This article looks at the prevalence of surnames in Japan and examines the Yamamoto family, which is widely considered to be one of the wealthiest families in all of Japan today. It discusses the history of Japanese surnames and how they have been adapted over time, as well as other wealthy Japanese families such as Honda, Matsushita, Mori, Takahashi, Suzuki, Toyoda, Uchida and Watanabe. The article also provides information on how to research who the richest people are by surname using financial publications such as Forbes Magazine or Nikkei Business Magazine.