Japanese Green Car clover mark

A four-leaf clover on a green ground.

Also known as: Green Car mark, Clover mark Japan

In Japanese:: グリーン車
In Japanese (Latin):: Gurīnsha

Road & transportStandard profile

Meanings

Marks a first-class carriage on a Japanese railway, named and drawn as a clover.

Officially standardisedVerified fact
Marks a first-class carriage.
Contexts: Public information
Officially standardisedVerified fact
Takes its name from the green stripe of the older first-class carriages and its figure from a clover chosen when the class was renamed in 1969; the leaf has no relation to the class and is simply the mark that was adopted, which is why it is unreadable to a visitor.
Contexts: Public information

Visual description

A four-leaf clover with rounded lobes and a short stem, set on a panel of a single flat tone.

Symmetry: none
Orientation: upright
Colours: green, white

Confidence

IdentityModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the identity is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far.
Historical originLow confidence: Low confidence because the historical origin is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far, but early or supporting evidence is limited, but the regional or cultural match to this specific claim is not precise.
Current useModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the current use is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far.
Visual matchModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the visual match is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far.

Sources

Station numbering and line symbol guidance for Japanese railways
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism · retrieved 2026-08-27
The national guidance under which Japanese operators assign a line letter and a station number to every station. The guidance is a recommendation to operators rather than a mandate, and operators differ; the records say where they differ.

Last reviewed 2026-08-27

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Meanings

Marks a first-class carriage on a Japanese railway, named and drawn as a clover.

Officially standardisedVerified fact

Marks a first-class carriage.

Contexts: Public information

Officially standardisedVerified fact

Takes its name from the green stripe of the older first-class carriages and its figure from a clover chosen when the class was renamed in 1969; the leaf has no relation to the class and is simply the mark that was adopted, which is why it is unreadable to a visitor.

Contexts: Public information

Confidence

IdentityModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the identity is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far.
Historical originLow confidence: Low confidence because the historical origin is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far, but early or supporting evidence is limited, but the regional or cultural match to this specific claim is not precise.
Current useModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the current use is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far.
Visual matchModerate confidence: Moderate confidence because the visual match is documented in encyclopedic references, but only a single source has been found so far.

Sources

Station numbering and line symbol guidance for Japanese railways
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism · retrieved 2026-08-27
The national guidance under which Japanese operators assign a line letter and a station number to every station. The guidance is a recommendation to operators rather than a mandate, and operators differ; the records say where they differ.

Last reviewed 2026-08-27