What is the Kanji for "Ancestor"?

If you are wondering what is the Japanese Kanji for "Ancestor", you've come to the right place!

The Japanese Kanji for "Ancestor" is "祖".

This kanji has 1 reading:

Its onyomi reading is "So".

kunyomi readings are based on the pronunciation of native Japanese words, and onyomi readings are based on the Chinese pronunciation of the character.

If you visually breakdown this kanji, you can see is made up of 2 parts:

The radical "礻" means "Cult" . And The kanji "且" means "Moreover" and "Also" and can be read as "Ka", "Shou", "Sho", and "So".

Now, let's make sure you understand this kanji the other way around too.

What does the kanji "祖" mean in japanese?

"祖" means "Ancestor".

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Fifth Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N3 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

お祖父さん: "Grandfather". The Japanese noun 'お祖父さん (おじいさん)' refers to one's paternal grandfather or the older male relative in the family. It is a polite and respectful term used when referring to one's grandfather. For example: My grandfather is very kind - (私のお祖父さんはとてもやさしいです).

お祖母さん: "Grandmother". The noun 'お祖母さん (おばあさん)' refers to one's grandmother. This is a polite and respectful way to refer to one's paternal or maternal grandmother. It can be used to address one's own grandmother or to refer to the grandmother of another person. For example: My grandmother gave me a present - (私のお祖母さんが私にプレゼントをくれた). Let's visit your grandmother - (あなたのお祖母さんを訪ねましょう).

祖父: "Grandfather". The Japanese noun '祖父 (そふ)' means 'grandfather'. This word refers to the father of one's own father or mother. It is used to address or refer to one's paternal or maternal grandfather. For example: My grandfather is old - (私の祖父は年をとっている). Grandfather's house - (祖父の家)

祖母: "Grandmother". The noun '祖母 (そぼ)' refers to one's paternal or maternal grandmother. It is a respectful term used to address or refer to an older female relative. Grandmothers often play an important role in Japanese families, providing childcare and passing down traditions. For example: My grandmother loves to cook - (私の祖母は料理が好きです). She is a kind grandmother - (彼女は優しい祖母です).

先祖: "Ancestors". The Japanese noun '先祖 (せんぞ)' refers to one's ancestors or forefathers. It is used to describe the lineage or family tree from which a person is descended. It commonly appears in discussions about family heritage, traditions, and genealogy. For example: We must respect our ancestors - (先祖を敬わなければなりません). My ancestors were from Kyoto - (私の先祖は京都出身でした).

祖先: "Ancestor". The Japanese noun '祖先 (そせん)' means 'ancestor'. It refers to a person from whom one is descended, typically more remote than a grandparent. This word is commonly used when discussing one's family lineage and heritage. For example: My ancestors were farmers - (私の祖先は農家でした). We respect our ancestors - (私たちは祖先を敬っています).

To make really sure you learn this Kanji, I've prepared an interactive lesson for you. You are going to learn the readings and meanings of this kanji.

But first, you need to know a little bit about Hiragana and Katakana.

Hiragana and katakana are japanese syllabaries, this means that each character represents a syllable.

This are the characters you need to know for this lesson:

The hiragana "そ" is read as "so"

Heres a quick tutorial on how to use it. You'll be asked three type of questions: meaning, reading, and writing.

For meanings questions all you have to do is type the english meaning. If there is more than one meaning, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Reading questions you have to type the reading in romaji (roman letters, our normal alphabet) and it'll be automatically converted to hiragana if necessary. If there is more than one reading, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Writing questions some options will appear and all you have to do is select the correct ones.