Japanese symbol for “fu”
府
ふ
Romaji: fu
(urban) prefecture (i.e. Osaka and Kyoto)
In Japanese, fu is 府, read ふ (fu).
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
- n (urban) prefecture (i.e. Osaka and Kyoto)
- n centre (e.g. of learning); center; seat
- n (government) office
- n fu (administrative unit in China, Korea and Vietnam)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “fu”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 符 | ふ fu | fu; unit used in calculation of a hand's score |
| 地雷復 | ちらいふく chiraifuku | fu (hexagram 24 of the I Ching: return) |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 政府 | せいふ seifu | government; administration; ministry |
| 都道府県 | とどうふけん todoufuken | prefectures (of Japan); largest administrative divisions of Japan: Tokyo-to, Osaka-fu, Kyoto-fu, Hokkaido and the remaining prefectures |
| 府立 | ふりつ furitsu | prefectural; managed by an urban prefecture (Osaka or Kyoto) |
| 幕府 | ばくふ bakufu | shogunate; bakufu |
| 府警 | ふけい fukei | prefectural police (Osaka or Kyoto) |
| 府知事 | ふちじ fuchiji | prefectural governor (of Osaka or Kyoto) |
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.