# Translating Japanese motorcycle names **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 28, 2003, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428 "2003-07-28T13:26:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428/1 "2003-07-28T13:26:00Z")
People might ask what “Ford” means. Others will say, “It was the guy’s name.” But of course a “ford” is a crossing point in a river. “Messerschmitt” means “cutler” in English. So what are the literal translations of the names of Japanese motorcycles? A friend of mine, Ms. **Kawasaki** says her name means “toward the lower part of the river” ("downstream?). I recall that **suzuki** is “sea bass”. But what of “yamaha” and “honda”? **Yama** is “mountain”. **Ha** seems to mean “tooth”, “sabre” or “blade” (of grass?) **Honda** , IIRC, translates literally to something like “The One”. Certainly these are Japanese surnames, but can anyone say specifically (i.e., know what characters are used) what they translate to? ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428/2 "2003-07-28T14:33:45Z")
**Kawa** is river, and I **saki** is a cape or promontory. I think it’s originally a name of a particular area that has both. There are a couple of towns named Kawasaki, the major one near Yokohama. The **Ha** in **Yamaha** is a leaf (as in trees). It’s a different character from the word for “tooth” or “blade.” I had to look up the Yamaha homepage to find the Kanji though - currently the name of the company is written in katakana (phonetic characters) that don’t reveal any etymology. **Hon** in **Hona** does mean “main” or “primary.” The **da** (or **ta** ) means rice paddy. **Suzuki** can mean sea bass, but I’ve never seen that character used as a surname. When used as a surname **Suzuki** is written with a character for “bell” and “tree,” though I don’t know the exact origin of the name - to my knowledge there is no tree with that name. ---
**Author:** ![Gazelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Gazelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gazelle)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428/3 "2003-07-28T14:34:57Z")
So the question is “What do Yamaha and Honda mean?” You’ve guessed, but you want confirmation? Toughie. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428/4 "2003-07-28T14:50:49Z")
Don’t be surprised, though, if it turns out that they aren’t real Japanese words, but coined terms, sorta like “Datsun” and “Sony.” ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428/5 "2003-07-28T15:00:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Earl Snake-Hips Tucker \* > \*\*Don’t be surprised, though, if it turns out that they aren’t real Japanese words, but coined terms, sorta like “Datsun” and “Sony.” \*\* No, the companies listed by the OP are all named after their founders. They are surnames which are in use today. In fact Suzuki is the most common surname in Japan. Another Mr. Suzuki founded the Suzuk Method of music education. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428/6 "2003-07-28T16:23:26Z")
IIRC, all family names in Japan are some type of place name. For example, Yamamoto may be translated as Foothill. A few others have already been provided above. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translating-japanese-motorcycle-names/191428/7 "2003-07-28T16:35:11Z")
> [@](#): > > I had to look up the Yamaha homepage to find the Kanji though Do you hace a direct link to the page that shows the Kanji? Does it also show the Katakana?