谷 — “valley” in Japanese

Grade 2こく, たに

Radical ⾕ · radical 150 The building block this kanji is filed under

“valley” in Japanese is 谷, read koku, tani (こく, たに). It is a Grade 2 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 2 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 谷川 (mountain stream).

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What does 谷 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	谷
Meaning	valley
Readings	こく, たに
Grade	Grade 2 (Easy)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	谷川 (mountain stream)

How to read 谷

谷 is read koku (こく) or tani (たに) depending on the word.

Words with 谷

谷川
渓谷

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Updated: 2026-08-28