Japanese symbol for “ancestral”
先祖代々
せんぞだいだい
Romaji: senzodaidai
ancestral; hereditary; handed down from generation to generation
In Japanese, ancestral is 先祖代々, read せんぞだいだい (senzodaidai).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- adj-no, n ancestral; hereditary; handed down from generation to generation
- adv for generations; from generation to generation
Written forms: 先祖代々、先祖代代. Readings: せんぞだいだい.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “ancestral”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 先祖伝来 | せんぞでんらい senzodenrai | inherited; family (heirloom); ancestral |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 先生 | せんせい sensei | teacher; instructor; master |
| 優先 | ゆうせん yuusen | preference; priority; precedence |
| 先輩 | せんぱい senpai | senior (at school, work, etc.); superior; elder |
| 先日 | せんじつ senjitsu | the other day; a few days ago |
| 先週 | せんしゅう senshuu | last week; the week before |
| 先月 | せんげつ sengetsu | last month |
| 祖父 | そふ sofu | grandfather |
| 祖母 | そぼ sobo | grandmother |
| 時代 | じだい jidai | period; epoch; era |
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.