indicate the level to which a name has been verified.
Type Surname (from location)
Usage Japanese
Scripts 桐谷, 桐萱(Japanese Kanji) 桐ヶ谷(Kanji/Katakana) きりがや(Japanese Hiragana) キリガヤ(Japanese Katakana)
Meaning & History
From 桐 (kiri), referring to the tree known commonly as the empress or foxglove tree, combined with 谷 (ya) meaning "valley," sometimes with the infixation of the historical possessive particle が (ga) (written as ヶ) that is most often used in place names and surnames. More rarely, the second element can also be written as 萱 (kaya), referring to a grass or sedge that is used for thatching.