PURPOSE: To obtain the final recognition result of the address words of respective hierarchies even if the addresses in which the address word of the highest hierarchy is omitted are filled by shifting respective comparing objects by one hierarchy as a whole and calculating similarity at every time if respective address words information and the recognition result of the address words of respective hierarchies are noncoincident.

CONSTITUTION: If respective address words information and the recognition result of the address words of respective hierarchies are noncoincident, respective comparing objects are shifted by one hierarchy as a hole and the similarity is calculated at every time. Namely, if respective address words are judged to be noncoincident, sequential comparison is executed at every hierarchy with address words information below second hierarchies as the object. The final recognition result is obtained from the combination of respective address words information when similarity becomes maximum and the recognition result of the address words of respective hierarchies. Even if the addresses in which the address word of the highest hierarchy is omitted are filled in a business form, the final recognition result of the address words of respective hierarchies in the address can be obtained.