What Is the Hitachi Logo?
The Hitachi logo is the name HITACHI in capital letters, which the company redrew in 2025 as one shared logo for every company in the Hitachi Group. Alongside it sits a much older symbol, the Hitachi Mark, a round monogram of the two Japanese characters in the company's name. Both belong to Hitachi, Ltd., the Tokyo-based industrial and technology group that electrical engineer Namihei Odaira founded in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, in 1910.
The HITACHI wordmark is available as the Hitachi logo SVG.
Hitachi Logo Facts
| Introduced | Hitachi Mark at the company's founding; evolved wordmark 1 April 2025 |
| Symbol | None in the wordmark; the Hitachi Mark is a monogram of 日 and 立 |
| Logo type | Wordmark: the HITACHI name |
| Earlier mark | The Hitachi Mark beside the HITACHI name, 1968 to 1992 |
| Owner | Hitachi, Ltd. |
What the Hitachi Logo Means
The name and the mark share one root. Odaira coined Hitachi from two characters: 日 (hi), meaning the sun, and 立 (tachi), meaning rise or stand. He then created the Hitachi Mark to make the company's products recognisable and to link them with quality, combining those same two characters in a single circular badge.
Hitachi explains the outline too. The four projections around the edge of the mark represent solar flares and Odaira's determination at the time of founding: a company standing tall and rising together with the sun. The wordmark spells out the same idea in Latin letters.
Hitachi Logo History
Odaira was head of the engineering department at Hitachi Mine when he decided the mine should build its own machines rather than install imported ones. In 1910 he built the mine's first motor, and the business became an independent company, Hitachi, Ltd., in 1920.
From 1968 to 1992 the corporate logo set the Hitachi Mark to the left of the HITACHI name, and it appeared on most of the company's products until 1991. In 2000 Hitachi adopted the slogan "Inspire the Next", and as the line was built into its branding, the monogram was gradually phased out of the logo. It kept a role as a symbol of the company as a whole, for example as the favicon of its website.
On 19 March 2025 Hitachi unveiled its first new visual identity in about 25 years, launched on 1 April 2025 as Toshiaki Tokunaga became president and CEO. It introduced an evolved logo used by all group companies, a bespoke typeface called Hitachi Sans, refreshed colours and 3D textures in two styles, Red and Neutral.
The Hitachi Tree
Hitachi has a third symbol that never appears in its logo. Since 1975 most of its television commercials have shown a tree under the song "Hitachi no Ki". The same monkeypod tree on Oahu, Hawaii, starred from 1975 to 1979, gave way to three other trees, and has been the Hitachi Tree again since 1984. For a Japanese electronics rival built on a name rather than a symbol, compare the Panasonic logo.
For more brands like Hitachi, browse our tech logos.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the name Hitachi mean?
It joins 日 (hi), the sun, and 立 (tachi), to rise or stand, a name Odaira coined himself.
What is the Hitachi Mark?
A round monogram of the two characters in the Hitachi name, created by founder Namihei Odaira. Its four outer projections represent solar flares.
When did Hitachi change its logo?
Hitachi launched an evolved logo, shared by all group companies, on 1 April 2025, its first visual identity change in about 25 years.
Who founded Hitachi?
Electrical engineer Namihei Odaira, who built his first motor at the Hitachi mine in Ibaraki Prefecture in 1910.