南 — “south” in Japanese

Grade 2なん, みなみ

Radical ⼗ · radical 24 The building block this kanji is filed under

“south” in Japanese is 南, read nan, minami (なん, みなみ). It is a Grade 2 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 2 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 南国 (southern country).

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What does 南 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	南
Meaning	south
Readings	なん, みなみ
Grade	Grade 2 (Easy)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	南国 (southern country)

How to read 南

南 is read nan (なん) or minami (みなみ) depending on the word.

Words with 南

南西なんせい
南西部なんせいぶ
南国

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Kanji read the same way as 南

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Updated: 2026-08-28