Japanese symbol for “wilds”

荒野

こうや

Romaji: kouya

wasteland; wilderness; deserted land; prairie

In Japanese, wilds is 荒野, read こうや (kouya).

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 wasteland; wilderness; deserted land; prairie; vast plain; wilds

Written forms: 荒野、荒れ野、曠野. Readings: こうや、あれの、あらの.

Kanji and stroke order

荒

laid waste, rough, rude

on: コウ
kun: あ.らす、あ.れる、あら.い、すさ.ぶ

9 strokes · JLPT 2

野

plains, field, rustic

on: ヤ、ショ
kun: の、の-

11 strokes · JLPT 3

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
荒れる	あれる areru	to become stormy; to become rough (of the sea)
荒木	あらき araki	logs in bark; rough wood; unseasoned timber
荒れ	あれ are	stormy weather; tempest; chaps (of skin)
荒らす	あらす arasu	to lay waste; to devastate; to damage
荒い	あらい arai	rough; wild; violent
野球	やきゅう yakyuu	baseball
分野	ぶんや bun'ya	field; sphere; realm
野菜	やさい yasai	vegetable

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.