Yōko Shōgenji (Japanese: 正源司陽子, Hepburn: Shōgenji Yōko; born February 14, 2007) is a Japanese singer and media…
Yōko Shōgenji (Japanese: 正源司陽子, Hepburn: Shōgenji Yōko; born February 14, 2007) is a Japanese singer and media personality. She is a member of the girl group Hinatazaka46. Shōgenji joined Hinatazaka46 in 2022 and has served as the lead performer for the singles "Kimi wa Honeydew" (2024), "Zettaiteki Dairokkan" (2024), and "Ichaicha Mushi" (2026). She has also been a co-host for the NHK High School Courses educational show and starred in the feature film All of Tokyo! (2024). She has been the regular Thursday host of the All Night Nippon X radio program since April 2026.
Famous People from Ashiya, Hyōgo
Ashiya, Hyōgo: 32 people
Yoshiyuki Koga (born 28 August 1998) is a Japanese rugby sevens player. He competed for Japan at the 2024 Summer…
Yoshiyuki Koga (born 28 August 1998) is a Japanese rugby sevens player. He competed for Japan at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Takakeishō Takanobu (貴景勝 貴信; born August 5, 1996) (born Takanobu Satō (Japanese: 佐藤 貴信, Hepburn: Satō Takanobu)) is a…
Takakeishō Takanobu (貴景勝 貴信; born August 5, 1996) (born Takanobu Satō (Japanese: 佐藤 貴信, Hepburn: Satō Takanobu)) is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Ashiya, Hyōgo. He made his professional debut in September 2014, and reached the highest makuuchi division in January 2017 after 14 tournaments. He won his first championship in the top division in November 2018, four years after his debut. Takakeishō wrestled for Tokiwayama stable, and his highest rank was ōzeki, which he first reached in May 2019. He earned seven special prizes and three gold stars for defeating yokozuna. He won his second championship in November 2020, his third one in January 2023, and his fourth one in September 2023. Consecutive losing tournaments in 2024 resulted in his demotion to sekiwake. He withdrew from the September 2024 tournament after a series of losses, and subsequently announced his retirement. He is now a coach under the elder name Minatogawa.
Ryosuke Kakigi (柿木 亮介, Kakigi Ryōsuke; born 23 December 1991) is a former Japanese footballer.
Takashi Matsunaga (松永貴志, Matsunaga Takashi; born 1987), sometimes known professionally as Takashi, is a Japanese jazz…
Takashi Matsunaga (松永貴志, Matsunaga Takashi; born 1987), sometimes known professionally as Takashi, is a Japanese jazz pianist and composer.
Syu (Japanese: シュウ, Hepburn: Shū) is a Japanese musician, best known as the leader and guitarist of the power metal…
Syu (Japanese: シュウ, Hepburn: Shū) is a Japanese musician, best known as the leader and guitarist of the power metal band Galneryus. He also performs guitar and lead vocals in Spinalcord (formerly known as Aushvitz) and guitar in Animetal. Under his own name, Syu has released one studio album, one cover album and one instrumental album, each featuring collaborations with many guest musicians. He was voted the Best Guitarist in online music magazine Beeast's music awards four years in a row, from 2015 to 2018. In 2018, readers and professional musicians voted Syu the fourth best guitarist in the history of hard rock and heavy metal in We Rock magazine's "Metal General Election". His work on Galneryus' song "Emotions" was named the 73rd best guitar instrumental by Young Guitar Magazine in 2019.
Takuya Kuroda (Japanese: 黒田 卓也, Hepburn: Kuroda Takuya; born 21 February 1980, in Ashiya, Hyōgo) is a Japanese jazz…
Takuya Kuroda (Japanese: 黒田 卓也, Hepburn: Kuroda Takuya; born 21 February 1980, in Ashiya, Hyōgo) is a Japanese jazz trumpeter and arranger. Kuroda came to music by joining his school's big band. Later he frequently visited jam sessions in Kobe. In 2003 he moved to the United States and was a course participant at Berklee College of Music before settling in Brooklyn, New York City. He later attended the College of Performing Arts of The New School, where he studied jazz and contemporary music, earning his degree in 2006. His study colleague José James became a close friend and musical partner, in 2014 producing his studio album Rising Son.
Koichi Domoto (堂本 光一, Dōmoto Kōichi; born January 1, 1979) is a Japanese idol, singer, actor, singer-songwriter…
Koichi Domoto (堂本 光一, Dōmoto Kōichi; born January 1, 1979) is a Japanese idol, singer, actor, singer-songwriter, composer, lyricist, television personality, voice actor. Along with Tsuyoshi Domoto (with whom he has no blood-relation), he is a member of the duo Domoto, who holds the Guinness World Records for having the most consecutive No.1 singles since debut and the most consecutive years with a Japanese No.1 single, and with whom is one of the top 25 best-selling artists of all time in Japan. Although Domoto also actively works as a television actor and host, he is most famous for his musical SHOCK series, which he participates as the lead actor and director at the same time. SHOCK series started at the Tokyo Imperial Theatre in 2000, making him the youngest Zachō (chairman and lead role) and the first idol to perform at Imperial Theatre. With over 2000 performances, SHOCK series is now the most-performed musical and the second most-performed theatre with a single-lead in Japan. In 2018, he starred in the musical Knights' Tale directed by John Caird as well. Domoto will be under agent contract in Starto starting in July 2026.
Ryō Naitō (内藤 玲, Naitō Ryō; born June 22, 1974 in the Osaka Prefecture) is a Japanese voice actor. He is affiliated…
Ryō Naitō (内藤 玲, Naitō Ryō; born June 22, 1974 in the Osaka Prefecture) is a Japanese voice actor. He is affiliated with Y.M.O., specifically under the Love Love division, which focuses on voice acting. His given name Ryō, is sometimes mistakenly translated as Rei.
Takeshi Senoo (妹尾 武) (born December 26, 1969) is a Japanese composer. He has worked on several different anime shows…
Takeshi Senoo (妹尾 武) (born December 26, 1969) is a Japanese composer. He has worked on several different anime shows, including the Aria series, Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha, and the Himawari! series. Along with Shigeharu Sasago he was music director of the Aria soundtracks, which he composed with Choro Club. He also co-composed the music for the live action series Ariadne no Dangan and produced the soundtrack for the film Sweet Little Lies.
Yōko Ishino (石野陽子, Ishino Youko, born 20 February 1968) is a Japanese actress and television personality (tarento). She…
Yōko Ishino (石野陽子, Ishino Youko, born 20 February 1968) is a Japanese actress and television personality (tarento). She debuted in 1985 as a pop singer, first appeared on television in 1986 and performed comedy with Shimura Ken in the TV show "Shimura Ken's Daijobudaa".
Taku Kitazaki (北崎拓, Kitazaki Taku; born July 27, 1966 in Hyougo, Japan) is a Japanese manga artist. His major works…
Taku Kitazaki (北崎拓, Kitazaki Taku; born July 27, 1966 in Hyougo, Japan) is a Japanese manga artist. His major works include Angel Cop, which was made into an anime series, and Tatoeba Konna Love Song. In 2006, his manga Cupid No Itazura Nijidama was made into a TV drama. He also did some work to support an Ultraman dojinshi as well as work for Nana to Kaoru: Black Label. Masahito Soda, Motohiro Katou, Honna Wakou (creator of Nozoki Ana) and Taro Nogizaka (illustrator of Team Medical Dragon) are all his former assistants.
Keita Inoue (井上 慶太, Inoue Keita; born January 17, 1964) is a Japanese professional shogi player, ranked 9-dan. He is a…
Keita Inoue (井上 慶太, Inoue Keita; born January 17, 1964) is a Japanese professional shogi player, ranked 9-dan. He is a former executive director of the Japan Shogi Association.
Kō Nakata (Japanese: 中田 考, Hepburn: Nakata Kō; born 1960) is a Japanese Islamic scholar and author. He has written and…
Kō Nakata (Japanese: 中田 考, Hepburn: Nakata Kō; born 1960) is a Japanese Islamic scholar and author. He has written and translated dozens of books related to Islam and Islamic studies, as well as a light novel and manga.
Kazuya Masu (益 一哉) is the President of Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan. He is an electronic engineer.
Mitsue Kondo (近藤 三津枝, Kondō Mitsue; born 14 June 1953) is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, a…
Mitsue Kondo (近藤 三津枝, Kondō Mitsue; born 14 June 1953) is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Hyōgo and graduate of Konan University, she was elected for the first time in 2005.
Yuriko Koike (Japanese: 小池 百合子, Hepburn: Koike Yuriko; born 15 July 1952) is a Japanese politician who has served as…
Yuriko Koike (Japanese: 小池 百合子, Hepburn: Koike Yuriko; born 15 July 1952) is a Japanese politician who has served as the Governor of Tokyo since 2016. Previously, she also served as a member of the House of Councillors from 1992 to 1993, a member of the House of Representatives from 1993 to 2016, Minister of the Environment under Junichiro Koizumi from 2003 to 2006, and Minister of Defense under Shinzo Abe between July and August 2007. Born and raised in Ashiya, a wealthy, small, and popular city near Kobe in Hyōgo Prefecture, Koike graduated from Cairo University in Cairo, Egypt in 1976, and served as a member of the House of Representatives of Japan from 1993 until 2016, when she resigned to run for Governor of Tokyo. Previously, she also served as the Minister of the Environment under Junichiro Koizumi's cabinet from 2003 to 2006 and briefly as Minister of Defense under the first cabinet of Shinzo Abe in between July and August 2007. Koike was elected Governor of Tokyo in 2016, becoming the metropolis' first female governor. Koike was re-elected in 2020 and 2024, winning 59.7% and 42.8% of the popular vote respectively. Considered one of the most high-profile and well-known Japanese politicians, Koike has been frequently mentioned as holding Prime Ministerial ambitions. She ran in the 2008 Liberal Democratic Party leadership election, becoming the first woman to run for the leadership of a major Japanese political party, however she came in third place losing to Tarō Asō. In 2017, Koike left the LDP amid much media attention and launched two parties: the national party, Kibō no Tō (希望の党/Party of Hope) and the regional party Tomin First no Kai (都民ファーストの会/Tokyoites First Party). Kibō no Tō contested the 2017 general election with Koike as a leader, however the party underperformed expectations and mostly disappeared after merging with the Democratic Party for the People in 2018. The same year, Koike stepped down as leader of Tomin First and officially became independent. However, Koike continues to endorse and campaign for Tomin First candidates in Tokyo and the party still makes frequent use of her image and policies. Koike has come under some scrutiny from Japanese liberals and Koreans in both Japan and Korea for her refusal to acknowledge the occurrence of 1923 Kantō Massacre, which mainly targeted ethnic Koreans, as well as her association with groups that are often labeled anti-Korean.
Takashi Yamamoto (山本 孝史, Yamamoto Takashi; 7 July 1949 – 22 December 2007) was a Japanese politician of the Democratic…
Takashi Yamamoto (山本 孝史, Yamamoto Takashi; 7 July 1949 – 22 December 2007) was a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan, a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet (national legislature).
Haruki Murakami (村上 春樹, Murakami Haruki; born January 12 1949) is a Japanese writer. His novels, essays, and short…
Haruki Murakami (村上 春樹, Murakami Haruki; born January 12 1949) is a Japanese writer. His novels, essays, and short stories have been best-sellers in Japan and internationally, with his work translated into 50 languages and having sold millions of copies outside Japan. He received numerous awards for his work, including the Gunzo Prize for New Writers, the World Fantasy Award, the Tanizaki Prize, Yomiuri Prize for Literature, the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award, the Noma Literary Prize, the Franz Kafka Prize, the Kiriyama Prize for Fiction, the Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Fiction, the Jerusalem Prize, and the Princess of Asturias Awards. Growing up in Ashiya, near Kobe, before moving to Tokyo to attend Waseda University, he published his first novel Hear the Wind Sing (1979) after owning a small jazz bar for seven years. His notable works include the novels Norwegian Wood (1987), The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (1994–95), Kafka on the Shore (2002) and 1Q84 (2009–10); the last was ranked as the best work of Japan's Heisei era (1989–2019) by the national newspaper Asahi Shimbun's survey of literary experts. His work spans genres including science fiction, fantasy, and crime fiction, and has become known for his use of magical realist elements. His official website cites Raymond Chandler, Kurt Vonnegut, and Richard Brautigan as key inspirations to his work, while Murakami himself has named Kazuo Ishiguro, Cormac McCarthy, and Dag Solstad as his favorite contemporary writers. Murakami has also published five short story collections, including First Person Singular (2020), and non-fiction works including Underground (1997), an oral history of the Tokyo subway sarin attack, and What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (2007), a memoir about his experience as a long-distance runner. His fiction has polarized literary critics and the reading public. He has sometimes been characterized by Japan's literary establishment as un-Japanese, leading to Murakami's recalling that he was a "black sheep in the Japanese literary world". Meanwhile, Murakami has been described by Gary Fisketjon, the editor of Murakami's collection The Elephant Vanishes (1993), as a "truly extraordinary writer", while Steven Poole of The Guardian praised Murakami as "among the world's greatest living novelists" for his oeuvre.
Takemitsu Takizaki (born 10 June 1945) is a Japanese billionaire businessman, honorary chairman and founder of Keyence…
Takemitsu Takizaki (born 10 June 1945) is a Japanese billionaire businessman, honorary chairman and founder of Keyence, a Japanese manufacturer of automation sensors, vision systems, barcode readers, laser markers, measuring instruments, and digital microscopes. As of September 29, 2022, Takizaki has a net worth of US$18.6 billion.
Koji Watanabe (渡邊康二, Watanabe Kōji; born 19 January 1942) is a Japanese former international tennis player. He won four…
Koji Watanabe (渡邊康二, Watanabe Kōji; born 19 January 1942) is a Japanese former international tennis player. He won four career singles titles (1966–1969).
Homare Suguro (勝呂 誉, Suguro Homare; June 1, 1940 – January 23, 2026) was a Japanese actor and singer. He worked for…
Homare Suguro (勝呂 誉, Suguro Homare; June 1, 1940 – January 23, 2026) was a Japanese actor and singer. He worked for Shochiku Geino.
Shu Kamo (加茂 周, Kamo Shu; born October 29, 1939) is a former Japanese football player and manager. He managed the Japan…
Shu Kamo (加茂 周, Kamo Shu; born October 29, 1939) is a former Japanese football player and manager. He managed the Japan national team.
Ryōji Noyori (野依 良治, Noyori Ryōji; born 3 September 1938) is a Japanese chemist. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in…
Ryōji Noyori (野依 良治, Noyori Ryōji; born 3 September 1938) is a Japanese chemist. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2001. Noyori shared a half of the prize with William S. Knowles for the study of chirally catalyzed hydrogenations; the second half of the prize went to K. Barry Sharpless for his study in chirally catalyzed oxidation reactions (Sharpless epoxidation).
Isao Matsuoka (松岡 功, Matsuoka Isao; born December 18, 1934) is a longtime studio executive and former chairman of Toho…
Isao Matsuoka (松岡 功, Matsuoka Isao; born December 18, 1934) is a longtime studio executive and former chairman of Toho Co., Ltd., serving as Chairman for 14 years until his retirement in 2009. He had previously served as President and worked for the company for over 50 years having joined in 1957. He currently serves as chairman emeritus of Toho, honorary chairman of the Japan Academy Film Prize Association, and a director of the Kawakita Memorial Film Foundation. Isao's father, Tatsuro Matsuoka (Kobayashi), was the second son of Toho founder Ichizō Kobayashi, and as such, was adopted into the Matsuoka family upon his marriage to Setsuko Matsuoka, daughter of Ichizō's business partner and member of Diet, Junkichi Matsuoka. Tatsuro also served as Toho's president following the death of his older brother Fusao. A graduate of the prestigious Konan University, Isao is credited with helping establish Toho as the preeminent film production, distribution and exhibition company in Japan with his revolutionary and innovative reforms following his promotion to president in 1977, and named as the 10th most powerful person in the Japanese film industry by Première Magazine Japan in 2001. Established in 1932, Toho is known internationally for its Godzilla series and the Akira Kurosawa classics Kagemusha and Ran produced under Matsuoka's leadership. Isao has also been honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards by CineAsia in 1998 and the National Association of Theatre Owners at ShoWest in 2007, the FIAPF Award for outstanding achievement in film at the 2009 Asia Pacific Screen Awards, and the Special Merit Award by the Japan Association of Theatre Owners on 2015. Born in Ashiya, Hyōgo, Isao played tennis at university and represented Japan in the 1956 Davis Cup. He married Chinami Shizuka, a star of the Takarazuka Revue, with whom he had 2 sons, Hiroyasu Matsuoka, who followed his father into the film business and succeeded Isao to serve as the 15th President and CEO of Toho in 2022, and Shuzo Matsuoka, a former professional tennis player and current sports commentator.
Akira Hasegawa (Japanese: 長谷川 晃, Hepburn: Hasegawa Akira; 17 June 1934 – 22 June 2025) was a Japanese theoretical…
Akira Hasegawa (Japanese: 長谷川 晃, Hepburn: Hasegawa Akira; 17 June 1934 – 22 June 2025) was a Japanese theoretical physicist and engineer who worked in the U.S. and Japan. He is known for his work in the derivation of the Hasegawa–Mima equation, which describes fundamental plasma turbulence and the consequent generation of zonal flow that controls plasma diffusion. Hasegawa also made the discovery of optical solitons in glass fibers, a concept that is essential for high speed optical communications. Hasegawa was the first to suggest the existence of optical solitons in 1973. In 1974, he (together with Liu Chen) showed that plasmas could be heated with the kinetic Alfvén wave. Hasegawa and Chen introduced the concept of the kinetic Alfven wave to illustrate the microscopic process of the Alfven wave heating. In 1977, Hasegawa introduced the Hasegawa–Mima equation to describe turbulence in Tokamak plasmas and then further developed it in the 1980s (with Masahiro Wakatani) to obtain the Hasegawa–Wakatani equation. The equation predicted an inverse cascade in the turbulent energy spectrum (i.e., from small to large wavelengths) and zonal flows (in the azimuthal direction in the Tokamak) that can control radial turbulent diffusion. With Wakatani, he wrote a paper on self-organized turbulence in plasmas. Hasegawa's proposal to trap plasmas with a dipole magnet similar to Earth's magnetic field, where turbulence caused by solar wind stabilizes the trap, was implemented in the first dipole plasma experiment at University of Tokyo by Prof. Zensho Yoshida. In 2010, a plasma experiment with a floating dipole was also built at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Yasutomi Nishizuka, MJA, ForMemRS (西塚 泰美, Nishizuka Yasutomi; July 12, 1932 – November 4, 2004) was a prominent…
Yasutomi Nishizuka, MJA, ForMemRS (西塚 泰美, Nishizuka Yasutomi; July 12, 1932 – November 4, 2004) was a prominent Japanese biochemist and made important contributions to the understanding of molecular mechanism of signal transduction across the cell membrane. In 1977, he discovered protein kinase C, which plays significant roles in a variety of intracellular signal transduction processes. He was elected as a foreign member of the Royal Society (ForMemRS) in 1990 and as a member of the Japan Academy (MJA) in 1991.
Tsuruko Yamazaki (山崎 つる子, Yamazaki Tsuruko; 1925 – June 12, 2019) was a Japanese artist, known for her bold artistic…
Tsuruko Yamazaki (山崎 つる子, Yamazaki Tsuruko; 1925 – June 12, 2019) was a Japanese artist, known for her bold artistic experiments with abstract visual styles and non-traditional materials. She was a co-founder and the longest-standing female member of the Gutai Art Association, an avant-garde artists' collective established by Jirō Yoshihara.
Hideo Sakai (堺井 秀雄, Sakai Hideo; June 10, 1909 – June 3, 1996) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan…
Hideo Sakai (堺井 秀雄, Sakai Hideo; June 10, 1909 – June 3, 1996) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
Jirō Shirasu (白洲 次郎, Shirasu Jirō; 17 February 1902 – 28 November 1985) was a Japanese businessman and official. He was…
Jirō Shirasu (白洲 次郎, Shirasu Jirō; 17 February 1902 – 28 November 1985) was a Japanese businessman and official. He was a confidant of Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida and served as a liaison between Japanese cabinet and the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers during the American occupation of Japan.
Toru "Tiger" Okoshi (born March 21, 1950) is an American jazz fusion trumpeter born in Ashiya, Japan. After studying at…
Toru "Tiger" Okoshi (born March 21, 1950) is an American jazz fusion trumpeter born in Ashiya, Japan. After studying at Kwansei Gakuin University, Okoshi moved to the U.S. in 1972. In 1975 he completed studies at the Berklee College of Music. Okoshi collaborated in the 1970s with Gary Burton, and played with the Mike Gibbs Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in 1974. Following this he toured with Buddy Rich. In the early 1990s, he played in George Russell's Living Time Orchestra and recorded with Bob Moses. In the early 2000s he recorded several songs on the album Orpheus Again by Bruce Arnold.
Kento Handa (半田 健人, Handa Kento; born June 4, 1984 in Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan, and raised in Ashiya) is a Japanese actor and…
Kento Handa (半田 健人, Handa Kento; born June 4, 1984 in Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan, and raised in Ashiya) is a Japanese actor and singer, best known for his role as Takumi Inui/Kamen Rider Faiz in Kamen Rider 555. He plays many musical instruments including the guitar, bass, drums and the piano. His album "HOMEMADE" was released in 2017, and his album Seikatsu (生活, "Life") was released in 2018.