The are mon that depict the paulownia. The most notable of the crests is the , which is sometimes known in English as the government crest due to its use by the prime minister, the Cabinet, and parts of the executive branch of the Government, and is one of the national emblems of Japan. Paulownia crests come in a number of different designs, and are also sometimes known as the .
Before the chrysanthemum crest was used extensively, the 5-7 paulownia originally was the private symbol of the Japanese Imperial Family, from as early as the sixteenth century. The Toyotomi clan, led by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, later adopted the paulownia for use as the crest of his clan. After the Meiji Restoration, the crest was eventually adopted as the symbol of the Japanese government.
As a result, it is now mainly used by the Japanese government, as a contrast to the chrysanthemum crest which represents the emperor as the symbol of the sovereignty of the State, and members of the Imperial Family.
More than 140 designs exist of the paulownia crests. The most common one is the , consisting of three leaves and an inflorescence of 3-5-3 flowers. It is used by the Ministry of Justice, the Imperial Guard Headquarters, and the University of Tsukuba.
The 5-7 Paulownia and 5-3 Paulownia are also called "Go-shichi Giri" and "Go-san Giri" without the particle "no" respectively, due to consonant mutation ("Kiri" â "Giri") known as rendaku in the Japanese language. The paulownia crests contain the leaves and flowers of Paulownia tomentosa ("princess tree"), which is called "kiri" (æ¡Â) or "shirogiri (ç½æ¡Â)" in Japanese.