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Sumo Wrestlers' Shikona (四股名 · 本名)
Every professional sumo wrestler fights under a ring name, a 四股名 (shikona). For many wrestlers, especially those born outside Japan, the shikona becomes the name the world knows.
The naming custom. A shikona is usually chosen by the wrestler's stable master (親方 oyakata) when he joins or is promoted. Names often: - reuse a kanji from the stable's name or its past stars (Musashimaru, for example, came from Musashigawa stable), - describe strength or nature (dawn, crane, dragon, mountain), - honor a hometown.
Wrestlers may change shikona after promotions or bad luck. Japanese-born wrestlers sometimes fight under their own surname early on. Wrestlers born abroad who become Japanese citizens must also take a Japanese legal name, which is a separate step from the shikona. After retirement, a wrestler who stays in the Japan Sumo Association takes an elder name (年寄名跡 toshiyori myōseki).
The Japan Sumo Association (日本相撲協会, sumo.or.jp) publishes official wrestler profiles, which are our main source.