group-level written forms
Canonical reference record
JMnedict-backedKANJIDIC2 character context
Reference coverageDistinct recorded spellings18 Source spelling/reading rows18 Coverage levelExtended
Extended source depth
This reading group has a comparatively broad dictionary footprint across source-recorded spellings or records. The counts describe corpus coverage, not real-world popularity.
records contributing to this reading group
based only on the imported source footprint
Pronunciation & romanization
How to read Hō
The kana reading is source-recorded. Romanization and mora segmentation are deterministic reading aids generated from that kana; pitch accent is not inferred.
Normalized to hiragana for comparison.
The same reading converted to katakana.
Macron-style display. Vowel-sequence form: Hou. Personal spelling and true vowel boundaries can differ.
2 morae in this reading. Small ゃ/ゅ/ょ-type kana join the preceding mora.
Audio note: the play button uses Japanese text-to-speech provided by the visitor’s browser/device. It is a convenience preview, not a recorded native-speaker pronunciation or pitch-accent authority.
Reading profile
How Hō is represented
These counts describe records in the imported name corpus. They are not a ranking of how popular a spelling is among people in Japan.
ほう
among the forms analyzed on this page
in the primary dictionary reading
small ゃ/ゅ/ょ-type kana combine with the preceding mora
recorded spellings
recorded spellings
JMnedict classification evidence
How this reading is classified in the source corpus
This separates dictionary classification from popularity. The same exact kana reading can be recorded as a given name, a surname, or both, and given-name records can carry male, female or unspecified source labels.
ほう in the imported JMnedict corpus
16 source spelling/reading rows
22 source spelling/reading rows
row counts carrying each JMnedict source label
| Exact reading | Given-name evidence | Given-name labels | Surname evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| ほうHō | 1616 source rows | female 4 · unspecified 12source rows · distinct forms: female 4 · unspecified 12 | 2222 source rows |
Classification boundary: male/female/unspecified are labels attached to imported JMnedict name records. They are not population shares, probabilities, identity claims, or evidence that a spelling is currently common in Japan. A source row can also be repeated across different written forms, so row counts and distinct-writing counts are shown separately.
Spelling anatomy
Corpus structure behind Hō
This section summarizes the exact source-recorded forms loaded for this reading group. Stroke and character-position statistics are descriptive corpus properties, not popularity or style scores.
4–21 strokes observed span
among forms with complete KANJIDIC2 stroke data
all component kanji loaded as jōyō/jinmeiyō classes
contains at least one character outside that loaded classification
| Reading | Romanization | Morae | Forms |
|---|---|---|---|
| ほう | Hō | 2 | 18 |
Reading ambiguity
Can the same writing be read another way?
15 of 18 displayed written forms have more than one surname reading somewhere in the active JMnedict corpus. This is dictionary-record ambiguity, not a prediction of how a particular person reads the name.
distinct spellings displayed on this page
exact written forms with 2+ source readings
within this active surname corpus
distinct kana readings for one displayed writing
黄
朴
16 source-recorded readings
祝
豊
13 source-recorded readings
祝部
洞
8 source-recorded readings
方
峰
5 source-recorded readings
A reading shown without a link is still source-recorded, but its destination group does not currently meet the canonical publication standard. Strong reference pages do not promote limited records merely to create extra internal links.
Kanji role reference
How recurring characters function across Hō spellings
Position counts are calculated only from the distinct written forms analyzed for this page. KANJIDIC2 nanori are character-level name-reading references; they are not used here to decompose or assert the reading of a specific multi-kanji name.
| Kanji | Character glosses | Forms | First | Final | Internal | Solo | Strokes | KANJIDIC2 nanori | Loaded class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 祝 | — | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | — | Jinmeiyō · KANJIDIC grade 10 |
| 侯 | marquis, lord, daimyo | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | — | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 8 |
| 包 | wrap, pack up, cover | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | お, かね | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 4 |
| 峰 | summit, peak | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | ぶ, ほ | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 8 |
| 彭 | swelling, sound of drum | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | — | Unclassified in the loaded KANJIDIC grade field |
| 扈 | follow | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | — | Unclassified in the loaded KANJIDIC grade field |
| 方 | direction, person, alternative | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | から, な, なた, ふさ +4 | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 2 |
| 朴 | crude, simple, plain | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | — | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 8 |
| 洞 | den, cave, excavation | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | とう | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 8 |
| 部 | section, bureau, dept | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | とり, ふ, ぺ, ま | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 3 |
| 芳 | perfume, balmy, favorable | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | お, かおる, は, ほ +3 | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 8 |
| 生 | life, genuine, birth | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | あさ, いき, いく, いけ +21 | Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 1 |
Counts describe this source-recorded spelling set, not population use. A repeated kanji can contribute to more than one position role across different spellings.
Exact writing research map
Move from a spelling to its readings, characters and literal sequence context
These relationships are exact and source-backed. Whole-name readings shown in each card come from JMnedict within the current name class; exact-writing search can surface records from other name classes. Character links open KANJIDIC2-backed kanji pages. Sequence context means the same kanji string occurs contiguously in another recorded written form—it does not prove shared origin or meaning.
Exact written form
侯
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
KōこうHōほう · this page
Characters in order
Exact written form
包
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Exact written form
峰
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Exact written form
彭
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Exact written form
扈
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Hōほう · this page
Characters in order
Exact written form
方
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Exact written form
朴
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Exact written form
洞
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Exact written form
祝
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Exact written form
祝部
Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Characters in order
Showing research maps for the first 10 distinct written forms out of 18. Every detailed spelling card below still links to exact-writing search and its component kanji.
For VPS safety, contiguous-sequence lookups are limited to six 2–4 kanji forms per canonical page and cached for 12 hours per active JMnedict generation.
Corpus pattern
Kanji recurring across Hō spellings
Only characters appearing in at least two distinct analyzed spellings are shown here. Frequency describes this source-recorded spelling set, not real-world baby-name popularity.
Same reading, different writing
Explore written forms of Hō
18 source-recorded forms use the primary source reading ほう. Other source readings can appear in this romanized group when the imported records converge on the same index form. Use Compare to inspect exact spellings side by side.
侯
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded reading
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
包
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded reading
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
峰
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
彭
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkContains at least one kanji outside the loaded jōyō/jinmeiyō classification
Same writing, other recorded reading
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
扈
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkContains at least one kanji outside the loaded jōyō/jinmeiyō classification
方
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
朴
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
洞
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
祝
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
祝部
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
芳生
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
訪
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
豊
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
賀
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
鮑
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkContains at least one kanji outside the loaded jōyō/jinmeiyō classification
鳳
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
黄
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkAll kanji are classified as jōyō/jinmeiyō in KANJIDIC2
Same writing, other recorded readings
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
龐
ほう · Hō
Character-set checkContains at least one kanji outside the loaded jōyō/jinmeiyō classification
Same writing, other recorded reading
Exact written-form relationship inside the imported surname corpus.
Spelling comparator
Compare Hō forms side by side
Each exact written spelling appears once in this table even when JMnedict records more than one reading for that writing. Stroke totals and character glosses come from KANJIDIC2 when all component kanji are available.
| Spelling | One source reading | Character-level glosses | Total strokes | Loaded character class |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 侯 | ほう | 侯 — marquis, lord | 9 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 包 | ほう | 包 — wrap, pack up | 5 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 峰 | ほう | 峰 — summit, peak | 10 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 彭 | ほう | 彭 — swelling, sound of drum | 12 | Includes unclassified/outside loaded jōyō-jinmeiyō class |
| 扈 | ほう | 扈 — follow | 11 | Includes unclassified/outside loaded jōyō-jinmeiyō class |
| 方 | ほう | 方 — direction, person | 4 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 朴 | ほう | 朴 — crude, simple | 6 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 洞 | ほう | 洞 — den, cave | 9 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 祝 | ほう | 祝 | 10 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 祝部 | ほう | 祝 · 部 — section, bureau | 21 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 芳生 | ほう | 芳 — perfume, balmy · 生 — life, genuine | 12 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 訪 | ほう | 訪 — call on, visit | 11 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 豊 | ほう | 豊 — bountiful, excellent | 13 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 賀 | ほう | 賀 — congratulations, joy | 12 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
| 鮑 | ほう | 鮑 — abalone | 16 | Includes unclassified/outside loaded jōyō-jinmeiyō class |
| 鳳 | ほう | 鳳 — male mythical bird | 14 | All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified |
The comparison table shows the first 16 distinct written forms; the detailed cards above show up to 80 spelling/reading records.
What does Hō mean?
There is not necessarily one fixed English meaning. The reading identifies the spoken name; different written forms can use different kanji. Character glosses describe individual kanji and should not be treated as proof of the intention behind a particular person’s name.
Related readings
More surnames beginning with ほう
Related by the opening kana of the dictionary reading. This is a deterministic browsing relationship, not a claim that the names share the same meaning.
Surname · limited reference
Hōjō
24 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōrai
16 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōki
15 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōri
13 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōshō
10 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōryū
9 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōji
8 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōsen
8 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōya
8 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōzumi
8 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōchi
7 recorded spellings
Explore →Surname · limited referenceHōda
7 recorded spellings
Explore →Evidence on this page
What each source establishes
JMnedict establishes recorded written forms, readings and name classifications; where safely associated, this page can also show JMnedict-supplied trans_det source text without treating it as a whole-name meaning. KANJIDIC2 supplies character readings, nanori, stroke counts, grade classes and English character glosses. The Ministry of Justice remains the official reference for Japanese child-name character rules. The Agency for Cultural Affairs romanization guidance is the reference for generated Latin-script reading aids.
JMnedictChecked 17 Sep 2026Active data built 16 Sep 2026Stored status: downloaded
KANJIDIC2Checked 17 Sep 2026Active data built 17 Sep 2026
Japan Ministry of Justice — characters usable in children’s namesChecked 17 Sep 2026
Japan Agency for Cultural Affairs — Romanization Rules (2025)Checked 17 Sep 2026
Source boundary
The spelling-frequency and structural counts on this page are calculated from imported JMnedict records. They are corpus counts, not population-frequency claims. KANJIDIC2 supplies the kanji metadata used in character and stroke comparisons.
Review sources →