Japanese symbol for “northwest”
北西
ほくせい
Romaji: hokusei
northwest
In Japanese, northwest is 北西, read ほくせい (hokusei).
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 northwest
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “northwest”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 戌亥 | いぬい inui | northwest |
| 乾位 | けんい ken'i | northwest |
| ノースウエスト | ノースウエスト noosuuesuto | Northwest (airline) |
| 北西部 | ほくせいぶ hokuseibu | northwestern part; the northwest |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 北部 | ほくぶ hokubu | northern part; the north (of a region) |
| 北海道 | ほっかいどう hokkaidou | Hokkaido (island, prefectural-level administrative unit) |
| 敗北 | はいぼく haiboku | defeat; loss; reverse |
| 南北 | なんぼく nanboku | north and south; north to south |
| 北朝鮮 | きたちょうせん kitachousen | North Korea |
| 北東 | ほくとう hokutou | northeast |
| 東西 | とうざい touzai | east and west |
| 西洋 | せいよう seiyou | the West; the Occident; Western countries |
See also: Chinese symbol for “northwest”.
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.