Japanese symbol for “tradition”
伝統
でんとう
Romaji: dentou
tradition; convention
In Japanese, tradition is 伝統, read でんとう (dentou).
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 tradition; convention
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “tradition”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 伝説 | でんせつ densetsu | legend; folklore; tradition |
| 言い伝え | いいつたえ iitsutae | tradition; folklore; legend |
| 型 | かた kata | convention; tradition; (standard) form |
| 伝承 | でんしょう denshou | handing down (information); legend; tradition |
| 習慣 | しゅうかん shuukan | (social) custom; practice; convention |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 宣伝 | せんでん senden | publicity; advertisement; advertising |
| 伝説 | でんせつ densetsu | legend; folklore; tradition |
| 手伝い | てつだい tetsudai | helper; assistant |
| 遺伝 | いでん iden | heredity; (genetic) inheritance |
| 遺伝子 | いでんし idenshi | gene |
| 大統領 | だいとうりょう daitouryou | president (of a country) |
| 統一 | とういつ touitsu | unity; consolidation; uniformity |
| 統合 | とうごう tougou | integration; unification; unity |
See also: Chinese symbol for “tradition”.
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.