Japan Compiled Genealogies

Online Records

 * 850-2012 at FamilySearch — images; also at Ancestry ($)
 * Japan, Clan Genealogies - FamilySearch Historical Records
 * Shinsen Shōjiroku: Hathitrust
 * Japanese Imperial Family Tree

What they are
These records are compiled genealogies, organized collections of lineage data, family histories, pedigrees, family and community genealogies, some manuscript and some published. Includes feudal lord genealogies (daimyo kafu), court genealogies (kuge kafu), samurai genealogies (samurai kafu), (bukan), and similar records. Formats vary considerably in Japanese genealogies. Some are extremely elaborate and others brief. Linked format with main line and patriarchal emphases are fairly standard. The earliest genealogies date from the 800s and are still being produced at the present time; the main coverage is from 1550 to the 1870s.

Many Japanese genealogies created during the Edo Period (1603-1867) are filled with errors and should be checked against reliable sources.

Use these records to

 * Extend your ancestral records, going back many generations
 * Find dates and places of events in the ancestors’ lives
 * Learn other information, depending on the record



Content
Standard entries include names, aliases, titles, ranks, lineage, generational information, and some dates and places. Some entries also include information on adoptions, feudal relationships, fiefs, heraldic devices, and biographical items.

Population coverage: Coverage is estimated at 5 to 10% of historical population from 1600-1867. The main emphasis of these records is on upper classes: feudal lords, aristocrats, samurai (retainers), Shinto priests, and the imperial line.

Reliability: These records are a secondary source. Verification of evidence is a must when using secondary sources, but verifying information from these records is difficult due to the lack of primary source documents. Older records are more subject to error.

Research use: Provide the results of previous research. Often provide information from record types, areas, and time periods where the original records are lost or unavailable and which the FamilySearch Library has not yet acquired and may never be able to acquire.

How to obtain them
They are available in public and private collections throughout Japan. Large collections are still left in a number of prefectural archives. Many of these records have been microfilmed and are available at the FamilySearch Library. It is difficult to determine how many of these records still exist. The Library has about 1500 reels of compiled genealogies, family histories, and collected biographies.

The FamilySearch Library has also acquired a majority of the standard genealogical works in books such as:


 * Shinsen Shojiroku genealogies of 1,182 noble families compiled in the year 815 AD
 * Sonpi Bunmyaku genealogies of main and branch families
 * Compiled genealogies of the imperial family and other court nobles of the fourteenth century
 * Kugyo Bunin records of appointment of court nobles, which list individuals who were appointed as imperial advisors (Sangi or above)
 * Han Kan Fu genealogies of the prominent families of 337 feudal lords between 1600 and 1680
 * Kunsei Choshu Shokafu genealogies of feudal lords, samurai, physicians, and other prominent individuals to 1798
 * Jige Kaden genealogies of low-ranking court officials
 * Shokaden family histories of various court nobles to the 1760s
 * Gunsho Ruiju
 * Zokugunsho Ruiju, which is a collective work compiled by Holiichi Hanawa, including genealogies of prominent families

FamilySearch Catalog
Many family histories can be found on the FamilySearch Catalog by performing a surname search:


 * Go to the FamilySearch Catalog
 * Click on the Surname link
 * Type in the search field the last name of the family that you are researching

OR to filter by location and surname:


 * Go to the FamilySearch Catalog
 * Click on the Keyword link
 * Type in the search field the country of residence and last name of the family that you are researching