Japanese symbol for “rearing”

育成

いくせい

Romaji: ikusei

rearing; training; nurture; cultivation

In Japanese, rearing is 育成, read いくせい (ikusei).

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, vs, vt rearing; training; nurture; cultivation; promotion

Written forms: 育成、育生. Readings: いくせい.

Kanji and stroke order

育

bring up, grow up, raise

on: イク
kun: そだ.つ、そだ.ち、そだ.てる、はぐく.む

8 strokes · JLPT 2

成

turn into, become, get

on: セイ、ジョウ
kun: な.る、な.す、-な.す

6 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “rearing”

Word	Reading	Meaning
飼育	しいく shiiku	breeding; raising; rearing
保育	ほいく hoiku	nurturing; rearing; childcare
養育	よういく youiku	bringing up; rearing; upbringing
棒立ち	ぼうだち boudachi	standing upright; standing bolt upright; rearing
飼い	かい kai	raising (of animals); rearing; keeping

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
教育	きょういく kyouiku	education; schooling; training
体育	たいいく taiiku	physical education; PE; gym (class)
飼育	しいく shiiku	breeding; raising; rearing
育児	いくじ ikuji	childcare; child-rearing; nursing
育ち	そだち sodachi	growth; breeding
成功	せいこう seikou	success; achievement
成長	せいちょう seichou	growth; development; growing up
完成	かんせい kansei	completion; perfection; accomplishment

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.