is a common Japanese surname that means "middle of the rice field." Derived from the Japanese words 'ta' meaning rice field and 'naka' indicating center or middle, it represents connection to agriculture and farming. This name references Japan's historical and cultural significance of rice cultivation to its society. Although the meaning of the name may imply a rural or farming background, today, individuals with the surname Tanaka can be found in various professions all across Japan. It is one of the most common Japanese last names, with a wide geographic distribution throughout the country. Despite its popularity, the actual families bearing this surname are not necessarily related, as historically Japanese surnames often derived from geographical locations or employment descriptors.

Tanaka: Where does the name Tanaka come from?

The last name Tanaka is a very common surname found throughout East Asia, primarily in Japan, where it is ranked as the 3rd most common surname behind the surnames Sato and Suzuki. It is also a very common surname in China, where it is mostly found amongst People of Japanese ancestry who settled there in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The surname is also very common in the United States, Hawaii in particular, as immigrants from Japan began arriving to the area in the late 19th century. For instance, the United States Census Bureau found that there were 105,012 people with the last name Tanaka living in the United States in 2020. Furthermore, other countries with sizeable Japanese diasporas tend to have a significant number of people with the last name Tanaka. These include Brazil, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Mexico, and South Africa.

Variations of the surname Tanaka

The surname Tanaka is a common Japanese patronymic surname, meaning “of Tanaka”. It is written in kanji characters as 田中, usually written Tanaka or Tanak. This is the most common surname in Japan with 2,403,256 people having it as of 2014.

Variants and spellings of the surname include:

• Denzaki - 殿崎

• Danaka - 棚賀

• Tanak – 田那久

• Tanabé - 田邊

• Tanamachi - 丹後

• Tanakasu - 田中守

• Tanizaki - 谷崎

• Tanize - 谷勢

• Danako - 檀彌

• Taniguchi - 谷口

• Danazumi - 檀津見

• Tanigugo - 谷口郷

• Tanemura - 種村

• Taneda - 種田

• Tanedo - 種戸

• Denzou - 殿蔵

• Danzen - 檀川

• Tanerano - 種か野

• Tanide - 種出

• Tanemasa - 種正

• Tanabe - 田部

• Tanara - 田ノ原

• Denji - 殿次

• Danjō - 檀乗

• Tanigaki - 谷垣

• Tanguchiyama - 田口山

• Tanigawara - 谷河原

• Tanisumi - 谷澄

• Taninaka - 谷中

• Tanida - 田核

• Tanigami - 谷上

• Danohara - 檀原

The surname Tanaka is also known as Tana or Tanada in some regions of Japan. Other distant variants and spellings may also be heard, as this is a very popular surname in the country.

Famous people with the name Tanaka

• Yutaka Tanaka: Japanese publicist and author, well known for his books about digital media.
• Kanako Tanaka: Japanese voice actress, known for her work on anime series such as Love Live! School Idol Project and Black Butler.
• Tetsuo Tanaka: Japanese politician, serving in the Cabinet of Japan since 2013.
• Hiromu Tanaka: Japanese manga artist, known for his work on Detective Conan.
• Rina Tanaka: Japanese actress and former model, who has starred in several movies and television series.
• Ryoko Tanaka: Japanese voice actress from Osaka, best known for her work on the anime series March Comes in Like a Lion.
• Kensuke Tanaka: Japanese professional baseball player, currently playing for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in the Nippon Professional Baseball league.
• Yuka Tanaka: Japanese singer and actress, member of the all-girl pop music group AKB48.
• Kazuki Tanaka: Japanese professional basketball player, playing for the Ryukyu Golden Kings of the B.League.
• Masazumi Tanaka: Japanese professional footballer, playing for Shimizu S-Pulse in J1 League.

Other surnames

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