List of Famous people born in Japan

Nao Minamisawa is a Japanese actress. From 2012, she regularly appears in the ETV science program Science Zero.

Masaru Hanada is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler. As an active wrestler he was known as Wakanohana Masaru , and his rise through the ranks alongside his younger brother Takanohana Kōji saw a boom in sumo's popularity in the early 1990s. He is the elder son of the former ōzeki Takanohana Kenshi, who was also his stablemaster, and the nephew of Wakanohana Kanji I, a famous yokozuna of the 1950s. Wakanohana was a long serving ōzeki who won five tournament championships, and eventually joined his brother at yokozuna rank in 1998, creating the first ever sibling grand champions. After a brief and injury plagued yokozuna career he retired in 2000, becoming a television personality and restaurant owner. The death of his father in 2005 saw a very public falling out with his brother.

Makiko Watanabe is a Japanese actress. She has appeared in more than sixty films since 1996.

Satoko Okudera is a Japanese screenwriter. She is known for her screenplays in both the live-action and anime mediums. Her 1995 screenplay for Gakkō no kaidan was nominated for the Japan Academy Prize. She is best known for her collaborations with anime director Mamoru Hosoda.

Yumiri Hanamori is a Japanese voice actress from Kanagawa Prefecture. She is affiliated with the talent agency m&i. Hanamori used the alias Rimiyu in her debut, "The Second Audition".

Hiroki Kuroda is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for Hiroshima Toyo Carp from 1997 to 2007 before playing in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2008 to 2011 and New York Yankees from 2012 to 2014. After the 2014 season, he chose to return to the Carp to finish out his career.

Nobuhiro Matsuda is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

Takagenji Satoshi is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Ibaraki Prefecture. He made his debut in March 2013 and reached the top makuuchi division in July 2019. He wrestles for Tokiwayama stable. His highest rank has been maegashira 10. He has a twin brother Takanofuji Sanzō who also wrestled for at the same stable under its previous name of Chiganoura.

Atsushi Itō is a Japanese actor. He started acting at the age of three in education programs. He is currently studying at Hosei University Business Faculty. He is frequently cast as geeky or otaku characters. Itō is the older brother of the actor and voice actor Takahiro Itō, who committed suicide in 2009. He was married on May 1, 2010 and has a daughter born on October 29, 2015.

Toshiaki Hirose is former Japanese rugby union player who played as a wing or fly half, and captained the national team between 2012 and 2013.