Study finds Japanese with surnames starting in vowels have head start in life

[thomas]

A recent study conducted by Seinan Gakuin University has suggested that Japanese people whose surnames begin with the vowels A, I, U, E, or O — the first row of the Japanese syllabary (五十音— gojūon) - may have a small but measurable advantage in life. The research found that those with such names often stand out more easily, which can make career progression slightly smoother. Names such as Aoki, Aida, or Inoue, the study noted, might evoke envy among people with less distinctive surnames. The findings were published in June in the Japanese Economic Review, the journal of the Japanese Economic Association.

Yamamura Eiji, a behavioural economics professor at Seinan Gakuin University in Fukuoka, explained that similar trends have been observed in Western studies, where individuals with surnames that appear early in the alphabet seem to benefit from subtle advantages. He added that when people are asked to select or recommend someone from a list, they tend to choose names that catch their attention first, rather than making detailed comparisons of each person's actual ability or record.

Yamamura and a colleague gathered the names of so-called elite individuals who gained prominence in a wide range of fields after World War II. These included members of the Japan Academy, considered the highest body in academia; Nobel Prize winners; presidents of various academic societies; former prime ministers; vice ministers of government ministries; prefectural governors; Supreme Court justices; University of Tokyo professors; and executives of Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) and Keizai Doyukai (Japan Association of Corporate Executives). Even after they limited the list to men, whose surnames are less likely to change due to marriage, it still totaled around 2,000 individuals. They found that surnames starting with the "A" row--A, I, U, E or O--the first row in Japanese syllabary, accounted for about 22 percent of the Japanese population, but made up roughly 27 percent of the elite group, a statistically significant difference. In contrast, surnames starting from the "K" row, the second in Japanese syllabary, and those from the subsequent rows, appeared in proportions similar to or lower than their representation in the general population.

What’s in a name? Well, a lot if it starts with a Japanese vowel | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis

https://doi.org/10.1007/s42973-025-00219-3

 

[Ukigumo]

There was a similar study in the UK years ago that found that having/adding 'J' as your middle initial made you more likely to be successful, liked and respected. If only Joseph Stalin had known this….