was a Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese kabuki

Kabuki

is classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.The individual kanji characters, from left to right, mean sing , dance , and skill...

 performer, known both for his own work and for his place in the lineage of a family of kabuki actors .
He was the son of Iwai Hanshiro VII.

Iwai Hanshiro was a stage name with significant cultural and historical connotations.

In the conservative Kabuki world, stage names are passed from father to son in formal system which converts the kabuki stage name into a mark of accomplishment. This actor assumed the mantle of his father's stage name in 1872.

Lineage of Iwai stage names

• Iwai Hanshiro I
  Iwai Hanshiro I
  was a Japanese kabuki performer, known both for his own work and for his role as the progenator of a family of kabuki actors from Osaka.Iwai Hanshiro was a stage name with significant cultural and historical connotations....
  
   (1652–1699)
• Iwai Hanshiro II (     -1710)
• Iwai Hanshiro III (1698–1760)
• Iwai Hanshiro IV (1747–1800)
• Iwai Hanshiro V
  Iwai Hanshiro V
  was a Japanese kabuki performer, known both for his own work and for his place in the lineage of a family of kabuki actors in Edo during the Edo period. He was the son of Iwai Hanshiro IV...
  
   (1776–1847)
• Iwai Hanshiro VI (1799–1836)
• Iwai Hanshiro VII (1804–1845)
• Iwai Hanshiro VIII (1829–1882)
• Iwai Hanshiro IX (1882–1945)
• Iwai Hanshiro X (1927-     )