Select the paragraph or text frame containing Japanese text.
Last updated on
Oct 25, 2026
Apply Kinsoku Shori rules to control where Japanese characters break across lines.
Kinsoku Shori ensures proper Japanese text composition by preventing specific characters from appearing at inappropriate line positions.
Kinsoku Shori applies line-breaking rules that prevent certain Japanese characters (Kinsoku characters) from appearing at the beginning or end of lines. Illustrator provides predefined hard and soft Kinsoku sets—soft sets omit long vowel symbols and small Hiragana characters. You can apply existing sets, create custom sets with specific character codes, or define hanging punctuation and non-splitting character behaviors. These settings work alongside Mojikumi spacing rules to ensure professional Japanese typography.
- Illustrator with East Asian type options enabled (select Show East Asian Options in Type preferences)
- Text formatted with Japanese characters
- Understanding of your project's typographic requirements
Japanese text composition requires careful control over which characters can start or end lines. Kinsoku Shori provides this control through predefined character sets and customizable line-breaking behavior.
Apply Kinsoku settings to paragraphs
Navigate to Window > Type > Paragraph to open the Paragraph panel.
Choose an option from the Kinsoku Set dropdown: select None to disable Kinsoku, or select Soft or Hard to prevent Kinsoku characters from appearing at line beginnings or endings.
After applying a Kinsoku set, Illustrator automatically adjusts line breaks according to the selected rules. For more precise control over character spacing and composition, you can create custom Kinsoku sets.
Create custom Kinsoku sets
Select Type > Kinsoku Shori Settings, or choose Kinsoku Settings from the Kinsoku Set dropdown in the Paragraph panel.
Select New Set in the Kinsoku Shori Settings dialog.
Enter a descriptive name for your custom set and choose an existing set to use as the foundation.
Select the field where you want to add characters (such as Cannot Start Line or Cannot End Line).
Add characters by entering them directly in the Input box, selecting Direct Entry, and selecting Add, or by specifying a code system (Shift JIS, JIS, Kuten, or Unicode), entering the character code, and selecting Add.
Select OK to save your custom Kinsoku set.
Tip
To verify character codes, select the character in the Input box and choose the code system (Shift JIS, JIS, Kuten, or Unicode) to display its code value.
Custom Kinsoku sets can be shared across projects or with team members through import and export functionality.
Manage Kinsoku sets
Open Type > Kinsoku Shori Settings.
To export a set for reuse, select the set from the Kinsoku Set dropdown, select Export, choose a save location, and save the file (Illustrator saves it in KSK format).
To import a set, select Import, navigate to the KSK file, and select Open.
To remove a custom set, choose it from the Kinsoku Set dropdown and select Delete Set.
Note
Predefined Kinsoku sets cannot be deleted. When you delete a custom set, text using that set reverts to default settings.
Configure line-breaking behavior
Kinsoku Shori provides three methods for handling prohibited characters at line breaks. Your choice affects how Illustrator adjusts text to maintain proper line composition.
Set line-breaking options
Select paragraphs with Kinsoku Shori or Mojikumi enabled.
Navigate to the Paragraph panel menu and select Kinsoku Shori Type.
Choose Push In First to move characters to the previous line when possible, Push Out First to move characters to the next line when possible, or Push Out Only to always move characters down without attempting to push in.
Control character splitting and hanging punctuation
Beyond basic line-breaking rules, Kinsoku Shori includes options for preventing specific character combinations from splitting across lines and for allowing punctuation to extend beyond text boundaries.
Enable Bunri-Kinshi
Select text with Kinsoku Shori enabled.
Open the Paragraph panel menu and select Bunri-Kinshi to prevent characters specified in the Bunri-Kinshi section of Kinsoku Shori Settings from splitting across lines.
Note
Bunri-Kinshi is only available when Kinsoku Shori is enabled.
Configure Burasagari hanging punctuation
Select the paragraphs where you want to apply hanging punctuation.
Choose Burasagari from the Paragraph panel menu.
Select None to disable hanging punctuation, Regular to allow single-byte and double-byte periods and commas to extend beyond the bounding box without forcing alignment, or Force to force punctuation outside the bounding box by spreading lines that end within it.
Note
Burasagari options are disabled when Kinsoku Set is set to None.
Apply Kurikaeshi Moji Shori for repeated characters
Select the paragraph containing repeated Japanese characters.
Open the Paragraph panel menu and select Kurikaeshi Moji Shori to display both characters when identical characters separated by a line break would normally be replaced by a repeat character mark.
By combining these Kinsoku settings with appropriate line-breaking methods, you can achieve professional Japanese text composition that meets specific editorial or design requirements.
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