Japanese symbol for “regent”

摂政

せっしょう

Romaji: sesshou

regency; regent

In Japanese, regent is 摂政, read せっしょう (sesshou).

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 regency; regent

Kanji and stroke order

摂

vicarious, surrogate, act in addition to

on: セツ、ショウ
kun: おさ.める、かね.る、と.る

13 strokes · JLPT 1

政

politics, government

on: セイ、ショウ
kun: まつりごと、まん

9 strokes · JLPT 2

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
摂取	せっしゅ sesshu	intake (e.g. of salt); ingestion
摂理	せつり setsuri	laws (of nature)
摂る	とる toru	to have (e.g. lunch); to take (e.g. vitamins)
摂氏	せっし sesshi	Celsius; centigrade
包摂	ほうせつ housetsu	inclusion; encompassing; connotation
政府	せいふ seifu	government; administration; ministry
政治	せいじ seiji	politics; government
政策	せいさく seisaku	political measures; policy

See also: Chinese symbol for “regent”.

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.