Japanese symbol for “mountain”
山
やま
Romaji: yama
mountain; hill
In Japanese, mountain is 山, read やま (yama).
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
- ctr, n mountain; hill
- ctr, n mine
- ctr, n (mountain) forest
- ctr, n heap; pile; stack; mountain
- n protruding or high part of an object; crown (of a hat); thread (of a screw); tread (of a tire)
- n climax; peak; critical point
Written forms: 山. Readings: やま、ヤマ.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “mountain”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 岳 | たけ take | (high) mountain; Mount; Mt. |
| マウンテン | マウンテン maunten | mountain |
| お山 | おやま oyama | mountain |
| 山辺 | やまべ yamabe | mountain; vicinity of a mountain |
| 深山 | みやま miyama | mountain |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 登山 | とざん tozan | mountain climbing; mountaineering; ascent of a mountain |
| 火山 | かざん kazan | volcano |
| 鉱山 | こうざん kouzan | mine (gold, coal, etc.) |
| 山形 | やまがた yamagata | Yamagata (city, prefecture) |
| 沢山 | たくさん takusan | a lot; lots; plenty |
| 青山 | せいざん seizan | lush mountain; green mountain |
See also: Chinese symbol for “mountain”.
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.