Yasuda

Yasuda (安田) is a Japanese surname and, in some cases, a place name. The kanji 安 means “peace” and 田 means “rice field,” yielding the general meaning “peaceful field.” The name is widespread in Japan and appears in various corporate and geographic contexts.

Historically, the name is associated with the Yasuda zaibatsu, a prominent late-19th and early-20th-century industrial and financial conglomerate. The zaibatsu was built by Yasuda Zenjiro (安田善次郎; 1838–1921), who developed interests in banking, insurance, and trade and laid the foundation for a diversified family-controlled business empire. At its height, the Yasuda group controlled banks, insurance companies, trading houses, and other enterprises, and played a major role in Japan’s modernization and economic expansion. Following Japan’s defeat in World War II, zaibatsu were dissolved under Allied policy, and their assets were reorganized into independent companies.

Today, the historical connections of Yasuda survive in names of corporate entities that originated with the family’s enterprises, most notably Yasuda Life Insurance Company (Yasuda Seimei Hoken). The modern institutions that trace their ancestry to the Yasuda zaibatsu operate as independent firms within Japan’s financial and commercial landscape.

Notable individuals bearing the surname include Yasuda Zenjiro, the Meiji-era entrepreneur who founded the Yasuda zaibatsu, as well as other businesspeople, scholars, and athletes who bear the surname. The name also appears in place names and cultural references in Japan.