Isao

Isao (いさお, イサオ) is a masculine Japanese given name which was popular during the Shōwa period.

Possible writings
Isao can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: The name can also be written in hiragana or katakana.
 * 功, "achievement"
 * 勲, "meritorious"
 * 績, "exploits"
 * 公, "public"
 * 勇男, "brave, man"
 * 勇夫, "brave, man"
 * 勇雄, "brave, masculine"
 * 伊佐夫
 * 伊佐雄
 * 伊三男

People with the name

 * Isao Abe (阿部 功), Japanese hammer thrower
 * Isao Aoki (功, born 1942), Japanese professional golfer
 * Isao Asai (浅井 功), Japanese ice hockey player
 * Isao Harimoto (勲, born 1940), Zainichi Korean professional baseball player
 * Isao Hashizume (功, born 1941), Japanese actor
 * Isao Hayashi (林 伊佐緒), Japanese singer and composer
 * Isao Homma (born 1981), Japanese footballer who plays for Albirex Niigata
 * Isao Inokuma (功, 1938–2001), Japanese judoka
 * Isao Iwabuchi (born 1933), Japanese Olympic football player
 * Isao Kakihara (垣原 功), Japanese ice hockey player
 * Isao Kawabuchi (河淵 勲), Japanese ice hockey player
 * Isao Kikuchi (born 1921), American graphic designer, painter, carver, illustrator
 * Isao Kimura (功, 1923–1981), Japanese actor
 * Isao Kubota (born 1983), Japanese footballer who plays for Samut Songkhram
 * Isao Kuraishi (倉石 功), Japanese actor
 * Isao Matsumiya, Japanese politician
 * Isao Matsuoka (功, born 1934), Chairman of Toho
 * Isao Morishita (森下 勲), Japanese motorcycle racer
 * Isao Nakajima (中島 功), Japanese swimmer
 * Isao Nakauchi (功, 1922–2005), founder of Daiei
 * Isao Obata (1904–1976), pioneering Japanese master of Shotokan karate
 * Isao Okano (功, born 1944), Japanese judoka
 * Isao Okawa (功, 1926–2001), former Chairman of Sega
 * Isao Okazaki (功, 1920–2006), Japanese right-wing activist
 * Isao Ono (小野 悳), Japanese ice hockey player
 * Isao Sasaki, (功, Japanese anime singer, actor, and voice actor
 * Isao Shinohara, (篠原 功), Japanese voice actor
 * Isao Takagi (高木 功), Japanese professional wrestler
 * Isao Takahata (勲, 1935–2018), Japanese anime director
 * Isao Tamagawa (伊佐男, 1922–2004), Japanese actor
 * Isao Tomita (勲, born 1932), Japanese electronic music composer
 * Isao Yamada (山田 勇男), Japanese film director
 * Isao Yamagata (1915–1996), Japanese film actor (fl. 1951 and 1984)
 * Isao Yamagishi (山岸 勲), Japanese diver
 * Isao Yoneda (功, born 1977), Japanese gymnast
 * Isao Yukisada (勲, born 1968), Japanese film director

Fictional characters

 * Isao, a character in the manga series How to Keep a Mummy
 * Isao Iinuma, protagonist of the novel Runaway Horses
 * Isao Ohta (功), a character in the anime and manga series Mobile Police Patlabor
 * Kondo Isao, a character in the anime and manga series Gin Tama