also: ざんぞんしゃ
noun
survivor; holdover
Refers to a person or thing that remains after others have perished or disappeared. Often used in contexts of disasters, wars, or the passing of time.
震災の残存者たちは、互いに助け合って生き延びた。
The survivors of the earthquake disaster helped each other to survive.
彼は戦争の残存者として、その体験を語り継いでいる。
As a survivor of the war, he continues to pass on his experiences.
生存者 is a more common word for 'survivor' in everyday contexts. 残存者 emphasizes the idea of remaining after others are gone, often with a nuance of being a remnant.
Compound of 残存 (remaining, survival) and 者 (person). The reading ざんぞんしゃ is a variant with rendaku-like voicing, but the exact derivation is uncertain.