Kamon on Do

[doUbLe ShInaii]

I've been searching online for kamon's, but hav been unsuccesful in finding my kamon for my last name, Tamakawa. I hav found a manufacturer who would put this on my do.
I would greatly appreciate it if anyone could find this for me
ALso, is it OK to do this?
P.S. Tamakawa translates into ball river

[Pan-Chan]

Well I'm not completely sure what a kamon is, but my guess would be it's the family symbols that are put on the do. I know that those are okay.. But other do stickers or decals or whatever generally aren't allowed in tournaments. As to where to get one, I havn't the slightest idea. Maybe your sensei know. Good Luck!! :)

[Paburo]

not all family names in japan have a kamon. have in mind kamon were used mainly by samurai families, and in the past not all families were samurai.

also, if your name is translated from another language (korean?) which seems to be your case? then i guess it will be even harder to find your kamon.

in any case, look it up on google under tamagawa. maybe a japanese kenshi on this forum can shed more light on your case!

p.s. setting up a kamon on your dou is ok. some dou even come with a kamon on it when you buy them, and you can buy them separately online too.

[mkomoto]

As the other's who responded had mentioned, kamon are not necessarily name specific. One approach you may take is to check with your relatives, especially if you have kin in Japan. They know for sure, as the crest is used on special occasions, although in recent times, infrequently.

Some designs are quite common, and you can find tables that catalog and identify them by feature or meaning. For these common ones, you can order them up in Japan as a usual service, in the form of stickers, hand painted applications, and super-custom designs applied in relief, that is, as a raised design, in lacquer, with or with out metallic guilding on top.

Other designs that may be obsure will require an example, these of course are custom only.

Chiba Budougu, Ltd., handles these applications regularly. If you have interest, you can contact them at info@chibabogu.com for more information.

They also do set-designs for teams and clubs.

Hope it is of some help to you. If anyone else has any good info, please let the rest of us know.

mkomoto