This is a list of Japanese clans. The old clans (gōzoku) mentioned in the Nihon Shoki and Kojiki lost their political power before the Heian period, during which new aristocracies and families, kuge, emerged in their place. After the Heian period, the samurai warrior clans gradually increased in importance and power until they came to dominate the country after the founding of the first shogunate.
Ancient clan names
There are ancient-era clan names called Uji-na (氏名) or Honsei (本姓).
The Imperial clan – descended from Amaterasu. Its emperors and clan members have no clan name but had been called "the imperial house" (皇室) if necessary.
Ōtomo clan (大伴氏) – descended from Michi-omi no Mikoto companion in arms of Emperor Jimmu; no direct relation to the immigrant Ōtomo clan (大友氏) or feudal Ōtomo clan (大友氏); famous for Ōtomo no Yakamochi.
From the late ancient era onward, the family name (Myōji/苗字 or 名字) had been commonly used by samurai to denote their family line instead of the name of the ancient clan that the family line belongs to (uji-na/氏名 or honsei/本姓), which was used only in the official records in the Imperial court. Kuge families also had used their family name (Kamei/家名) for the same purpose. Each of samurai families is called "[family name] clan (氏)" as follows and they must not be confused with ancient clan names. The list below is a list of various aristocratic families whose families served as Shugo, Shugodai, Jitō, and Daimyo
Later Hōjō clan (後北条氏) – also known as Hōjō clan or Go-Hōjō clan; descended from Kanmu Heishi; no direct relation to the regent Hōjō clan (北条氏) or Kitajō clan (北条氏).Mon of the Hosokawa clan
Honma clan (本間氏) – also known as Homma clan or Honma clan of Sado; cadet branch of Yokoyama clan who descended from Ono no Takamura (disputed).
Kikkawa clan (吉川氏) – cadet branch of Kudō clan who descended from Fujiwara Nanke. After the mid 16th century they are a cadet branch of the Mōri clan who descended from the Ōe clan, famous for Kikkawa Motoharu.
Mōri clan (毛利氏) – descended from Ōe clan; no direct relation to the Genji-descent Mōri clan (毛利氏) or Fujiwara-descent Mōri clan (毛利氏); famous for Mōri Motonari and his sons.
Niwa clan (丹羽氏) – cadet branch of Kodama clan who descended from Fujiwara Hokke (disputed); no direct relation to the Isshiki-descent Niwa clan (丹羽氏).
Niwa clan (丹羽氏) – cadet branch of Isshiki clan who descended from Seiwa Genji; no direct relation to the Kodama-descent Niwa clan (丹羽氏).Mon of the Oda clan
Suda clan (ja:須田) – famous for being a clan of samurai, and martial art practitioners. While the northeastern and west-central family branches state that they are descended from the Minamoto clan through the Inoue family, the family branch in Okinawa has the legend that they are descendants of the Japanese dragon (Nihon ryū).
Sue clan (陶氏) – cadet branch of Ōuchi clan who descended from Tatara clan. famous for Sue Harukata.
Toraijin is used to describe migrants in many contexts, from the original migration of a Yamato peoples to more recent migrants. According to the book Shinsen Shōjiroku compiled in 815, a total 326 out of 1,182 families in the Kinai area on Honshū were regarded as people with foreign genealogy. The book specifically mentions mentions 163 were from China, such families from Baekje, 41 from Goguryeo, 9 from Silla, and 9 from Gaya. These families are considered notable, although not inherently noble.[4][5]
Hata clan (秦氏) – claims to be descended from Yuzuki no Kimi. The clan claimed descent from Qin Shi Huang, but recent Japanese research points this to be aggrandization and their true origin to be from Silla.
Ōtomo clan (大友氏) – descended from Tei (称), a descendant of Emperor Xian of Han; no direct relation to the native Ōtomo clan (大伴氏) or feudal Ōtomo clan (大友氏).
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