What Is Name Divination (Seimei Handan)? Japan’s Stroke-Count Fortune-Telling, Unraveled Down to Differences in Schools and Character Forms

Fortune-telling that counts the strokes (kakusu) of the kanji in your family name and given name and reads character and fortune from the totals: that is seimei handan (name divination). “This name has good stroke counts, so let’s use it.” “What were the stroke counts of our child’s name again?” If you have ever named a baby, you have probably heard something like this. It is often assumed to come from China, but the form that dominates in Japan today was, surprisingly, systematized in modern Japan.

When you enter a family name and given name in our free “Name Divination,” it shows the “five kaku” (gokaku), namely the Heaven, Person, Earth, Outer and Total kaku, with the stroke count of each, a verdict of lucky or unlucky, and the “three-talent arrangement” (sansai haichi). Many of you, though, will have had the experience that the same name gives different stroke counts and luck on different sites. In this article we first explain how name divination works with analogies and examples, and then tell you exactly “why results disagree,” following how our own tool actually counts.

Whenever a specialist term appears, we restate it in a “Put simply” quote box. Later on we also add our own reflections that go beyond summarizing history. Please note that every example in this article is a fictional name. It does not tell the fortune of any real individual.

Key points (a 3-minute summary)

• Name divination finds the “five kaku” (Heaven, Person, Earth, Outer and Total) from the strokes of the kanji in a name, and reads fortune from the luck of each number (its “suri”) and more.
• Today’s mainstream “five kaku” system is said to have been systematized in the late 1920s by Kumazaki Kenno, born in the Meiji era. The theory that it began in China’s Song dynasty is said to lack support from historical sources.
• What most affects the result is how strokes are counted. There are schools that count in the old character forms (the forms of the Kangxi Dictionary) and schools that count in the new forms, and the same name gets different stroke counts.
• Our tool uses a five-kaku formula based on the Kumazaki style and looks up each character’s strokes in a table of about 3,000 registered characters. Characters not in the table (the ladder-top “taka,” the “saki” variants, the old forms of “Nabe” and “Sai,” and so on) are calculated as 0 strokes, and this is shown on the screen as “unregistered characters.” Small kana, the small “ke,” the repetition mark and “vu” are supported.
• There are 81 suri numbers, and in our table 34 of the 81 are “unlucky.” Even if you get “unlucky,” it does not mean your character or future is bad.
• No established scientific basis confirms that name divination comes true. We recommend enjoying it as a chance to think about naming and about yourself, not as a tool for judging or discriminating against people by their names.

What is name divination? Fortune-telling that turns a name into “numbers”

Name divination is fortune-telling that counts the strokes of the kanji making up a name and reads fortune and character from them. Strokes are the “number of lines” when you write a kanji. For example, the kanji for “mountain” (yama) is 3 strokes, the one for “river” (kawa) is also 3 strokes, and the one for “flower” (hana) is 7 or 8 strokes (the difference in counting is explained later).

First, five “kaku” are made from the strokes of the family name and given name. Each kaku is assigned a meaning such as “luck inherited from ancestors,” “the center of character,” “luck in early childhood,” “luck in dealing with people” and “luck over your whole life,” and the number produced for each kaku is matched against a table (the suri and “sui,” their meanings) in which each of the numbers 1 to 81 is given a luck value.

There are many fortune-telling arts that read fate from a birth date or the positions of the stars. By comparison, name divination is distinctive in that it uses a “name you could not choose yourself” as its material. A birth date cannot be changed, but a name can sometimes be changed, by renaming or by using different names for daily use and writing. This “changeable” nature is also why name divination is especially relied upon when choosing a name.

Put simply, name divination is “fortune-telling that counts the number of lines when you write the kanji of a name and reads the meaning packed into those numbers.” It uses neither stars nor calendars, only the name.

An example used in this article: Person A’s name (Kuroba Yoruko)

Talk of stroke counts is hard to feel without actually counting. So in this article we use a fictional “Person A” and explain with results actually calculated by our tool. Person A’s name is “Kuroba Yoruko.” Of course, this is not a real person.

• Kuro (black): 11 strokes. Ba (feather): 6 strokes. Yoru (night): 8 strokes. Ko (child): 3 strokes.
• Five kaku: Heaven 17, Person 14, Earth 11, Outer 14, Total 28.
• Three-talent arrangement: an ordinary arrangement (the five elements are “metal, fire, wood”).

How these numbers come about is explained step by step in the chapter on the “five kaku.”

Origins of name divination: reverence for names, and the arrival of Kumazaki Kenno

Names have long been special

The feeling that a name has power is very old. In Japan it is often explained that there was a custom of not casually speaking a person’s true name (jitsumei, or imina). It is said this was because having your name known felt close to having your very self grasped. The idea of “kotodama,” that spiritual power dwells in words, is also thought to have been part of the background of regarding names as special.

There are stories that Heian nobles relied on onmyoji and fortune-tellers to name their children, and explanations that the good and bad luck of names was talked about even among ordinary people in the Edo period. However, we need to distinguish this “custom of tying names to fortune” from “today’s name divination, which counts strokes and judges luck” as separate things.

Did it really begin in China’s Song dynasty?

China’s Song dynasty (10th to 13th centuries) is sometimes cited as the origin of name divination. But some explanations point out that this theory of origin “lacks support from historical sources.” The form now mainstream in Japan, in which five kaku are found from stroke counts and matched to a suri table, is at present most reliably regarded as a system organized in modern times, rather than a straightforward inheritance of an ancient tradition.

Kumazaki Kenno: the man who made modern name study

The person said to have laid the foundation of today’s Japanese name divination is Kumazaki Kenno, who was active from the Meiji era into the Showa era. According to Japanese Wikipedia, Kumazaki, after working as a newspaper reporter and the like, studied the study of the I Ching, and in 1928 set up a reading office called “Goseikaku” in Tokyo. He is introduced as having put together his own system for reading luck by name and as having published the theory in 1929 in monthly magazines for women and elsewhere.

That system read the five kaku, Heaven, Person, Earth, Outer and Total, in combination with the ideas of yin-yang and the five elements, and became the starting point of the current called the “Kumazaki style.” His 1929 book “Seimei no Shinpi” (The Mystery of Names) is often cited as the origin of the system, but descriptions of Kumazaki’s years of birth and death and of the publication years of his books waver between sources. Here, let us hold the broad flow: “in the early Showa period, Kumazaki Kenno put the five-kaku system in order.”

Put simply, the old feeling that ties names to fortune has long existed, but today’s form of “counting strokes to find five kaku and reading luck from a table of 81 numbers” was put in order by Kumazaki Kenno in the early Showa period. So its history is about 100 years.

The main schools

After the Kumazaki style, name divination split into several schools. The following are often cited.

• Kumazaki style: The most widely known school. It is often explained as counting, in principle, in old character forms (the forms of the Kangxi Dictionary).
• Kuwano style: A school introduced as differing from the Kumazaki style in how some strokes are counted and as valuing the new character forms used in modern family registers and the like.
• Goseikaku style: The method of Goseikaku, heir to the Kumazaki style, said to take in the strengths of other schools while judging comprehensively from four sides: strokes, sound, form and meaning.
• There are also lines that look at names in combination with Four Pillars of Destiny and the like.

On the debate over which school is “correct,” even experts’ explanations say “there is no correct school” and “it is important not to mix schools but to read consistently with a single method.” This point is also the central theme of this article, so we will look at it in detail later together with how our tool counts.

Basics (1): what are strokes, and why does counting split?

A stroke is counted as one “continuous line” when you write a kanji. One is 1 stroke, two is 2 strokes, three is 3 strokes. That much is easy, but when radicals are involved, differences in counting appear.

For example, the “sanzui” radical (three dots) that represents water is 3 strokes when written. But the original character, “mizu” (water), is 4 strokes. The “kusakanmuri” (grass radical) looks like 3 strokes, but the character it comes from is 6 strokes. The “shinnyo” radical also has a position that counts it as 3 strokes and a position that counts it as 4. Depending on the school of name divination, whether to count such radicals “as they look” or “by the strokes of the original character” differs, so the same character ends up with different stroke counts.

Another big issue is character form. Even for the same “sakura” (cherry), the current new form is 10 strokes and the old form is 21 strokes. It is often explained that the Kumazaki style counts in old forms (Kangxi Dictionary forms) in principle, and the Kuwano style and others are introduced as valuing the new forms. In practice, the numbers of the five kaku change entirely depending on whether you count a name in old forms or leave it in new forms.

Put simply, strokes are “the number of lines when you write a kanji,” but the numbers shift depending on whether you see the water radical as 3 strokes or as the original character’s 4, and whether you count the cherry character in its new or old form. This difference in counting is the biggest reason why, in name divination, “results differ by site.”

[Person A’s case] Person A’s name “Kuroba Yoruko” is Kuro = 11 strokes, Ba = 6 strokes, Yoru = 8 strokes and Ko = 3 strokes. None of these four characters changes shape between new and old forms, so this is a name in which schools are unlikely to produce differences in stroke counts.

Basics (2): the five kaku, making five numbers from a name

At the center of name divination are the “five kaku” (gokaku). The strokes of the family name and given name are combined as follows to make five numbers. Our tool also uses this formula.

• Heaven kaku (tenkaku): the total strokes of the family name. Said to be luck inherited from ancestors and social luck.
• Person kaku (jinkaku): the sum of the strokes of the last character of the family name and the first character of the given name. Said to be the center of a person’s luck, such as character and middle age. Often regarded as the most important of the five kaku.
• Earth kaku (chikaku): the total strokes of the given name. Said to be luck from early childhood to youth, the basic luck.
• Outer kaku (gaikaku): the sum of the strokes of the first character of the family name and the last character of the given name (our formula). Said to be luck in dealing with people and in relationships.
• Total kaku (sokaku): the sum of the strokes of all characters of the name. Said to be luck over the whole of life, especially in later years.

When a family name or given name is a single character, the calculation does not work as it stands. So some schools use the convention of adding a “1” called the “reisu” (spirit number) or “kasu” (tentative number). In our tool, if the family name is one character, 1 is added to the Heaven kaku, and if the given name is one character, 1 is added to the Earth kaku. When finding the Outer kaku, the part of a one-character family or given name is also calculated as 1. On the other hand, the reisu is not added to the Total kaku (it stays as the actual sum of strokes).

Handling of the reisu also differs by school, with schools that add it and schools that do not. Furthermore, how to find the Outer kaku also differs by school. Many explanations of the Kumazaki style and others describe the Outer kaku as “the Total kaku minus the Person kaku.” When both family name and given name are two characters, this method and our formula give the same result, but when the family name or given name has three or more characters, results may differ.

Put simply, the five kaku are “a way of looking at a name from five angles, as numbers.” Family name only (Heaven), given name only (Earth), the joint between family and given name (Person), both ends (Outer) and everything (Total). When there is one character, the shortfall is made up with “1.”

[Person A’s case] Calculating with Kuro (11), Ba (6), Yoru (8) and Ko (3) gives the following.

• Heaven kaku: Kuro + Ba = 11 + 6 = 17 strokes
• Person kaku: Ba + Yoru = 6 + 8 = 14 strokes
• Earth kaku: Yoru + Ko = 8 + 3 = 11 strokes
• Outer kaku: Kuro + Ko = 11 + 3 = 14 strokes
• Total kaku: Kuro + Ba + Yoru + Ko = 11 + 6 + 8 + 3 = 28 strokes

For reference, let us also look at an example with a three-character family name. For the fictional “Kobayakawa Yoruko,” in our formula the Outer kaku is “Ko (3) + Ko (3) = 6 strokes,” but by the “subtract the Person kaku (11) from the Total kaku (23)” method it is 12 strokes. Even with the same name, the numbers can change depending on how the Outer kaku is found.

Basics (3): suri (the 81 numbers), the luck packed into the numbers

The strokes found for the five kaku are checked against the meaning (suri, or suui) assigned to each of the numbers 1 to 81 to judge luck. 81 is 9 x 9, the point where the numbers complete a round, and the rule is that if a number exceeds 81, you subtract 81 and go back to 1. For example, 82 is treated as 1 and 85 as 4. Our tool also uses this method.

In our table, luck is shown in four grades: great luck, luck, half luck and unlucky. The breakdown of the 81 numbers is 5 great luck, 32 luck, 10 half luck and 34 unlucky. That is, unlucky numbers make up about 40 percent of the whole. We will touch on this point again in the reflections.

Let us also introduce a one-line explanation for some numbers (summarized in our own words).

• 1 (great luck): The number of creation and leadership, showing the beginning of all things.
• 8 (great luck): As its widening shape suggests, a number that achieves great things after perseverance.
• 15 (great luck): A person of harmonious character and great virtue, the highest lucky number among the five kaku.
• 24 (luck): A number of accumulated wealth and prosperity, when steadily saved wealth blossoms.
• 30 (half luck): A number that could turn out lucky or unlucky, fifty-fifty and prone to turbulence.
• 14 (unlucky): A number of thin ties with relatives and a tendency to feel lonely.
• 81 (great luck): The highest-ranking “returning” number, in which the numbers complete a round and return to 1.

Note that the classification of suri luck follows a basic classification widely shared in Japan, but the details of the interpretation of each number differ by school. Our one-line explanations are our own summary based on several schools.

Put simply, suri is “a table in which each of the numbers 1 to 81 has a portrait of character and a luck sticker attached.” You find the numbers produced for your five kaku in this table and read them.

[Person A’s case] Let us look at Person A’s five kaku in the suri table.

• Heaven kaku 17 strokes (luck): a number of strong will that pushes forward through hardship.
• Person kaku 14 strokes (unlucky): a number of thin ties with relatives and a tendency to feel lonely.
• Earth kaku 11 strokes (luck): a number of restoration and renewal that steadily builds trust even if modest.
• Outer kaku 14 strokes (unlucky): the same 14 strokes as the Person kaku. Read as a tendency to feel lonely in relationships.
• Total kaku 28 strokes (unlucky): a number of tending to experience parting from precious bonds.

Three of the five kaku are unlucky, which at a glance looks like a harsh result. But this does not mean “Person A’s life is hard.” In fact, even for the same name, if the school changes, the numbers from Heaven to Total, and their luck, can change. We will look at this point in detail in the next chapter.

What is the three-talent arrangement? The links of the five elements among Heaven, Person and Earth

Of the five kaku, the three, Heaven, Person and Earth, are called the “three talents” (sansai). Working out one of the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water) from the ones digit of each of their stroke counts and looking at how they connect is the “three-talent arrangement.”

The correspondence between the ones digit and the five elements is as follows (the general correspondence, the same as in our tool).

• 1 and 2: wood
• 3 and 4: fire
• 5 and 6: earth
• 7 and 8: metal
• 9 and 0: water

Among the five elements there are relationships of nurturing each other (mutual generation: wood produces fire, fire produces earth, earth produces metal, metal produces water and water produces wood) and of checking each other (mutual overcoming: wood checks earth, earth checks water, water checks fire, fire checks metal and metal checks wood). By looking at how the elements connect from Heaven to Person and from Person to Earth, you judge whether the flow of fortune is smooth.

However, there are 125 combinations of the five elements for Heaven, Person and Earth, and the formal tables that fix the luck of each one differ in their entries by school. On this site, because we could not confirm primary sources to back a formal table, we use the existing mutual generation and overcoming of the five elements and make a simple, site-original version that divides into three grades by “how many places have mutual overcoming.”

• Good arrangement: neither link has mutual overcoming (the same element, or linked by mutual generation).
• Ordinary arrangement: one link is harmonious and the other is mutual overcoming.
• Arrangement to watch: both links are mutual overcoming.

Put simply, the three-talent arrangement is “a way of replacing the three numbers of Heaven, Person and Earth with five colors, the five elements, and looking at whether neighboring colors get along or fight.” However, our version is a simplified one, not a formal table of luck.

[Person A’s case] Heaven 17 has a ones digit of 7, so it is “metal”; Person 14 has 4, so “fire”; Earth 11 has 1, so “wood.” The link from Heaven’s metal to Person’s fire is mutual overcoming, with fire checking metal. The link from Person’s fire to Earth’s wood is mutual generation, with wood producing fire. With one place of mutual overcoming, our judgment is an “ordinary arrangement.”

Why results change: schools, character forms and how our tool counts

From here comes the most important part of this article. In name divination, results differ between sites and fortune-tellers not because someone made a mistake but because the premise of “by which method to count strokes” differs. And we tell you accurately, following the implementation, which way of counting our tool uses.

How our tool counts

• Formula for the five kaku: A standard formula based on the Kumazaki style (Heaven = all strokes of the family name, Person = last character of the family name + first character of the given name, Earth = all strokes of the given name, Outer = first character of the family name + last character of the given name, Total = the sum of all strokes. The reisu for one-character cases is as explained in the earlier chapter).
• How strokes are found: The tool looks up each entered character in a stroke table of about 3,000 registered kanji and adds them up. It is not breaking down radicals and counting on the spot.
• Kana: Hiragana, katakana and the long-vowel mark are calculated with their ordinary stroke counts. The rule is to add 2 strokes to the plain sound for the voiced mark (ka 3 becomes ga 5, katakana ka 2 becomes ga 4) and 1 stroke to the plain sound for the semi-voiced mark (ha 3 becomes pa 4, katakana ha 2 becomes pa 3, fu 1 becomes pu 2, he 1 becomes pe 2, ho 4 becomes po 5), treated the same in hiragana and katakana. Small kana (such as small ya and small tsu) have the same strokes as ordinary-size kana, the small “ke” counts as the same as “ke” and the small “ka” as “ka,” and “vu” is counted as 5 strokes, “u” plus the voiced mark. The repetition mark (odoriji) counts the same strokes as the character just before it.
• Suri: a table of 1 to 81 (if over 81, subtract 81 and return), and a simple three-grade judgment of the three-talent arrangement.

New forms are the center; old forms are registered only “in part”

Our stroke table is centered on characters in new forms (the current shapes, such as those of the Joyo kanji). For example, the new form of “sakura” is 10 strokes, “sawa” is 7, “hama” is 10 and “be” of Watanabe is 5. These are not the strokes of the old forms (Kangxi Dictionary forms) that the Kumazaki style is explained as using in principle.

On the other hand, some old-form characters are also registered. For example, the old form of “sakura” is 21 strokes, that of “kuni” is 11, that of “toku” is 15, that of “hiro” is 15 and that of “ryu” is 16. However, many old forms and variant characters are not registered. In the range we checked on this site, old forms such as those of “Nabe/Be,” “Sawa,” “Hama,” “Sai” (as in Saito), “Tachi/Yakata,” “Mori/Ou” (the seagull character), “Seki” and “San,” and variants such as the ladder-top “taka” and the “saki” variants (the “tatsu-saki” and another form), are not in the table.

On the other hand, among characters that may be used in names and stage names, the crow characters are registered: “karasu” (the crow with the bird radical) is 15 strokes, “karasu” (the crow without the extra stroke) is 10 strokes and “tori” (bird) is 11 strokes. For example, with the fictional name “Karasuba Yoruko,” which uses the first crow character in the family name, the calculation is Heaven 21 (luck), Person 14 (unlucky), Earth 11 (luck), Outer 18 (luck) and Total 32 (luck), with a good three-talent arrangement of “wood, fire, wood.”

If you enter a character that is not registered, the tool calculates that character as 0 strokes. It then shows a notice at the very top of the results screen: “Unregistered characters: (the character). Because it is not in our stroke dictionary, it has been calculated as 0 strokes (please view the result as a rough guide).” If there are several unregistered characters, they are shown lined up without duplicates.

Around kana and the repetition mark, handling is as follows. Small kana (small ya, yu, yo, tsu and so on), the small “ke,” the small “ka” and “vu” are registered, so even names like “Shota” and “Chan” are counted down to the small characters (for example, “Shota” is shi 1, small yo 2, u 2, ta 4, for 9 strokes). The repetition mark counts the same strokes as the character before it, so for “Sasaki” it is Sa 7, the repeat 7, Ki 4. However, if the repetition mark comes first or the character before it is unregistered, the repetition mark is also treated as an unregistered character and becomes 0 strokes.

Put simply, our tool is “a method that looks up a table of registered characters’ strokes and adds them.” Characters not in the table become 0 strokes, so if “unregistered characters” appears, take it that the character was not included in the calculation. The result in that case is only a rough guide.

How radicals are counted can also look different by character

The strokes of new forms are centered on values that count the water radical as 3 strokes. For example, “yo” (ocean) is 9, “ryu” (flow) is 10 and “ko” (lake) is 12. However, for some characters there are registrations that seem to count the grass radical or the shinnyo radical one stroke more than they look (for example, “hana” is 8, “michi” is 13 and “haruka” is 13). How radicals are counted here is a part where handling splits by school, and our tool does not state which school’s counting our table matches exactly. So in this article too we do not declare “same as such-and-such school.”

Seeing it in examples: the “same name” changes the result

So how much does the result actually change? Let us look at examples checked with our tool. First, the case in which the family name “Saito” is combined, in different character forms, with the fictional given name “Hanako.”

• Saito with the simplified Sai (11) + Fuji (18): Heaven 29 strokes, Total 40 strokes (half luck)
• Saito with the “Sai” of 8 strokes + Fuji (18): Heaven 26 strokes (unlucky), Total 37 strokes (luck)
• Saito with the “Sai” of 14 strokes + Fuji (18): Heaven 32 strokes, Total 43 strokes (unlucky)
• Saito with the old form “Sai” (not registered, so 0 strokes) + Fuji (18): Heaven 18 strokes, Total 29 strokes (luck). The “unregistered characters” notice appears.

Even for the same “Saito,” just changing the character form makes the Total kaku change to 40, 37, 43 and 29. Even the luck verdicts change. Note that the last example, the old “Sai,” is a result from the character not being registered, so it is not useful as a reference.

Next is an example of “Watanabe.” With the new-form “Watanabe” it is Watari 12 + Be 5 = 17 strokes (Heaven), and the Total kaku with Hanako is 28 strokes (unlucky), but if you enter the old form of “Watanabe,” the old “Be” is unregistered and becomes 0 strokes, so the result changes greatly to Heaven 12 strokes and Total 23 strokes (luck). The 23 strokes in this case is not the result of counting the actual old-form strokes but the result of “a character dropping out.” If you want to enter old forms, please note this point.

Let us look at the given name side too. Changing the given name of Person A (Kuroba) between kana and kanji gives the following.

• Kuroba Yume in hiragana (2 + 2): Person 8 strokes (great luck), Earth 4 strokes (unlucky), Outer 13 strokes (great luck), Total 21 strokes (luck)
• Kuroba Yume written with the single kanji for “dream” (14): Person 20 strokes (unlucky), Earth 15 strokes (great luck), Outer 12 strokes (unlucky), Total 31 strokes (luck)

Even with the same sound “Yume,” depending on whether you write it in hiragana or in kanji, the Person kaku changes from great luck to unlucky and the Earth kaku from unlucky to great luck. Furthermore, a one-character given name (the dream kanji) gets the reisu 1 added, which also affects the calculation of the Earth and Outer kaku.

That the numbers of the five kaku and their luck change this much just from a difference in how strokes are counted is the biggest reason it is better not to take name divination results as absolute.

Put simply, name divination is fortune-telling in which the whole answer changes with “which characters are counted, and by which way of counting.” So even if you are told “this name is unlucky,” it is only a story with the premise “in that school, in that way of counting.”

Which school should you choose?

In experts’ explanations you see advice such as “there is no correct school,” “compare several schools and pay attention only to points that any school points out,” and “do not mix schools but read consistently with a single method.” If you use it as a reference for naming, counting with the characters you will register in the family register (the characters you will actually use) is the most realistic. When using our tool, please enter the characters you actually use, and also check whether the “unregistered characters” notice appeared.

How to read our “Name Divination”

Let us match what we have covered to the items on the results screen.

• What you enter: family name and given name (both in kanji, or hiragana and katakana). Name divination (five kaku) is shown when you enter both.
• Five kaku: the strokes of each of Heaven, Person, Earth, Outer and Total, with judgment tags such as luck and unlucky.
• One-line explanation of suri: a short explanation for the stroke count (1 to 81) of each of the five kaku.
• Three-talent arrangement: the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water) of Heaven, Person and Earth, and a simple three-grade judgment of “good, ordinary, watch.”
• Notice of unregistered characters: when there is a character not in the stroke table, “Unregistered characters: (the character)” is shown at the top of the result, telling you that the character has been calculated as 0 strokes.

Because it is a simple version, some parts are left out compared with a full reading. The sound of the characters, their meaning and form, ways of looking at a name combined with the birth date, and the arrangement of yin and yang (the balance of the order of characters) are not covered. Also, the judgment of the five kaku is only the luck of the suri and the three-talent arrangement, with no overall score. Please take the result as one of many schools’ ways of reading and enjoy it as a hint for taking a fresh look at your name.

Note that the “expression number” of Western numerology, which converts a name into numbers by romanizing it, is a different fortune-telling from name divination that uses kanji strokes. On this site it is provided as a separate tool.

Quick glossary of name-divination terms

Here are the terms from the article in one line each. Use it as a dictionary when you are unsure.

• Kakusu (strokes): the number of continuous lines when writing a kanji.
• Gokaku (five kaku): five numbers found from the strokes of a name: Heaven, Person, Earth, Outer and Total.
• Tenkaku (Heaven kaku): the total strokes of the family name. Luck inherited from ancestors and social luck.
• Jinkaku (Person kaku): the sum of the last character of the family name and the first character of the given name. Character and central luck.
• Chikaku (Earth kaku): the total strokes of the given name. Luck from early childhood to youth and basic luck.
• Gaikaku (Outer kaku): luck in dealing with people. How it is found differs by school (in our tool, first character of the family name + last character of the given name).
• Sokaku (Total kaku): the sum of all strokes of the name. Luck over the whole of life, especially in later years.
• Reisu and kasu: the “1” added for calculation when the family name or given name is one character.
• Suri and suui: the luck and meaning assigned to each of the numbers 1 to 81.
• Sansai haichi (three-talent arrangement): a technique that looks at the combination of the five elements of Heaven, Person and Earth.
• Gogyo (five elements): the five natures of wood, fire, earth, metal and water.
• Sosho and sokoku: the relationships of “nurturing each other” and “checking each other” among the five elements.
• Kangxi Dictionary (Koki Jiten): a dictionary of kanji compiled in the Qing dynasty. The strokes of its character forms are sometimes used as the standard for old forms.
• Kyujitai and shinjitai: old character forms and the forms put in order after the war. The same character can have different strokes.
• Kumazaki style: the representative school of name divination using the five kaku, systematized by Kumazaki Kenno.
• Kuwano style: one of the schools that differs from the Kumazaki style in how strokes are counted and so on.

How is name divination used today?

In Japan, name divination is still widely used as a reference when naming babies. It is offered in many forms: books on naming, specialist reading offices, and free websites and apps. Some people also use it as a reference when marrying, changing a name, or choosing a stage name or pen name.

On the other hand, because schools are divided and the way of counting strokes does not agree, it is not unusual for results to change by site or reader. It is also often heard that someone chose a name after being told “with these strokes it’s great luck” and then worried when another school said “unlucky.”

Note that Japanese Wikipedia also states that scientific grounds for name divination coming true “have not been shown.” In addition, a research paper that academically examined the Kumazaki system itself (Okada Makoto, “The Origins of Kumazaki-Style Name Divination,” 2023) points out, among other things, that statistical grounds are scarce. This site introduces this fortune-telling purely as a culture with a long history and as a chance to think about names.

Five tips for enjoying name divination

1. Look at it as reading matter, not a verdict of “luck”: Even if it says unlucky, it does not mean deciding a person’s character or future. Taking it as a conversation starter, “so there’s a way of seeing it like this,” is recommended.
2. Do not panic if results differ: Results change by school, character form and how radicals are counted. Comparing several views and taking it as encouragement if any view gives a good point is about right.
3. Count with the characters you actually use: If you use it as a reference for naming, counting with the characters you will register in the family register and write in daily life is the most realistic.
4. Do not overlook the “unregistered characters” notice: If our site shows “unregistered characters,” that character has been calculated as 0 strokes and its actual strokes are not included. Please take the result as a rough guide.
5. In naming, value things other than strokes too: The sound, the meaning of the characters, the family’s wishes, ease of calling and ease of writing. The feelings put into a name are far more varied than the numbers of strokes.

Reflections: why have people tried to read fate in “the number of lines in a name”?

From here, instead of summarizing history and mechanisms, we look at name divination in our own way. What follows is not established theory but our own speculation and hypotheses, as we note in advance.

The weight of being “called” by a name

This is our speculation, but at the root of why name divination has been supported for so long may be a feeling that “a name is not just a label.” From birth to the end of life, a person is called by their name and addressed by it. Tens and hundreds of thousands of times, one’s own name is spoken by other people’s mouths. Thinking of that number, it is no wonder that many people feel a name has special power.

A research paper examining the sources of Kumazaki-style name divination (Okada Makoto, 2023) points out the possibility that the Kumazaki style unconsciously inherited kotodama thought. The old feeling that spiritual power dwells in words and names survived into modern times by putting on a “computable form” of strokes and suri. In our view, name divination may have been a modern change of clothes for that awe of names.

Not meaning, not sound, but a fortune-telling that measures the “effort of writing”

When you think about it, what name divination uses as its yardstick is neither the meaning of the characters nor the sound of the name. It is the strokes, that is, “the number of lines when you write that character.” This is speculation, but it may be close to a view that regards a name as “an act you keep writing all your life.”

People write their own name many times over a lifetime: school exams, contracts, New Year’s cards, marriage registration. Each time you write your name, you draw the same number of lines in the same order. There may be a feeling that this accumulation resonates with fate. Meaning and sound change with translation and reading, but the number of strokes does not change as long as the character is the same. Choosing a “number” that is hard to move may have given this fortune-telling the reassurance that it can be calculated.

Does the tidying of character forms rewrite fate?

While strokes are relied on as “numbers that do not move,” in fact those numbers are very shaky. After World War II, Japan pursued a national language policy of tidying kanji forms, and with things like the 1949 Toyo Kanji Character Form Table in the 1940s, many characters came to have simpler shapes (new forms). “Sakura” went from 21 strokes to 10, and “sawa” from 16 (or 17) to 7. When character forms change by policy, the total strokes change even for the same name.

In our view, this is a good example of how name divination is not “a law that exists in the world from the start” but “a system of conventions made by people.” If the state tidies character forms and the numbers of fortune change too, that is odd if fate were truly engraved in the strokes of a name. That is exactly why it feels easier to think that the choice of which character form to count by is not a question of fate but a question of “which convention to follow in playing with it.”

What it means that unlucky numbers make up 40 percent of the table

In our suri table, of the 81 numbers, 34 are “unlucky,” 10 are “half luck,” and luck and great luck together are 37. Unlucky numbers make up about 40 percent of the whole. This is speculation, but a table with a high share of unlucky numbers is a structure that easily gives the person whose name is read the feeling that “there is somewhere that catches.” With five kaku, the probability that at least one falls on unlucky is high.

For example, in Person A’s five kaku, three of the five were unlucky. If it is a table in which finding a name with all five kaku lucky is difficult, the thought “there must be a better name” also comes easily. In our view, such psychology may deepen anxiety and hesitation in the situations of naming and renaming. That is exactly why, when unlucky comes up, there is no need to hurry to change your name, and we must strongly add that a person’s character cannot be decided by a name alone.

A name was something you could not choose

What is interesting, and difficult, about name divination is that a name is “not something you chose yourself.” The given name is decided by parents and the family name by the family, and the person cannot choose. The Heaven kaku is decided by the strokes of the family name alone, so there is no way to change that.

This is speculation, but the reason name divination is relied upon at naming may be that parents’ prayers are put into it, to give the child about to be born even a little good fortune. The numbers of strokes are a tool that puts those prayers in a visible form. If so, the real value of name divination may lie not in the verdict “is it unlucky?” itself but in the time of the family’s thoughts leading up to choosing the name. Judging people by their names, or treating someone unfavorably because of their name, is the opposite of that prayer.

The freedom to “choose again”: pen names, stage names and handles

We modern people can have one or more names besides our real one. Pen names, stage names, social-media account names, game handles. In our view, this means that in place of a name we could not choose, we can now have names we can choose ourselves.

Because our tool calculates from the characters you enter, you can also tell the fortune of a nickname or pen name. What characters, what sounds, and what numbers of lines you build a “name you can choose again” from. We think name divination has a place today as an entrance to that kind of play.

Notes on approaching this fortune-telling

This article and our “Name Divination” are provided as entertainment and as a hint for thinking about names, and they do not guarantee results. They are no substitute for important decisions about medicine, law, investment, schooling, employment or marriage. Please consult experts or trustworthy people about such decisions.

A name is often something a person cannot choose and does not express a person’s worth or character. Please never judge others by the strokes or luck of their names, treat them unfavorably in hiring, dating, marriage or friendships, or tease them. Please also avoid telling someone “it’s unlucky” after divining a person’s name without their permission. All names appearing in the examples on this site are fictional and do not tell the fortune of any real individual.

When naming a baby, please do not decide by strokes alone but also value the sound, the meaning of the characters, the family’s wishes and ease of writing. If someone stokes anxiety, for example “this name is unlucky, so you will be unhappy unless you change it,” and recommends costly reading fees, renaming procedures or good-luck goods, please do not decide on the spot, take it home and think calmly. Note that changing a given name requires a legitimate reason and the permission of a family court. If a fortune-telling result makes you feel strong anxiety, or you cannot sleep or your low mood continues, please consult a medical institution or a public support line.

The descriptions of history and schools in this article are compiled in our own words from multiple sources. Descriptions differ between sources about the history of name divination, Kumazaki Kenno’s years of birth and death and the publication years of his books, and how each school counts strokes. Parts marked “our view” or “speculation” are this site’s own reflections and are not established theory.

Frequently asked questions

Q. What is name divination?

A. A fortune-telling that developed uniquely in Japan, in which the five kaku (Heaven, Person, Earth, Outer and Total) are found from the strokes of the kanji in a name and fortune is read from the luck of the suri numbers 1 to 81, the three-talent arrangement and so on.

Q. What are the five kaku?

A. Five numbers found from the strokes of a name. Heaven is the total strokes of the family name, Person is the sum of the last character of the family name and the first character of the given name, Earth is the total strokes of the given name, Outer is the sum of the first character of the family name and the last character of the given name (our formula) and Total is the sum of all strokes.

Q. Why do stroke counts differ by site even for the same name?

A. Because how strokes are counted differs by school. Even for the same character, the strokes change depending on whether you count old forms (Kangxi Dictionary forms) or new forms and how many strokes you see radicals such as the water, grass and shinnyo radicals as.

Q. Which is correct, counting old forms or new forms?

A. There is no fixed “correct school.” The Kumazaki style is explained as counting in old forms in principle, and the Kuwano style is introduced as valuing new forms. If you use it as a reference for naming, counting with the characters you will actually use (those registered in the family register) is realistic.

Q. Which school’s way of counting does our name divination follow?

A. The formula for the five kaku is based on the Kumazaki style. Strokes are looked up character by character from a table of about 3,000 registered characters, centered on new-form characters. It differs from the Kumazaki style itself, which counts in old forms, and we do not state that it matches any specific school’s table completely, including how radicals are counted.

Q. “Unregistered characters” is shown. What should I do?

A. That character is not in our stroke dictionary and has been calculated as 0 strokes. Variants and old forms such as the ladder-top “taka,” the “saki” variants and the old forms of “Nabe” and “Sai” fall under this. Please take the result as a rough guide, and comparing it with the result when replaced with another form (for example, the ladder-top “taka” with the ordinary “taka”) is also one method. Small kana, the small “ke,” “vu” and the repetition mark are supported (the repetition mark when the character before it is registered).

Q. How is it calculated when the family name or given name is one character?

A. The reisu (kasu) of “1” is added. On this site, if the family name is one character it is added to the Heaven kaku, if the given name is one character it is added to the Earth kaku, and in the Outer kaku the one-character part is also calculated as 1. It is not added to the Total kaku.

Q. Is the Outer kaku found the same way on every site?

A. No. Our site finds it as “the first character of the family name + the last character of the given name.” There is also a method that subtracts the Person kaku from the Total kaku, and when the family name or given name has three or more characters, results may differ.

Q. What is suri? What happens when it exceeds 81?

A. A table of the luck and meaning assigned to each of the numbers 1 to 81. A stroke count exceeding 81 is read by subtracting 81 and returning to 1 (for example, 85 strokes is treated as 4).

Q. What is the three-talent arrangement?

A. A technique that finds one of the five elements, wood, fire, earth, metal or water, from the ones digit of the strokes of Heaven, Person and Earth and looks at their links (mutual generation and overcoming). On this site it is a simple version that divides into three grades, good, ordinary and watch, by the number of mutual overcomings.

Q. If I get “unlucky,” should I change my name?

A. There is no need. Results change if the school or way of counting differs, and unlucky does not decide your character or future. Note that changing a given name requires a legitimate reason and the permission of a family court.

Q. Do the results change if my family name changes on marriage?

A. Yes. When the family name changes, the numbers of the Heaven, Person and Total kaku and others change. Which kaku to emphasize differs by school and reader.

Q. Can I use a stage name or pen name?

A. Yes. Our tool calculates from the characters you enter, so it can calculate a nickname or pen name. Please note that characters not registered become 0 strokes.

Q. Does name divination come true?

A. There is no established scientific basis confirming that it does. This site introduces it as a culture with a long history and as a chance to think about names.

Q. Is our Name Divination free?

A. Yes, you can use it free of charge just by entering your family name and given name. The calculation is done inside your browser.

Related fortune-telling to try

These are fortune-telling arts that read from a “name” or from “numbers” too. While name divination looks at the strokes of kanji, these use the romanized letters of a name or the numbers of your birth date. Reading them side by side lets you get to know yourself in more depth.

Explainer articles to read alongside

If you would like to read more slowly in prose, please also see these explainer articles.

• Explainer on Kabbalah numerology
• Explainer on Kyusei Kigaku (Nine Star Ki)
• Explainer on the twelve zodiac signs (eto)

Sources consulted

This article was compiled in our own words with reference to the following sources (it is not a copy of their text). The numbers for the five kaku, suri and three-talent arrangement of fictional names such as “Person A” in the article are results calculated with our “Name Divination” tool.

• Seimei handan (name divination) – Wikipedia (Japanese)
• Kumazaki Kenno – Wikipedia (Japanese)
• The Origins of Kumazaki-Style Name Divination (Okada Makoto) – Jintai Kagaku (Mind-Body Science), vol. 32, no. 1 – J-STAGE (Japanese)
• The history of name divination: 1,500 years from ancient China to Kumazaki Kenno – Seimei Handan Taizen (Japanese)
• Name divination: schools counting old forms vs new forms – Seimei Handan Taizen (Japanese)
• Comparing the main schools of name divination – Seimei Handan Taizen (Japanese)
• How schools of name divination differ: comparing the Kumazaki and Kuwano styles – SEIMEI (Japanese)
• What is Kumazaki-style name divination? How to count strokes and the meaning of the five kaku – Papamama Navi (Japanese)

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