Otafuku (お多福, lit. “much good fortune”) was one of Nintendo’s premier brand of hanafuda, kabufuda, mekurifuda, and other karuta decks.
The brand is named after Otafuku, a Japanese folk character depicted as a rotund woman who is good-natured and humorous.
It was the 3rd highest-ranking brand in Nintendo’s hanafuda lineup, behind Taisho and followed by Masamune until those brands were discontinued. Since then, it became the 2nd highest-ranking brand alongside Sanbazuru. The brand continued to be used until as late as 1990.
It was also one of Nintendo’s oldest registered trademarks for hanafuda decks. The oldest surviving reference to the brand was in the Japan Patent Office Records, where the trademark was registered in 1900, a year before even Daitoryo was registered.
Illustration of the label from the trademark submission in 1900.
¶ Gallery
| Label | Description |
|---|---|
 |
“RTL Otafuku”. Used until early 1960’s. Text is written right-to-left. Has been redrawn several times, but the general design remains the same. |
|
“LTR Otafuku”. Used from early 1960’s until 1990. Text adjusted so that it’s written left-to-right. |
 |
“Vertical Otafuku”. Used in wrapper labels in some decks in the 1980’s. Text adjusted so that it’s written vertically. Marufuku symbol is moved to bottom left, and added the word “Nintendo” below it, written in Japanese Nintendo logo font. |
 |
Known to be used in a giant box for 2 individually wooden-boxed decks carton box from around 1948-1951. |
¶ Brand Line Up (1930’s Catalog)
¶ Hanafuda
- Daitoryo
- Taisho
- Otafuku
- Masamune
- Shiko jirushi
- Ginsekai
- Chujo
- Asahi Sakura, Kintengu
- Marufuku jirushi
- Yaezakura, Kikusui, Gintengu
- Konishiki jirushi
- Kikumaku
- Tokiwa
- Hatsuzakura
- Hyaku-en
- Hi No De
- Hana No Yama
- Miyako No Hana
¶ Mushibana
¶ Bibliography
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyottoko
- https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/845526 Tokyo Shoin (1905)