Japanese symbol for “subsistence”

存立

そんりつ

Romaji: sonritsu

existence; subsistence

In Japanese, subsistence is 存立, read そんりつ (sonritsu).

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, vi, vs existence; subsistence

Kanji and stroke order

存

exist, suppose, be aware of

on: ソン、ゾン
kun: ながら.える、あ.る、たも.つ、と.う

6 strokes · JLPT 2

立

stand up, rise, set up

on: リツ、リュウ、リットル
kun: た.つ、-た.つ、た.ち-、た.てる

5 strokes · JLPT 4

Other Japanese words for “subsistence”

Word	Reading	Meaning
世渡り	よわたり yowatari	making a living; getting on in the world; subsistence
糊口	ここう kokou	bare livelihood; subsistence

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
存在	そんざい sonzai	existence; being; presence
保存	ほぞん hozon	preservation; conservation; storage
ご存知	ごぞんじ gozonji	knowing; being aware (of)
生存	せいぞん seizon	existence; being; life
共存	きょうぞん kyouzon	coexistence
依存	いぞん izon	dependence; reliance
立場	たちば tachiba	position; situation
独立	どくりつ dokuritsu	independence; self-reliance; supporting oneself

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.