Hajime (はじめ) is the Japanese word meaning "beginning" (初め, 始め). In the Japanese traditional martial arts such as karate, judo, aikido, Kūdō and kendo, it is a verbal command to "begin". Hajime is also a common Japanese given name for males.

In the Amami Islands, Hajime (元) is a surname.

Possible writings

Hajime can be written using different kanji characters and can mean:

• 始め, "beginning" or "start"
• 初め, "beginning" or "first"

as a given name

• 一, "first"
• 元, "beginning" or "origin"
• 始, "beginning" or "start"
• 肇, "beginning"
• 基, "fundamental"
• 創, "genesis"
• 孟, "beginning" or "chief"
• 朔, "first day of month"
• 甫, "beginning" or "great"

The name can also be written in hiragana as はじめ and katakana as ハジメ.

People

Given name

• Hajime Funada (船田 元, born 1953), Japanese politician
• Hajime Hana (ハナ 肇, 1930–1993), Japanese musician, actor and comedian
• Hidenokuni Hajime (英ノ国 一, born 1971), Japanese sumo wrestler
• Hajime Hirota (広田 一, born 1968), Japanese politician
• Hajime Hosogai (細貝 萌, born 1986), Japanese football player
• Hajime Hosokawa (細川 一, 1901–1970), first doctor to discover the Minamata disease
• Hajime Iijima (飯島 肇, born 1976), Japanese voice actor
• Hajime Isayama (諫山 創, born 1986), Japanese manga artist; creator of manga Attack on Titan
• Hajime Ishibashi (石橋甫, 1862–1942), Japanese Vice-Admiral
• Hajime Ishii (石井 一, born 1934), Japanese politician
• Hajime Ishii (footballer) (石井 肇, born 1959), Japanese footballer and manager
• Hajime Ishikawa (石川 元, born 1941), Japanese rower
• Hajime Kagimoto (鍵本 肇), Japanese table tennis player
• Hajime Kanzaka (神坂 一, born 1964), Japanese novelist and manga story writer
• Hajime Katoki (カトキ ハジメ, born 1963), Japanese mecha (fictional walking robots) designer
• Hajime Kawakami (河上 肇, 1879–1946), Japanese Marxist economist
• Hajime Kazumi (数見 肇, born 1971), Japanese karateka
• Hajime Matsumoto (松本 哉, born 1974), Japanese activist, and a recycle shop owner
• Hajime Meshiai (飯合 肇, born 1954), Japanese golfer
• Hajime Mizoguchi (溝口 肇, born 1960), Japanese cellist and composer
• Hajime Moriyasu (森保 一, born 1968), Japanese football player
• Hajime Nakamura (中村 元, 1911–1999), Japanese academic of Vedic, Hindu and Buddhist scriptures
• Hajime Okayasu (岡安 肇, born 1936), Japanese anime and film editor and director
• Saitō Hajime (斎藤 一, 1844–1915), samurai who served in the Shinsengumi
• Hajime Satomi (里見 治, born 1942), founder of Sammy Corporation
• Hajime Sawatari (沢渡 朔, born 1940), Japanese photographer
• Hajime Seki (關 一, 1873–1935), Japanese politician
• Hajime Sorayama (空山 基, born 1947), Japanese illustrator
• Hajime Sugiyama (杉山 元, 1880–1945), minister of war in the Imperial Japanese Army
• Hajime Taguchi (田口 一, born 1975), Japanese writer
• Hajime Takano (高野 孟, born 1944), Japanese journalist
• Hajime Tamura (田村 元, 1924–2014), Japanese politician
• Hajime Tanabe (田辺 元, 1889–1962), Japanese philosopher
• Hajime Taniguchi (谷口 一, born 1985), Japanese professional fighting game player
• Hajime Tomii (富井 一, born 1940), Japanese alpine skier
• Hajime Ueda (ウエダ ハジメ), Japanese manga artist
• Hajime Watanabe (animator) (渡辺 はじめ, born 1957), Japanese animator and character designer
• Watanabe Hajime (samurai), Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period
• Hajime Watanuki (綿貫 甫, born 1939), Japanese sport shooter
• Hajime Yasunaga (安永 一, 1901–1994), Japanese amateur Go player
• Hajime Yoshikawa (吉川 元, born 1967), Japanese politician

Surname

• Chitose Hajime (元; born 1979), Japanese singer

Characters

• Hajime Aikawa (始), a character from the Japanese live-action television series Kamen Rider Blade
• Hajime Aoyagi (一), a character from the anime/manga series Yowamushi Pedal
• Hajime Aoyama (ハジメ), a character from the anime series Ghost Stories
• Hajime Fukuroda, a character from Japanese live-action television series Great Teacher Onizuka (2012)
• Hajime Hinata (日向 創), the protagonist of the visual novel Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair
• Hajime Ichinose (はじめ), the protagonist of Gatchaman Crowds
• Hajime Iwaizumi (岩泉 一), a character from the anime series Haikyuu!! with the position of vice captain and wing spiker from Aoba Johsai High
• Hajime Katsura (はじめ), a character from the anime/manga series Digimon Universe: App Monsters
• Hajime Kindaichi (一), a character from the anime/manga series Kindaichi Case Files
• Hajime Kunihiro (一), a female character from the anime/manga series Saki
• Hajime Makunouchi, a character from the Danganronpa fangame, Super Danganronpa Another 2
• Hajime Nagumo (南雲 ハジメ), the protagonist in the anime and manga series Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest
• Hajime Owari (尾張 ハジメ), a character from the anime series Dagashi Kashi
• Hajime Shino (紫之 創), a character from the game franchise Ensemble Stars!
• Hajime Tanaka (田中 一), a character in the Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan rhythm video game duology
• Hajime Tenga (一), one of the main characters from the anime series Kiznaiver
• Hajime Tsukishima (基), a character from the anime/manga series Golden Kamuy
• Hajime Yagi (はじめ), a character from the anime/manga series The World of Narue
• Mutsuki Hajime (睦月 始), a character from the anime series Tsukiuta. The Animation
• Saitō Hajime (斎藤 一), a character from the anime/manga series Rurouni Kenshin
• Hajime Kashimo (鹿紫雲一), a character from the manga series Jujutsu Kaisen

Other uses

• Hajime Yatate (肇), a pseudonym for the collective contributions of the Sunrise animation staff
• Hajime (malware)