Japanese symbol for “civilian”
民間
みんかん
Romaji: minkan
private; non-governmental; non-official; civilian
In Japanese, civilian is 民間, read みんかん (minkan).
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 private; non-governmental; non-official; civilian; civil
- adj-no, n folk; popular
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “civilian”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 文民 | ぶんみん bunmin | civilian |
| シビリアン | シビリアン shibirian | civilian |
| 非戦闘員 | ひせんとういん hisentouin | non-combatant; civilian |
| 野人 | やじん yajin | non-politician; non-government person; civilian |
| シビル | シビル shibiru | civilian |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 国民 | こくみん kokumin | people (of a country); nation; citizen |
| 市民 | しみん shimin | citizen (of a country); citizenry |
| 住民 | じゅうみん juumin | inhabitant; resident; citizen |
| 民主 | みんしゅ minshu | democracy; popular sovereignty |
| 民族 | みんぞく minzoku | people; race; nation |
| 時間 | じかん jikan | time |
| 人間 | にんげん ningen | human being; human; person |
| 期間 | きかん kikan | period; term; interval |
See also: Chinese symbol for “civilian”.
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.