hey, mike: Japanese names

Can you tell me a little about Japanese names?
Do the kanji used have special meanings?

— Richard Young

Like in many other places in the world, Japanese names can often reflect the area that person is born, so names tend to group together by region. These names usually use the same kanji combination as well. For example, there is a high concentration of last names such as Kinjo, Gushiken, and Yamashiro on Okinawa.

First names on the other hand, are a different story. Children are sometimes named after relatives (although different kanji are used to tell them apart) and in some cases, kanji denoting numbers are used in names to differentiate between the first- second- and third-born child. An excellent example of this phenomenon would be lchiro Suzuki (ichi is the kanji for the number one). Many children are also named after famous figures in history, celebrities, heroes and heroines from movies and novels, as well as famous sports figures (the Japanese population of Ichiros has grown a great deal recently).

Although some parents use hiragana characters for their child’s first name, most names tend to be made of kanji characters. Since each and every kanji has its own specific meaning and can also have different pronunciations (which change when used in different combinations with other kanji), choosing an appropriate name for a child can be a daunting task for many parents.

On top of the literally thousands of kanji and different kanji combinations that can be used for the same name, many parents also take into consideration what they want their child to be like as an adult—it is a very popular belief in Japan that a child’s name and its kanji “ spelling” directly affect their fortunes. For example, Keiko is a fairly common Japanese female name. However, more than 70 variations of the kanji for Keiko exist, and the meaning of each and every one differs depending on the characters used. The total number of strokes used to write both the child’s first and last name is also believed to be a factor in determining the difference between an auspicious fate and a bad destiny.

During ancient times when parents chose a kanji for the name of their child, they usually picked each individual character specifically for its meaning. For example, the kanji character for child, ko, was commonly used as the end of female names (such as Keiko) because the character also evoked purity and represented something precious. The character mi (also read as bi) was also a popular kanji to use in girls’ names, because it literally denotes beauty.

Characters that have enjoyed popularity since ancient days for boys’ names include dai, which means “large," ta, which means “great,” and gen, which means “origin." Popular characters for both boys’ and girls’ names include examples such as yu (courage), kou (happiness), sei (success), jo (upward), and ayumi(u) (forward progress).

Kanji that represent images are also popular for names. Natural images, phenomenon, the four seasons, colors, and jewels often find their ways into many children’s names. Some of the more popular are snow (yuki), the ocean (kai), summer (natsu), and the kanji for sun (ta or tai) and moon (tsuki).

A survey conducted by Benesse Corp. found that in 2007, Hiroto was the most popular name for boys and Hina topped Japan’s favorite names for newborn girls.

—Mike Daley

Got questions for Mike? E-mail editor@okinawa.usmc-mccs.org.