Arai (written: 新井 or 荒井) is a Japanese surname.
"新井" means "new well.” "荒井" means "well in the wilderness".
Notable people with the surname include:
, Japanese singer and lyricist Alberto Arai (1915–1955), Mexican architect and writer , Japanese water polo player , Japanese politician, younger brother of Iemitsu Arai , Japanese scholar and politician , Japanese screenwriter , Japanese manga artist , Japanese actor , Japanese politician , Japanese politician, older brother of Etsuji Arai , Japanese samurai (born 1964), birthname of Japanese singer and actress (born 1998), Japanese mixed martial artist , Japanese male professional wrestler , Japanese football player , Japanese male golfer , Japanese manga artist , Japanese retired football player , Japanese women's tennis player , Japanese judoka , Japanese female pair skater , Japanese male wrestler , Japanese astronomer , Japanese diver , Japanese science fiction writer , Japanese model and actress , Japanese footballer , Japanese baseball player , Japanese male freestyle swimmer , Japanese female wheelchair racer , Japanese mathematical logician and artificial intelligence researcher Ryohei Arai (disambiguation), multiple people , Japanese businessman , Japanese illustrator , Japanese baseball player , Japanese Biblical scholar , Japanese voice actress , Japanese politician , Japanese male freestyle swimmer , Japanese politician Shota Arai (disambiguation), multiple people , Japanese professional wrestler promoter , Japanese baseball player , Japanese beauty pageant contestant , Japanese football player , Japanese engineer , Japanese football player , Japanese rally driver and team owner , Japanese female fencer (born 1954), birthname of Japanese musician Zack Arai, Japanese adult video director