斉藤, 斎藤, 齋藤 or 齊藤? The Four Forms of "Sai" in the Japanese Surname Saito, Plus a List of Surname Variant Kanji

斉, 斎, 齊 and 齋: how the four forms of "sai" relate

The "sai" of Saito is made up of two characters with different meanings, plus the traditional form of each. Here's how they relate.

斎 is the character used in words related to Shinto rites, purification or a room for secluded study, such as 斎場 (funeral hall), 潔斎 (purification) and 書斎 (study). 斉 means "uniform" or "equal", as in 一斉 (all at once), 斉唱 (singing in unison) and 均斉 (symmetry). They look alike and are both read "sai", so they've become mixed in surnames, but as kanji they're different characters.

Where the surname 斎藤 comes from, and how 斉藤 arose

The surname 斎藤 is said to come from the Fujiwara clan of the Heian period. It's traditionally traced to the descendants of Fujiwara no Nobumochi, who became head of the office serving the Saigu (the imperial princess who served at Ise Grand Shrine). They took the name 斎藤, meaning "the Fujiwara of the Saigu". It's one of a family of "-to" surnames, alongside 伊藤 (Ito, the Fujiwara of Ise) and 加藤 (Kato, the Fujiwara of Kaga).

So the original character is 斎 (purification), and 斉藤 is thought to have come about when people began writing it with the similar-looking 斉, which has fewer strokes. It seems that in many cases the characters were swapped when family registers were created in the Meiji era, during notification or copying. Today 斉藤 is a fully established surname in its own right, and both 斎藤 and 斉藤 rank high in nationwide surname rankings (斎藤 is generally said to be more common).

The traditional forms 齋藤 and 齊藤 are used by families whose register has kept the traditional character. Distinguishing every handwritten shape in family registers, the "sai" of Saito is said to have dozens of forms. For everyday documents and computers, it's fine to think of it as the four above.

Tips for getting Saito right on envelopes and in lists

• Copy the character from a business card, email signature or New Year card you've received: when you convert by reading, the IME puts the form you chose last time first, so it's easy to end up using another Saito's character.
• Register people you contact often in your user dictionary: registering the full name, such as "saitoutarou" → 齋藤太郎, prevents mix-ups.
• Try all four forms when searching a list: search for just 藤 and narrow it down by the reading, or create a separate matching column normalised to the new forms.
• Don't treat 斉 and 斎 as the same character: normalising 齋 → 斎 and 齊 → 斉 in a matching column is fine, but merging 斉 → 斎 turns it into a different surname. Use it for duplicate checks if you like, but use the original character on envelopes.

Enter 斉藤 in the "Name Variants" tab of the Japanese Old Kanji and Variant Converter and the four spellings 斉藤, 齊藤, 斎藤 and 齋藤 are listed. Use it to check whether surnames match or to list search keywords. All four are JIS Level 1 or 2 characters, so they don't garble even in Shift_JIS CSV files or old systems.

Variant kanji often seen in surnames, and how computers handle them

Besides Saito, many traditional and variant forms survive in Japanese surnames. Here are common ones, together with their JIS level as judged by the Japanese Old Kanji and Variant Converter. "Level 1" and "Level 2" characters can be used almost anywhere; "IBM extension" characters are platform-dependent and may garble in old systems; "Not in Shift_JIS" characters are always lost in Shift_JIS files and email.

As the list shows, many traditional forms such as 澤, 濱, 邊 and 齋 are JIS Level 2 characters and are surprisingly unlikely to garble. The ones to watch are IBM extension characters such as 髙, 﨑, 濵, 栁, 德, 瀨 and 黑, and characters that aren't in Shift_JIS, such as 𠮷. When exchanging data for people with these characters in their names via Shift_JIS CSV files or old business systems, check in advance. Why 髙, 﨑 and 𠮷 garble is explained in detail in How to type 髙, 﨑 and 𠮷 and why they garble.

How many spellings do variant combinations produce?

When a surname contains two characters that have variants, the number of spellings multiplies. Knowing how many there are helps you avoid gaps when searching a list or confirming someone's characters. Counting with the Japanese Old Kanji and Variant Converter gives the following.

The tool lists up to 64 combinations and colour-codes whether each character is JIS Level 1, Level 2, platform-dependent or not in Shift_JIS. Use it to compare against a person's own characters before writing an envelope, or to look for inconsistent spellings in a list.

How to normalise variants in an Excel list for matching

If a list of hundreds of people mixes 斎藤 with 齋藤 and 高橋 with 髙橋, duplicate checks and sorting won't work properly. The safe approach is to keep the original spelling as it is, since you'll use it for addressing, add one matching column, and normalise the variants to everyday characters there.

1. 1

   Create a matching column

   If names are in column A, put a formula such as =SUBSTITUTE(SUBSTITUTE(SUBSTITUTE(SUBSTITUTE(A2,"齋","斎"),"齊","斉"),"髙","高"),"﨑","崎") in column B and copy it down. Add 邊/邉 → 辺, 澤 → 沢, 濱/濵 → 浜, 嶋 → 島 and so on in the same way, but only for characters that appear in your list.

2. 2

   Find duplicates using the matching column

   Look for duplicates by combining column B with phone numbers, dates of birth and so on. Even if column B matches, it could be a different person, so judge together with the other fields.

3. 3

   Use the original column for addressing

   For mail merges and address labels, use column A (the person's own characters), not the matching column. You can delete the matching column once you're done.

Nesting many SUBSTITUTE calls makes the formula long, so if there are many characters to replace, you can create a sheet with a replacement table and replace them all with a function. To see which characters your list contains, paste the name column into the "Character Check" tab of the Japanese Old Kanji and Variant Converter; it sorts them into JIS Level 2, platform-dependent and not-in-Shift_JIS characters.

The family register and a resident record, card or bank account may use different characters

A person's name isn't necessarily written the same way everywhere. Family registers record even fine shapes, but resident records, My Number cards, driving licences, bank accounts and mobile phone contracts may each be registered with a substitute that their system can display. For example, it isn't unusual for someone's family register to say 齋藤 while a company has them registered as 斎藤.

• For documents for government offices and banks, matching the character registered at that office helps keep procedures moving
• For New Year cards and congratulatory envelopes, match the character the person normally uses (on their business card or signature)
• For things where the shape is preserved, such as certificates, nameplates and engraved gifts, confirm the character with the person before making them

How traditional forms came about, and a list of traditional forms of Joyo kanji, are covered in What are kyujitai? A list of the traditional forms of Joyo kanji and why they were simplified.

Related reading

• Variants of 辺: 渡辺, 渡邊 or 渡邉? How many forms of 辺 are there?
• Name characters that garble: How to type 髙, 﨑 and 𠮷 and why they garble
• Traditional forms basics: What are kyujitai? A list of traditional forms
• Kanji merged into one: How 辯, 瓣 and 辨, and 台, 臺 and 颱, are used

FAQ

What's the difference between 斉藤 and 斎藤?

斎 means ritual purification and 斉 means equal or uniform; they were originally different characters. The surname Saito originally comes from 斎藤, after the Fujiwara who headed the Saigu's office, and 斉藤 is thought to have arisen when it began to be written with the similar-looking 斉. Both are correct surnames, so write whichever the person uses.

How do 齋藤 and 齊藤 differ?

齋 is the traditional form of 斎, and 齊 is the traditional form of 斉. To tell them apart, look at the bottom: the one with 示 is 齋 (斎), the one without is 齊 (斉). Both are JIS Level 2 characters, so they work fine on computers and in old systems.

How many forms of the "sai" in Saito are there?

The four in everyday use are 斉, 斎, 齊 and 齋. Distinguishing every handwritten shape in family registers, there are said to be dozens, but these four are the ones you can normally type on a computer.

Do traditional and variant forms in surnames garble?

澤, 濱, 邊, 齋, 齊, 國 and similar are JIS Level 2 and rarely garble. 髙, 﨑, 濵, 栁, 德, 瀨, 黑 and similar are platform-dependent IBM extension characters that can garble in old systems, and 𠮷 isn't in Shift_JIS at all, so it's always lost in Shift_JIS CSV files and email.

How can I find inconsistent spellings in a list (such as 斎藤 and 齋藤) all at once?

Enter the surname in the "Name Variants" tab of the Japanese Old Kanji and Variant Converter to list every combination of variants. In Excel, searching on a separate matching column where traditional forms are replaced with new forms reduces misses. But 斉 and 斎 are different characters, so don't merge them.