Naruse

Naruse is a Japanese surname written with the kanji 成瀬. It is most commonly found in Japan and is read as Naruse in modern Japanese. The characters reflect traditional geographic surname elements, but as with many names, they do not carry a single fixed meaning in everyday use. The name is typically romanized as Naruse.

Notable people with the surname include Naruse Mikio (成瀬巳喜雄, 1905–1969), a prominent Japanese film director whose work helped shape postwar Japanese cinema. His realist dramas focus on the lives and constraints of ordinary people, and his filmography includes When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1951) and Floating Clouds (1955). Naruse’s careful storytelling, humane perspective, and formal rigor are highly regarded, and he is often discussed alongside other major Japanese directors such as Yasujiro Ozu and Kenji Mizoguchi.

Beyond Mikio Naruse, the surname is borne by other individuals in Japan and among Japanese diaspora communities, spanning various professions. While none has achieved the same level of international recognition, Naruse remains a recognizable Japanese surname due to Mikio Naruse’s enduring influence in film history.