Japanese Punctuation Symbols

Japanese Punctuation Marks

Japanese punctuation works differently from what most Western readers are used to. The period is 。 (kuten) and the comma is 、 (toten), both smaller and sitting lower on the line than their English counterparts. For quotation marks, Japanese uses corner brackets: 「 and 」 for a standard quote, and 『 and 』 when you need a quote inside a quote.

The middle dot ・ (nakaguro) separates items in a list the way a comma would in English. You will also see … (ellipsis) used to show a trailing thought or hesitation, and ※ (reference mark) to draw attention to a footnote or important note.

Special Japanese Symbols

Some Japanese symbols have no direct equivalent in Western writing. The postal mark 〒 goes before a Japanese postal code in any address. The closing mark 〆 (shime) is written on sealed envelopes to show they have not been opened. The repeat mark 々 (noma) tells you to repeat the Kanji before it, so 人々 (hitobito) reads as "people" rather than writing 人 twice.

Japanese also has era symbols tied to its imperial calendar. ㏍ stands for Heisei (1989 to 2019), ㏎ for Shōwa (1926 to 1989), and ㏑ for Taishō (1912 to 1926). You will find these in official documents, historical records, and older date formats.

Punctuation in Japanese Sentences

A few quick examples of these marks in real use:

• 「こんにちは」と言いました。  "Hello," I said. (corner brackets for quotes)
• 本・ペン・ノート  Book, pen, notebook (middle dot as separator)
• 〒100-0001 東京都  Postal code with the 〒 mark
• 人々が集まった。  People gathered. (々 repeating 人)

How to Use These Symbols

Click any symbol above to copy it. All Japanese punctuation and special symbols are standard Unicode and work in every modern app, website, and document. They are particularly useful when writing formal Japanese text, addresses, or anything that follows Japanese formatting conventions.