Okada

Okada is a surname of Japanese origin, most commonly written 岡田. The kanji 岡 means hill and 田 means rice field, and together the name is read as “Okada.” It is a common family name in Japan and is also found among Japanese communities abroad.

In West Africa, particularly Nigeria, the term okada is widely used to refer to motorcycle taxis. Operators carry passengers on motorcycles within urban areas, forming a notable but sometimes controversial part of local transportation. The service intersects with regulatory, safety, and urban planning concerns in various cities.

Okada also appears in corporate, institutional, and geographic contexts, where it is used in names derived from the surname. It may designate businesses, organizations, or places, and can appear in fiction and media as a surname for characters.

Because Okada is a common surname, numerous individuals across fields such as science, sports, the arts, and business bear the name. Encyclopedic and biographical sources document many people with this surname, reflecting its wide usage in Japan and in Japanese communities worldwide.