Which well-known Japanese corporate name translates into English as “three water chestnuts”?

"Mitsubishi" is a combination of the words “mitsu” and “hishi”. “Mitsu” means three and “hishi” means water chestnut. In Japan, the word is also used to denote a rhombus or diamond shape. In Japanese pronunciation the "h" sound becomes a "b" sound when it occurs in the middle of a word. So, the combination of “mitsu” and “hishi” is pronounced “mitsubishi”. The name "Mitsubishi" refers to the three-diamond logo of the Mitsubishi companies.

Iwasaki Yatarō founded the old Mitsubishi organization in 1870 and chose the three-diamond mark as the emblem for his company. The mark reflects the 3-leaf crest of the Tosa Clan, Iwasaki’s first employer, and also of the 3 stacked rhombuses of the Iwasaki family crest.

The Mitsubishi Group was originally a unified company which existed from 1870 to 1947. It was disbanded during the occupation of Japan following World War II. The former constituents of the company continue to share the Mitsubishi brand and trademark. Although the group companies participate in limited business cooperation, they are each formally independent. The 4 main companies in the group are MUFG Bank (Mitsubishi UFC (United Financial Holdings Japan) Financial Group, the largest bank in Japan), Mitsubishi Corporation (general trading), Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (diversified manufacturing companies).

For reader information, Sanyo translates into “three oceans”, Nintendo into “leave luck to heaven” and Toyota into “abundant field”.