What Happens When Two Classmates in Japan Have the Same Family Name
Japanese names ( 日本人の氏名、日本人の姓名、日本人の名前 , Nihonjin no Shimei, Nihonjin no Seimei, Nihonjin no Namae ) in modern times consist of a family name (surname) followed by a given name, in that order. Nevertheless, when a Japanese name is written in the Roman alphabet, ever since the Meiji era, the official policy has been to cater to Western expectations and opposite the order. As of 2019[update], the government has stated its intention to alter this policy.[2] Japanese names are usually written in kanji, which are characters that are Chinese in origin just Japanese in pronunciation. The pronunciation of kanji Japanese names follows a special set of rules. Parents besides have the choice of using hiragana or katakana when giving a birth proper noun to their newborn kid. Names written in hiragana or katakana are phonetic renderings, and so lack the visual pregnant of names expressed in the logographic kanji.
Co-ordinate to estimates, at that place are over 300,000 different surnames in use today in Japan.[3] The iii most mutual family unit names in Nippon are Satō ( 佐藤 ), Suzuki ( 鈴木 ), and Takahashi ( 高橋 ).[iv] Many Japanese surnames were created in the Muromachi flow.[5] Japanese peasants had surnames in the Edo flow. Withal, they could not utilise them in public.[6]
Surnames occur with varying frequency in dissimilar regions; for case, the names Chinen ( 知念 ), Higa ( 比嘉 ), and Shimabukuro ( 島袋 ) are common in Okinawa just not in other parts of Japan; this is mainly due to differences between the language and culture of Yamato people and Okinawans. Many Japanese family unit names derive from features of the rural landscape; for case, Ishikawa ( 石川 ) ways "river of the stones", Yamamoto ( 山本 ) means "the base of the mountain", and Inoue ( 井上 ) ways "above the well".
While family names follow relatively consistent rules, given names are much more diverse in pronunciation and character usage. While many common names can easily be spelled or pronounced, many parents choose names with unusual characters or pronunciations, and such names cannot in general be spelled or pronounced unless both the spelling and pronunciation are given. Unusual pronunciations have especially become common, with this trend having increased significantly since the 1990s.[7] [8] For example, the popular masculine name 大翔 is traditionally pronounced "Hiroto", only in recent years culling pronunciations "Haruto", "Yamato", "Taiga", "Sora", "Taito", "Daito", and "Masato" have all entered use.[7]
Male person names frequently end in -rō ( 郎 , "son"), but as well "clear, bright" ( 朗 ) (east.one thousand. "Ichirō"); -ta ( 太 , "smashing, thick" or "first [son]") (eastward.thou. "Kenta") or -o ( 男/雄/天 , "man") (e.one thousand. "Teruo" or "Akio"),[9] or incorporate ichi ( 一 , "start [son]") (eastward.m. "Ken'ichi"), kazu ( 一 , "showtime [son]") (besides written with 一 , along with several other possible characters; e.grand. "Kazuhiro"), ji ( 二/次 , "2nd [son]" or "next") (e.g. "Jirō"), or dai ( 大 , "great, large") (eastward.thou. "Daichi").
Female names often end in -ko ( 子 , "child") (e.k. "Keiko") or -mi ( 美 , "beauty") (e.1000. "Yumi"). Other popular endings for female person names include -ka ( 香 , "scent, perfume") or "blossom" ( 花 ) (due east.yard. "Reika") and -na ( 奈/菜 , "greens" or "apple tree") (due east.thousand. "Haruna").
Structure
The majority of Japanese people have one surname and 1 given name with no other names, except for the Japanese purple family, whose members bear no surname. The family unit name – myōji ( 苗字 or 名字 ), uji ( 氏 ) or sei ( 姓 ) – precedes the given name, chosen the "name" – ( 名 mei) or "lower name" ( 下の名前 shita no namae). The given name may be referred to every bit the "lower name" because, in vertically written Japanese, the given name appears nether the family name.[10] People with mixed Japanese and foreign parentage may have eye names.[11]
Historically, myōji, uji and sei had different meanings. Sei was originally the patrilineal surname which was granted by the emperor every bit a championship of male person rank. In that location were relatively few sei, and most of the medieval noble clans trace their lineage either directly to these sei or to the courtiers of these sei. Uji was some other name used to designate patrilineal descent, but later merged with myōji around the same time. Myōji was, simply, what a family unit chooses to call itself, equally opposed to the sei granted by the emperor. While it was passed on patrilineally in male person ancestors including in male ancestors called haku (uncles), one had a sure caste of freedom in irresolute one's myōji. Meet too Kabane.
A single name-forming chemical element, such as hiro ("expansiveness") can be written by more than one kanji ( 博 , 弘 , or 浩 ). Conversely, a particular kanji can have multiple meanings and pronunciations. In some names, Japanese characters phonetically "spell" a name and have no intended meaning behind them. Many Japanese personal names use puns.[12]
Very few names tin serve either equally surnames or as given names (for example Mayumi 真弓 , Kaneko 金子 , Masuko 益子 , or Arata 新 ). Therefore, to those familiar with Japanese names, which name is the surname and which is the given proper noun is commonly apparent, no matter which order the names are presented in. This thus makes it unlikely that the 2 names volition be dislocated, for example, when writing in English language while using the family unit proper noun-given name naming club. However, due to the variety of pronunciations and differences in languages, some common surnames and given names may coincide when Romanized: eastward.yard., Maki ( 真紀, 麻紀, or 真樹 ) (given proper noun) and Maki ( 槇, 牧, or 薪 ) (surname).
Although unremarkably written in Kanji, Japanese names take distinct differences from Chinese names through the selection of characters in a proper noun and pronunciation. A Japanese person can distinguish a Japanese name from a Chinese proper name past looking at information technology. Akie Tomozawa said that this was equivalent to how "Europeans can easily tell that the name 'Smith' is English language and 'Schmidt' is German or 'Victor' is English or French and 'Vittorio' is Italian".[13]
Characters
Japanese names are usually written in kanji (Chinese characters), although some names use hiragana or even katakana, or a mixture of kanji and kana. While most "traditional" names utilize kun'yomi (native Japanese) kanji readings, a big number of given names and surnames use on'yomi (Chinese-based) kanji readings every bit well. Many others apply readings which are only used in names (nanori), such as the female name Nozomi ( 希 ). The majority of surnames comprise one, ii or three kanji characters. In that location are also a modest number of four or 5 kanji surnames, such as Teshigawara ( 勅使河原 ), Kutaragi ( 久多良木 ) and Kadenokōji ( 勘解由小路 ), but these are extremely rare.[ citation needed ] The sound no, indicating possession (like the Saxon genitive in English), and respective to the character の , is often included in names but not written as a separate grapheme, as in the mutual proper noun 井上 (i-no-ue, well-(possessive)-height/above, top of the well), or historical figures such every bit Sen no Rikyū.[14]
Most personal names utilise one, two, or 3 kanji.[12] Four-syllable given names are common, especially in eldest sons.[fifteen]
As mentioned above, female given names often end in the syllable ko, written with the kanji pregnant "child" ( 子 ), or mi, written with the kanji meaning "beautiful" ( 美 ).[xvi]
The usage of -ko ( 子 ) has changed significantly over the years: prior to the Meiji Restoration (1868), it was reserved for members of the royal family. Following the restoration, it became popular and was overwhelmingly mutual in the Taishō and early on Shōwa era.[vii] The suffix -ko increased in popularity after the mid-20th century. Around the twelvemonth 2006, due to the citizenry mimicking naming habits of popular entertainers, the suffix -ko was failing in popularity. At the same time, names of western origin, written in kana, were becoming increasingly popular for naming of girls.[12] By 2004 at that place was a trend of using hiragana instead of kanji in naming girls. Molly Hakes said that this may take to do with using hiragana out of cultural pride, since hiragana is Japan's indigenous writing form, or out of non assigning a meaning to a daughter'south proper noun so that others do non have a detail expectation of her.[16]
Names ending with -ko dropped significantly in popularity in the mid-1980s, but are still given, though much less than in the past. Male names occasionally end with the syllable ko as in Mako, but very rarely using the kanji 子 (most often, if a male name ends in -ko, it ends in -hiko, using the kanji 彦 meaning "boy"). Common male name endings are -shi and -o; names ending with -shi are frequently adjectives, east.g., Atsushi which might hateful, for example, "(to be) faithful." In the past (before World War II), names written with katakana were common for women, but this trend seems to have lost favour. Hiragana names for women are non unusual. Kana names for boys, particularly those written in hiragana, accept historically been very rare. This may be in part considering the hiragana script is seen as feminine; in medieval Japan, women by and large were not taught kanji and wrote exclusively in hiragana.[ citation needed ]
In Japanese, words, and thus names, do not begin with the syllable due north ( ん , ン ); this is in common with other proper Japanese words, though colloquial words may begin with ん , as in んまい (nmai, variant of うまい umai, succulent). Some names end in n: the male names Ken, Shin, and Jun are examples. The syllable due north should not be dislocated with the consonant n, which names can begin with; for example, the female name Naoko ( 尚子 ) or the male Naoya ( 直哉 ). (The consonant north needs to be paired with a vowel to form a syllable).
One large category of family unit names can be categorized as "-tō" names. The kanji 藤 , significant wisteria, has the on'yomi tō (or, with rendaku, dō). Many Japanese people take surnames that include this kanji as the second character. This is because the Fujiwara association ( 藤原家 ) gave their samurai surnames (myōji) ending with the first character of their name, to denote their status in an era when commoners were not allowed surnames. Examples include Atō, Andō, Itō (although a unlike concluding kanji is likewise common), Udō, Etō, Endō, Gotō, Jitō, Katō, Kitō, Kudō, Kondō, Saitō, Satō, Shindō, Sudō, Naitō, Bitō, and Mutō. As already noted, some of the most common family unit names are in this list.
Japanese family names usually include characters referring to places and geographic features.[17]
Difficulty of reading names
A name written in kanji may have more one common pronunciation, but one of which is correct for a given individual. For example, the surname written in kanji as 東海林 may be read either Tōkairin or Shōji. Conversely, any ane name may have several possible written forms, and again, merely 1 will exist correct for a given private. The graphic symbol " 一 " when used as a male given name may be used as the written class for "Hajime," "Hitoshi," "Ichi- / -ichi" "Kazu- / -kazu," and many others. The name "Hajime" may be written with any of the following: 始 , 治 , 初 , 一 , 元 , 肇 , 創 , 甫 , 基 , 哉 , 啓 , 本 , 源 , 東 , 大 , 孟 , or 祝 . This many-to-many correspondence between names and the means they are written is much more than common with male given names than with surnames or female given names but can be observed in all these categories. The permutations of potential characters and sounds tin can become enormous, as some very overloaded sounds may exist produced by over 500 singled-out Kanji and some Kanji characters can stand up for several dozen sounds. This can and does make the collation, pronunciation, and romanization of a Japanese proper name a very hard problem. For this reason, business cards ofttimes include the pronunciation of the name equally furigana, and forms and documents often include spaces to write the reading of the name in kana (unremarkably katakana).
A few Japanese names, peculiarly family names, include archaic versions of characters. For instance, the very common character shima, isle, may be written equally 嶋 or 嶌 instead of the usual 島 . Some names also feature very uncommon kanji, or even kanji which no longer exist in modern Japanese. Japanese people who have such names are likely to compromise by substituting similar or simplified characters. This may exist difficult for input of kanji in computers, equally many kanji databases on computers only include mutual and regularly used kanji, and many archaic or mostly unused characters are not included. An odd problem occurs when an elderly person forgets how to write their name in old Kanji that is no longer used.
An case of such a name is Saitō. There are 2 common kanji for sai here. The 2 sai characters take different meanings: 斉 means "together" or "parallel", but 斎 means "to purify". These names tin can as well exist written in archaic forms, as 齊藤 and 齋藤 respectively.
Family unit names are sometimes written with periphrastic readings, called jukujikun, in which the written characters chronicle indirectly to the name as spoken. For example, 四月一日 would usually exist read as shigatsu tsuitachi ("April 1st"), just every bit a family name it is read watanuki ("unpadded wearing apparel"), because April 1 is the traditional date to switch from winter to summer clothes. In the same manner 小鳥遊 would commonly be read as kotori asobi ("little birds play") or shōchōyū, only is read Takanashi, because piddling birds (kotori) play (asobi) where there are no (nashi) hawks (taka).
Most Japanese people and agencies take adopted community to bargain with these issues. Address books, for instance, ofttimes contain furigana or ruby characters to clarify the pronunciation of the proper noun. Japanese nationals are also required to give a romanized name for their passport. The recent use of katakana in Japanese media when referring to Japanese celebrities who have gained international fame has started a fad among young socialites who attempt to invoke a cosmopolitan flair using katakana names as a badge of accolade.[ commendation needed ] All of these complications are also constitute in Japanese place names.
Not all names are complicated. Some mutual names are summarized by the phrase tanakamura ("the hamlet in the center of the rice fields"): the three kanji: 田 (ta, rice field), 中 (naka, middle) and 村 (mura, hamlet), together in any pair, grade a elementary, reasonably common surname: Tanaka, Nakamura, Murata, Nakata (Nakada), Muranaka, Tamura.
Despite these difficulties, there are enough patterns and recurring names that nigh native Japanese will be able to read virtually all family names they encounter and the bulk of personal names.
Regulations
Kanji names in Nihon are governed past the Japanese Ministry of Justice'southward rules on kanji use in names. Every bit of January 2015[update], just the 843 "name kanji" (jinmeiyō kanji) and ii,136 "normally used characters" (jōyō kanji) are permitted for use in personal names. This is intended to ensure that names can be readily written and read past those literate in Japanese. Rules also govern names considered to be inappropriate; for example, in 1993 ii parents who tried to proper noun their child Akuma ( 悪魔 , which literally means "devil") were prohibited from doing so after a massive public outcry.[18]
Though there are regulations on the naming of children, many archaic characters tin nonetheless exist found in adults' names, particularly those built-in prior to the Second World War. Because the legal restrictions on use of such kanji cause inconvenience for those with such names and promote a proliferation of identical names, many recent changes have been made to increment rather than to reduce the number of kanji allowed for apply in names. The Sapporo Loftier Court held that it was unlawful for the authorities to deny registration of a child's proper noun considering it contained a kanji grapheme that was relatively common but not included in the official list of name characters compiled past the Ministry building of Justice. Subsequently, the Japanese government promulgated plans to increase the number of kanji "permitted" in names.[nineteen]
The employ of a space in given names (to split up offset and centre names) is not allowed in official documents, because technically, a space is not an allowed character. Nevertheless, spaces are sometimes used on business cards and in correspondence.
Community
During the period when typical parents had several children, it was a common do to proper name sons by numbers suffixed with rō ( 郎 , "son"). The first son would be known as "Ichirō", the second equally "Jirō", and and so on.[xx] Girls were often named with ko ( 子 , "kid") at the cease of the given proper name; this should not be confused with the less mutual male suffix hiko ( 彦 ). Both practices have go less mutual, although many children still have names along these lines.
While some people may still believe this, Lafcadio Hearn (see below), in Shadowings, makes it articulate that at least in his time (1880 to 1905, the date of publication), the catastrophe -ko ( 子 ) was not any part of the proper name, but an honorific suffix like さん -san. Particularly, even though the symbol was "child", it meant "Lady" and was used only past upper-class females. It would have been ridiculous to apply to heart-class or lower-class women. Pretty much the same names were used by all classes, only Hana-ko was upper course, while lesser women would be O-Hana-san, with honorific prefix as well as suffix.[ commendation needed ]
Speaking to and of others
The way in which a name is used in conversation depends on the circumstances and the speaker's relationships with the listener and the bearer of the name. Typically the family unit name is used, with given names largely restricted to informal situations and cases where the speaker is older than, superior to, or very familiar with the named individual. When addressing someone, or referring to a member of ane's out-group, a title such as さん -san is typically added.
Japanese people often avoid referring to their seniors or superiors past name at all, using just a title: inside a family unit this might be a kinship relation such as お母さん okāsan ("mother"), in a schoolhouse it could exist 先生 sensei ("instructor"), while a company president would exist addressed every bit 社長 shachō ("company president").
On the other paw, pronominals meaning "y'all" ( あなた anata, きみ kimi, お前 omae ) are used rather little in Japanese. Using such words sometimes sounds disrespectful, and people will commonly address each other by name, title and honorific fifty-fifty in face-to-confront conversations.
Calling someone's proper name (family unit name) without any championship or honorific is called yobisute ( 呼び捨て ), and may be considered rude fifty-fifty in the most informal and friendly occasions. This false pas, however, is readily excused for foreigners.
Nicknames
Respective to whatsoever given proper name there are one or more hypocoristics, appreciating nicknames. These are formed by adding the suffix -chan ちゃん to a stalk. There are two types of stem. One consists of the full given name. Examples of this type are Tarō-chan from Tarō, Kimiko-chan from Kimiko, and Yasunari-chan from Yasunari. The other type of stem is a modified stalk derived from the total given proper noun. Examples of such names are: Ta-chan from Tarō, Kii-chan from Kimiko, and Yā-chan from Yasunari. Hypocoristics with modified stems are more than intimate than those based on the full given name.
Hypocoristics with modified stems are derived by adding -chan to a stem consisting of an integral number, usually one but occasionally two, of feet, where a foot consists of ii moras. A mora 音節 is the unit of which a light syllable contains one and a heavy syllable 2. For instance, the stems that may be derived from Tarō are /taro/, consisting of 2 light syllables, and /taa/, consisting of a single syllable with a long vowel, resulting in Taro-chan and Tā-chan. The stems that may be derived from Hanako are /hana/, with 2 light syllables, /han/, with one syllable closed past a consonant, and /haa/, with one syllable with a long vowel, resulting in Hanachan, Hanchan, and Hāchan. The segmental content is usually a left substring of that of the given name. Withal, in some cases it is obtained by other means, including the employ of another reading of the kanji used to write the name. For example, a daughter named Megumi may be called Keichan or just Kei, because the graphic symbol used to write the Megumi, 恵 , tin can also exist read Kei.
The common Japanese practice of forming abbreviations by concatenating the first two morae of two words is sometimes applied to names (usually those of celebrities). For example, Takuya Kimura ( 木村 拓哉 , Kimura Takuya ), a famous Japanese actor and singer, becomes Kimutaku ( キムタク ). This is sometimes applied even to non-Japanese celebrities: Brad Pitt, whose full name in Japanese is Buraddo Pitto ( ブラッド・ピット ) is commonly known equally Burapi ( ブラピ ), and Jimi Hendrix is abbreviated as Jimihen ( ジミヘン ). Some Japanese celebrities have also taken names combining kanji and katakana, such every bit Terry Ito ( テリー伊藤 ). Another slightly less mutual method is doubling one or two syllables of the person'south name, such every bit the use of "MamiMami" for Mamiko Noto.
Names from other indigenous groups in Japan
Many ethnic minorities living in Japan, mostly Korean and Chinese, adopt Japanese names. The roots of this custom go back to the colonial-era policy of sōshi-kaimei , which forced Koreans to change their names to Japanese names. Nowadays, ethnic minorities, mostly Korean, who immigrated to Japan after WWII, have on Japanese names, sometimes called 'pass names', to ease communication and, more than importantly, to avoid discrimination. A few of them (e.k., Han Chang-Woo, founder and chairman of Maruhan Corp., pronounced 'Kan Shōyū' in Japanese) however keep their native names. Sometimes, however, these indigenous Chinese and Koreans in Nihon who choose to renounce Permanent Resident condition to utilise for Japanese citizenship accept to change the characters in their names, because non all characters are legally recognized in Nihon for naming purposes.
Japanese citizenship used to require adoption of a Japanese name. In recent decades, the government has allowed individuals to merely prefer katakana versions of their native names when applying for citizenship, as is already done when referring to non-Due east Asian foreigners: National Diet fellow member Tsurunen Marutei ( ツルネン マルテイ ), originally 'Martti Turunen', who is Finnish, is a famous example. Others transliterate their names into phonetically like kanji compounds, such as activist Arudou Debito ( 有道 出人 ), an American-Japanese known equally 'David Aldwinckle' before taking Japanese citizenship. (Tsurunen has similarly adopted 弦念 丸呈 .) Nonetheless others have abandoned their native names entirely in favor of Yamato names, such every bit Lafcadio Hearn (who was one-half Anglo-Irish gaelic and half Greek), who used the name "Koizumi Yakumo" ( 小泉 八雲 ). At the time, to proceeds Japanese citizenship, it was necessary to be adopted by a Japanese family (in Hearn's case, it was his wife'southward family) and take their name.
Individuals born overseas with Western given names and Japanese surnames are ordinarily given a katakana name in Western order when referred to in Japanese. Eric Shinseki, for example, is referred to as エリック シンセキ (Erikku Shinseki). However, sometimes Japanese parents decide to utilise Japanese lodge when mentioning the child'due south name in Japanese. Besides, Japanese parents tend to requite their children a name in kanji, hiragana or katakana, particularly if it is a Japanese proper name. Fifty-fifty individuals built-in in Japan, with a Japanese name, might be referred to using katakana if they accept established residency or a career overseas. Yoko Ono, for example, was born in Nihon, with the name 小野 洋子 , and spent the get-go twenty years of her life there. Even so, having lived outside the country for more than than fifty years, and basing her career in the United States, Ono is oftentimes referred to in the press as オノ・ヨーコ , preserving the Japanese gild of her name (Ono Yōko), just rendering it in katakana. Another example is the inventor of Bitcoin, who has gone under the name Satoshi Nakamoto, and which is virtually likely a pseudonym, perhaps even of a not-Japanese person; Nakamoto is referred to in Japanese with katakana in Western order, サトシ・ナカモト , rather than 中本聡 .
Christians in Nippon traditionally have Christian names in add-on to their native Japanese names. These Christian names are written using katakana, and are adapted to Japanese phonology from their Portuguese or Latin forms rather than being borrowed from English language. Peter, for example, is 'Petoro' ( ペトロ ), John is 'Yohane' ( ヨハネ ), Jacob is 'Yakobu' ( ヤコブ ), Martin is 'Maruchino' ( マルチノ ), Dominic is 'Dominiko' ( ドミニコ ), and and so on.[21] For well-nigh purposes in real life, the Christian names aren't used; for case, Taro Aso has a Christian name, Francisco ( フランシスコ Furanshisuko), which is not near as well-known. 16th century kirishitan daimyō Dom Justo Takayama, on the other paw, is far more than well known by his Christian name Justo ( ジュスト ) than his birth name, Hikogorō Shigetomo.
Purple names
The Japanese emperor and his families take no surname for historical reasons, only a given name such equally Hirohito ( 裕仁 ), which is virtually universally avoided in Japan: Japanese prefer to say "the Emperor" or "the Crown Prince", out of respect and as a measure of politeness.
When children are born into the Imperial family, they receive a standard given proper noun, every bit well equally a special title. For case, the Emperor emeritus Akihito was born Tsugu-no-miya Akihito ( 継宮明仁 ), his title being Tsugu-no-miya ( 継宮 "Prince Tsugu"), and was referred to as "Prince Tsugu" during his childhood. This title is generally used until the private becomes heir to the throne or inherits one of the historical princely family names ( 常陸宮 Hitachi-no-miya, 三笠宮 Mikasa-no-miya, 秋篠宮 Akishino-no-miya, etc.).
When a member of the Royal family becomes a noble or a commoner, the emperor gives him or her a family proper noun. In medieval era, a family proper name "Minamoto" was often used. In mod era, princely family unit names are used. For case, many members of the extended Imperial family became commoners after World War 2, and adopted their princely family names, minus the honorific "no-miya" ( 宮 "Prince"), as regular surnames. Conversely, at the time that a noble or a commoner become a member of the Regal family unit, such as through matrimony, his or her family proper name is lost. An example is Empress Michiko, whose name was Michiko Shōda earlier she married prince Akihito.
Historical names
The current structure (family unit name + given name) did not materialize until the 1870s, when the Japanese government created the new family registration organization.
In feudal Nippon, names reflected a person'due south social status, also equally their affiliation with Buddhist, Shintō, feudatory-armed services, Confucian-scholarly, mercantile, peasant, slave and imperial orders.
Before feudal times, Japanese clan names figured prominently in history: names with no fall into this category. The Japanese particle no can be translated as 'of', and is similar in usage to the German aristocratic von , although the clan is in the reverse society in Japanese, and is non mostly explicitly written in this fashion of proper name. Thus, Minamoto no Yoritomo ( 源 頼朝 ) was Yoritomo ( 頼朝 ) of the Minamoto ( 源 ) clan. Fujiwara no Kamatari ( 藤原 鎌足 ), Ki no Tsurayuki ( 紀 貫之 ), and Taira no Kiyomori ( 平 清盛 ) are additional examples. These family unit names were recorded in the Shinsen Shōjiroku. The Ryukyuan ruling class used names composed of Chinese characters, usually of one or two syllables and read in their ain languages, like Korean and Chinese names.
Before the regime formalized the naming system in 1868, Japanese personal names were fluid.[22] Men changed their names for a variety of reasons: to signify that they had attained a higher social status, to demonstrate their allegiance to a house or clan, to show that they had succeeded to the headship of a family or company, to shed bad luck that was fastened to an inauspicious name, or merely to avoid being mistaken for a neighbour with a similar name.[23] [24] Upper-class men often changed their names upon coming of historic period ( genpuku ), leaving backside their childhood name (which often ended with -maru ) and taking on an adult name.[25] When nobles and samurai received promotions in rank, they received new names, which might contain a syllable or character from their lord's name every bit a marker of favor.[23]
Changes in women's personal names were recorded less often, and then they may not take changed their names as oft as men did, but women who went into service equally maids or entertainers frequently changed their names for the elapsing of their service. During their employment, their temporary names were treated equally their legal names. For case, a maid who was involved in legal dealings in Kyoto in 1819-1831 signed legal documents equally Sayo during one period of employment and as Mitsu during a afterwards period of employment, but she signed every bit Iwa, presumably her birth name, when she was between jobs.[26]
A Japanese person could go by ane of several names, depending on the occasion. For example, the 18th-century author, poet, and artist Iwase Samuru wrote nether the name Santō Kyōden and worked as an illustrator nether the name Kitao Masanobu. Artists and authors adopted a new name for each medium or form they worked in, whether or not they worked professionally. Some types of artistic names ( gō ( 号 )) were referred to by special terminology—for example, haigō or haimei for a haiku poet, and kagō for a waka poet. Scholars besides gave themselves scholarly names, often using the Chinese reading of the characters of their Japanese name. People who entered religious orders adopted religious names.
Death added to the number of a person'south names. When a person died, their personal proper name was referred to as an imina ( 諱 ) and was no longer used. Instead, the person was referred to past their posthumous name ( 諡 , okurina ).
The personal names of Japanese emperors were too referred to as imina , even if the emperor was alive. Prior to Emperor Jomei, the imina of the emperors were very long and not used. The number of characters in each name diminished after Jomei'due south reign.[27]
Azana ( 字 ), which is given at genpuku ( 元服 ), is used by others and one himself uses his real proper name to refer to him. Gō are commonly named later places or houses; e.thou., Bashō, as in the haiku poet Matsuo Bashō ( 松尾 芭蕉 ), is named after his house, Bashō-an ( 芭蕉庵 ).
In the late shogunate period, many anti-government activists used several false names to hide their activities from the shogunate. Examples are Saidani Umetarō ( 才谷 梅太郎 ) for Sakamoto Ryōma ( 坂本 龍馬 ), Niibori Matsusuke ( 新堀 松輔 ) for Kido Takayoshi ( 木戸 孝允 ) and Tani Umenosuke ( 谷 梅之助 ) for Takasugi Shinsaku ( 高杉 晋作 ). The famous writer Kyokutei Bakin ( 曲亭 馬琴 ) is known to have had equally many as 33 names.
Professional person names
Actors and actresses in Western and Japanese dramatic forms, comedians, sumo wrestlers, Western-style professional wrestlers, and practitioners of traditional crafts often employ professional person names. Many stage names of idiot box and film actors and actresses are unremarkable, existence only like ordinary Japanese personal names, only a few are tongue-in-cheek. For instance, Kamatari Fujiwara ( 藤原 釜足 ) chose the name of the aforementioned founder of the Fujiwara family, while Hino Yōjin ( 日野 陽仁 )'southward proper name sounds similar be careful with fire (although written differently). Many stand-upward comics like the duo Crush Takeshi and Crush Kiyoshi choose a Western name for the act and utilise their ain (or stage) given names. Writers also tend to be clever about their names, for instance Edogawa Ranpo which is designed to sound like "Edgar Allan Poe".
Sumo wrestlers take wrestling names chosen shikona ( 醜名 or 四股名 ). While a shikona can exist the wrestler'due south ain surname, most upper-division rikishi accept a shikona different from their surname. A typical shikona consists of ii or 3 kanji, rarely merely ane or more than three. Often, part of the name comes from the wrestler's master, a identify proper noun (such every bit the proper name of a province, a river, or a sea), the name of a weapon, an item identified with Japanese tradition (like a koto or nishiki), or a term indicating superiority. Often, waka indicates a wrestler whose father was also in sumo; in this case, the pregnant is junior. Wrestlers can change their shikona, as Takahanada did when he became Takanohana ( 貴ノ花 ) and so Takanohana ( 貴乃花 ). Some other notable case is the wrestler Sentoryu, which ways fighting war dragon but is as well homophonous with St. Louis, his city of origin.
Geisha and practitioners of traditional crafts and arts such as pottery, the tea ceremony, calligraphy, irezumi (tattooing) and ikebana (bloom arranging) often take professional names. In many cases, these come up from the master under whom they studied. Kabuki actors take one of the traditional surnames such as Nakamura ( 中村 ), Bandō or Onoe. Some names are inherited on succession, such every bit that of the famous Kabuki histrion Bandō Tamasaburō V ( 五代目 坂東 玉三郎 Godaime Bandō Tamasaburō) through a naming anniversary.
In English language and other Western languages
In English, the names of living or recently deceased Japanese are more often than not given surname last and without macrons.[28] Historical figures are given surname outset and with macrons, if available.[29]
Haruko Momoi at the Anime Expo 2007 in Los Angeles; her name card features a spelling of her name (" Halko Momoi ") written surname last. In Japanese, her proper noun is 桃井はるこ ( Momoi Haruko )
Every bit of 2008, when using English and other Western languages, Japanese people usually give their names in an order reversed from the traditional Japanese naming gild, with the family unit proper noun afterwards the given name, instead of the given name after the family proper noun.[11] Start in Meiji Era Japan, in many English language linguistic communication publications, the naming order of modernistic-24-hour interval Japanese people was reversed into the family name last order.[30] The adoption of a Western naming social club by Japanese people when writing or speaking in European languages, and when attending Western mode or international events such as balls, formed part of the wider Meiji period adoption of aspects of Western culture in efforts to present Japan as a land as developed and avant-garde as its global neighbours.[31]
Japanese people often have nicknames that are shortened forms of their actual names, and sometimes employ these names with foreigners for ease of agreement. For case, a human being named " Kazuyuki " may call himself "Kaz" in the presence of those for whom Japanese is non a outset language.[11] Some Japanese people living abroad also adopt nicknames that they use with friends who are not Japanese.[11]
The nameplate of Fumiko Orikasa is presented family proper name first in Japanese, while it is presented given name first in English
Most strange publications opposite the names of modern Japanese people, and most Japanese people reverse their own names for materials or publications intended for strange consumption; for example, a Japanese business organisation executive or official usually has two business cards ( meishi ), the first presenting their proper noun in the Japanese lodge for Japanese people, and the second presenting their name in the Western order, intended for foreigners.[32] In popular journalism publications, the Western order of naming is used.[31] These practices stand in stark dissimilarity to how English and generally Western names are treated in the Japanese language, where they are typically presented without reordering.
In Russian, Russian names may be written with family unit proper noun first and given name 2d, as well as the other fashion round, and this applies to Japanese names presented in Russian also.[33] [34]
In English, many historical figures are still referred to with the family proper name beginning.[xxx] This is especially the instance in scholarly works almost Nihon.[31] Many scholarly works utilise the Japanese society with Japanese names in general, and a scholarly piece of work is more probable to utilize Japanese order if the author specialises in subjects related to or about Japan. John Power wrote that "People who can speak and read Japanese take a strong resistance to switching Japanese names to the Western social club."[eleven] Books written by these authors often take notes stating that Japanese names are in the original order.[11] Some books, however, do not take consistent naming guild practices. Shizuka Saeki of Look Japan said, "This is not only a headache for writers and translators, it is likewise a source of confusion for readers."[31] Lynne E. Riggs of the Social club of Writers, Editors and Translators (SWET), a professional writing organization headquartered in Tokyo, wrote that "When yous publish a volume near Japan, you are publishing it for people who desire to know about Japan. So they are interested in learning something new or something every bit information technology is supposed to be."[31]
Edith Terry wrote that because Japanese people are "mastering" a "Western game", people have some pride and at the same time feel insecurity because the "game" is on "Western terms" rather than "Japanese terms."[32] The standard presentation of Japanese names in English differs from the standard presentations of modern Chinese names and Korean names, which are usually not reversed to fit the Western order in English, except when the person is living or traveling away.[32] [11] Power wrote that the divergence between the handling of Japanese names and of Chinese and Korean names often results in defoliation.[11] Terry wrote, "it was one of the ironies of the late twentieth century that Nippon remained stranded in the formal devices underlining its historical quest for equality with the West, while China prepare its own terms, in language as in big-ability politics."[35]
Saeki wrote in 2001 that most Japanese people writing in English use the Western naming guild, but that some figures had begun to promote the apply of Japanese order as Japan became a major economic power in the 20th century. The Japan Style Sheet, a 1998 guide for producing English language works about Japan written by SWET, advocates the apply of the Japanese naming order every bit frequently as possible, in order to promote a consistency in naming guild. In 1987, i publisher of English language linguistic communication textbooks in Nippon used the Japanese order of naming, while in 2001 six of the eight publishers of English language textbooks in Japan used the Japanese social club. In Dec 2000, the council on the National Language of the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Civilization recommended that English language productions brainstorm using the Japanese naming order, as "it is in full general desirable that personal names be presented and written in a manner that preserves their unique forms, except for registries and other documents with specific standards." It recommended using capitalization ( YAMADA Taro ) or commas ( Yamada, Taro ) to clarify which part of the personal name is the family name and which part is the given proper noun. In a January 2000 opinion poll from the Agency for Cultural Diplomacy on the preferred order of Japanese names in the English language language, 34.nine% had a preference for Japanese order, 30.vi% had a preference for Western guild, and 29.6% had no preference. In 1986, the Japan Foundation decided that it would use the Japanese naming order in all of its publications. A Japan Foundation publishing sectionalisation spokesperson stated around 2001 that some SWET publications, including popular anglophone newspapers, go along to use the Western order. As of 2001, the agency's way sheet recommends using a different naming order style depending upon the context. For example, it advocates using the Western order in publications for readers who are non familiar with Japan, such as international conference papers.[31]
The Chicago Manual of Style recommends indexing Japanese names according to the way the original text treats the proper noun. If the text uses the Western order, the Japanese name is reinverted and indexed by the family proper noun with a comma. If the text uses Japanese gild, the name is listed past the family name with no inversion and no comma.[36]
On 21 May 2019, Japanese Foreign Minister Tarō Kōno expressed his hope that foreign media would refer to then-Prime number Minister Shinzō Abe in the Japanese custom: family name get-go (as " Abe Shinzō "). He added that he was currently planning to issue an official request to the international media in that respect.[37] Some others in the government support moving to retaining the original lodge of names, in line with Chinese and Korean exercise, in time for the several major global events the country will be host to during 2020, while others seem not to.[38]
On September half dozen, 2019, officials from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Scientific discipline and Technology (MEXT) appear that the ministry was to start using the traditional order for Japanese names in English in official documents.[39] In 2020, The Economist announced plans to brainstorm writing Japanese names in Japanese order based on a Japanese regime prescript that had been issued.[40] NHK World-Japan began using Japanese names surname-first (with some exceptions) as early as March 29, 2020, but the new policy regarding proper noun order was only announced early the next day.[41] [42]
In Chinese
In Chinese-speaking communities, Japanese names are pronounced according to the Chinese pronunciations of the characters.[43] For example, in Standard Mandarin, 山田 太郎 (Yamada Tarō) becomes Shāntián Tàiláng, while 鳩山 由紀夫 (Hatoyama Yukio) becomes Jiūshān Yóujìfū. As a outcome, a Japanese person without adequate knowledge of Chinese would not understand their name when it is spoken in Chinese languages. Just porting the kanji into Chinese and reading them as if they were Chinese is also different from the usual Chinese practice of approximating foreign names with similar-sounding Chinese characters.
Sometimes, a Japanese name includes kokuji. These kanji resemble Chinese characters only originate in Japan and do not accept widely known Chinese pronunciations. For example, the discussion komu ( 込 , read as Yū in Chinese) is rarely used in modern Chinese reading. When words like this are encountered, usually the dominion of " 有邊讀邊,沒邊讀中間 " ("read the side if any, read the heart role if there is no side") applies. Therefore, " 込 " is read every bit "rù" which is derived from 入 .[ citation needed ]
Heng Ji wrote that because Japanese names have "flexible" lengths, it may be difficult for someone to identify a Japanese name when reading a Chinese text.[44] When consulting English texts a Chinese reader may accept difficulty identifying a Japanese name; an example was when Chinese media mistook Obama's pet turkey Abe taken from Abe Lincoln (monosyllabic) for Shinzo Abe (disyllabic).[45]
Ane place where Japanese names may exist transliterated into Chinese languages phonetically is in Japanese video games, anime and manga series. In May 2016, Nintendo sparked anger among fans in Hong Kong by announcing that its new Pokémon games, Sun and Moon, would use translations based upon Mandarin across all parts of China and Taiwan. Every bit the variety of Chinese spoken in Hong Kong, Cantonese, has many phonological differences from Mandarin, this results in names of well-known characters such every bit Pikachu being rendered and pronounced much unlike from the original Japanese.[46]
Run into also
- List of Japanese feminine given names
- List of Japanese masculine given names
- List of most common Japanese family names
- Onomastics
- Amami name
- Art-proper noun
- Japanese alias
- Meishi
- Okinawan family unit name
- Chinese name
- Korean name
- Vietnamese name
References
- ^ 山田太郎から進化を続ける「名前例」 ['Example Names' Continue to Evolve beyond Yamada Tarō]. Excite Scrap (in Japanese). Excite News. 20 Feb 2012. Retrieved half dozen December 2012.
- ^ "Japan aims to change the style Japanese names are written in English past putting the family proper noun first, the same way they are written in Japanese" Kaneko, Kaori; Sieg, Linda (September 6, 2019). "Family comes outset: Nihon to switch order of names in victory for tradition". Reuters. Singapore. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- ^ "名字由来net|日本人の名字99%を掲載!! 【年末緊急発表】日本人の名字30万種は事実か?". 名字由来net|日本人の名字99%を掲載!!.
- ^ "Japanese proper noun translations". Japanese-name-translation.com. Archived from the original (XLS) on 2006-06-24. ).
- ^ https://news.goo.ne.jp/amp/article/postseven/trend/postseven-581287.html [ dead link ]
- ^ "市史編さんこぼれ話No.18 「近世の百姓に苗字はあったのか」|東京都小平市公式ホームページ". www.city.kodaira.tokyo.jp.
- ^ a b c "What to phone call baby?". The Japan Times Online. Retrieved 2012-01-24 .
- ^ 佐藤 稔 『読みにくい名前はなぜ増えたか』 Minoru Sato, "Yominikui Namae wa Naze Fuetaka" ("Why We Run into More Hard-to-read Names"), 2007
- ^ "How do Japanese names work?". www.sljfaq.org . Retrieved 2017-eleven-14 .
- ^ Hakes, Molly. The Everything Conversational Japanese Book: Basic Instruction For Speaking This Fascinating Language In Whatever Setting. Everything Books, 2004. 119. Retrieved from Google Books on August 8, 2011. ISBN ane-59337-147-0, ISBN 978-1-59337-147-0.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Power, p. C4-two.
- ^ a b c Hanks, Patrick, Kate Hardcastle, and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Outset Names. Oxford University Press, 2006. Appendix eight: Japanese Names. Retrieved from Google Books on April 1, 2012. ISBN 0-19-861060-2, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1.
- ^ Tomozawa, Akie. Chapter 6: "Japan's Subconscious Bilinguals: The Languages of 'War Orphans' and Their Families Subsequently Repatriation From People's republic of china." In: Noguchi, Mary Goebel and Sandra Fotos (editors). Studies in Japanese Bilingualism. Multilingual Matters, 2001. 158-159. Retrieved from Google Books on October 25, 2012. ISBN 185359489X, 9781853594892.
- ^ Otake, Tomoko, "What to telephone call baby?", Japan Times, 22 January 2012, p. 7.
- ^ Hakes, Molly. The Everything Conversational Japanese Volume: Bones Didactics For Speaking This Fascinating Linguistic communication In Whatever Setting. Everything Books, 2004. 122. Retrieved from Google Books on August eight, 2011. ISBN 1-59337-147-0, ISBN 978-ane-59337-147-0.
- ^ a b Hakes, Molly. The Everything Conversational Japanese Book: Basic Education For Speaking This Fascinating Language In Any Setting. Everything Books, 2004. 121. Retrieved from Google Books on August 8, 2011. ISBN i-59337-147-0, ISBN 978-1-59337-147-0.
- ^ Hakes, Molly. The Everything Conversational Japanese Volume: Bones Didactics For Speaking This Fascinating Linguistic communication In Any Setting. Everything Books, 2004. 120. Retrieved from Google Books on Baronial 8, 2011. ISBN 1-59337-147-0, ISBN 978-ane-59337-147-0.
- ^ "Legal Regulations on the Advanced Science and Technology 15". Archived from the original on April 6, 2006.
- ^ 人名用漢字の新字旧字:「曽」と「曾」 (in Japanese). Sanseido Word-Wise Web. 6 November 2008. Retrieved 2014-10-09 .
- ^ Jōya, Mock (1963). Mock Jōya'due south Things Japanese. Tokyo News Service. p. 668. OCLC 12619597.
- ^ "Bishops of Japan (by Age)". www.gcatholic.org . Retrieved 14 Apr 2018.
- ^ Nagata, Mary Louise. "Names and Proper name Changing in Early Modern Kyoto, Nihon." International Review of Social History 07/2002; 47(02):243 – 259. P. 246.
- ^ a b Plutschow, Herbert East. Japan's Proper name Civilisation: The Significance of Names in a Religious, Political and Social Context. Psychology Press, 1995.
- ^ Nagata 2002, pp. 245-256.
- ^ Ravina, Mark. The Last Samurai: The Life and Battles of Saigo Takamori. John Wiley and Sons, 2011. Names, Romanizations, and Spelling (folio 1 of 2). Retrieved from Google Books on August 7, 2011. ISBN 1-118-04556-4, ISBN 978-1-118-04556-5.
- ^ Nagata 2002, p. 257.
- ^ Brown, Delmer M.; Ishida, Ichirō (1979). The Future and the By (a translation and study of the Gukanshō, an interpretive history of Japan written in 1219). Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 264. ISBN978-0-520-03460-0. OCLC 251325323.
- ^ See International Who's Who, which is recommended for this purpose by the Chicago Manual of Style.
- ^ See Merriam-Webster'south Biographical Dictionary, Merriam-Webster'southward Collegiate Dictionary, and Encyclopædia Britannica. Run into also Chicago Manual of Fashion, "Personal names—additional resources" (§8.iii): "For names of well-known deceased persons, Chicago more often than not prefers the spellings in Merriam-Webster's Biographical Dictionary or the biographical department of Merriam-Webster'due south Collegiate Dictionary."
- ^ a b " 三.国際化に伴うその他の日本語の問題 ." Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Retrieved on May 23, 2011. " 日本人の姓名をローマ字で表記するときに,本来の形式を逆転して「名-姓」の順とする慣習は,明治の欧化主義の時代に定着したものであり,欧米の人名の形式に合わせたものである。現在でもこの慣習は広く行われており,国内の英字新聞や英語の教科書も,日本人名を「名-姓」順に表記しているものが多い。ただし,「姓-名」順を採用しているものも見られ,また,一般的には「名-姓」順とし,歴史上の人物や文学者などに限って「姓-名」順で表記している場合もある。 "
- ^ a b c d e f Saeki, Shizuka. "First Name Terms." Await Japan. June 2001. Volume 47, No. 543. p. 35.
- ^ a b c Terry, Edith. How Asia Got Rich: Nihon, China and the Asian Miracle. M.E. Sharpe, 2002. ISBN 0-7656-0356-X, 9780765603562. 632.
- ^ "Поиск ответа". new.gramota.ru.
- ^ "КОНФЛИКТ КУЛЬТУР ПРИ ЗАПОЛНЕНИИ ПРОСТОЙ АНКЕТЫ". abroad.ru.
- ^ Terry, Edith. How Asia Got Rich: Japan, China and the Asian Miracle. M.East. Sharpe, 2002. ISBN 0-7656-0356-Ten, 9780765603562. p. [1]
- ^ "Indexes: A Chapter from The Chicago Manual of Style" (Archive). Chicago Transmission of Manner. Retrieved on December 23, 2014. p. 27 (PDF certificate p. 29/56).
- ^ Griffiths, James. "Nippon wants you to say its leader's proper name correctly: Abe Shinzo". CNN. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
- ^ Osaki, Tomohiro (May 31, 2019). "Moves are afoot to push media to switch Japanese proper noun order in English, but volition it piece of work?". The Nihon Times . Retrieved June 7, 2019.
- ^ Yamaguchi, Mari (September half-dozen, 2019), "Japan to put surname first for Japanese names in English language", Associated Press
- ^ "Why Japanese names have flipped". The Economist. 2020-01-02. Retrieved 2020-01-11 .
- ^ "Style for Japanese persons' names". NHK World-Japan. 2020-03-30. Retrieved 2020-04-04 .
- ^ "The Cabinet agreed yesterday to begin making the change with regime documents, though no timeline was given for its commencement." "Japan to put surnames first for documents in English". The Straits Times. Singapore. September 7, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- ^ British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring Service. Summary of World Broadcasts: Far E, Role three. Monitoring Service of the British Dissemination Corporation, 1984. p. SWB FE/7688/A3/9 6 Jul 84. "Meanwhile, the Chinese requite Japanese names in Chinese pronunciation."
- ^ Ji, Heng. "Improving Information Extraction and Translation Using Component Interactions." ProQuest, 2007. ISBN 0549582479, 9780549582472. p. 53. "Chinese → Japanese Information technology's hard to identify Japanese names in Chinese texts because of their flexible proper name lengths. However, if they can be 'dorsum-translated' into Japanese, the Japanese-specific data could be used for names – they[...]"
- ^ Denyer, Simon. "A turkey, or the Japanese prime minister? Chinese smirk as Obama pardons Abe." (Archive). Washington Postal service. Nov 26, 2015. Retrieved on December 17, 2015.
- ^ Huang, Zheping. "Nintendo is renaming Pikachu in one of its largest markets, and Hong Kongers are non happy — Quartz". qz.com . Retrieved fourteen April 2018.
Bibliography
- Power, John. "Japanese names." (Archive) The Indexer. June 2008. Volume 26, Effect 2, p. C4-two-C4-8 (7 pages). ISSN 0019-4131. Accession number 502948569. Available on EBSCOHost.
- Some materials taken from Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan, article on "names"
Further reading
- Hoffman, Michael. "What'due south in a (Japanese) proper noun?" Japan Times. Sunday October eleven, 2009.
- "Which names are to be constitute where?" Japan Times. Dominicus October 11, 2009.
- Koop, Albert J., Hogitaro Inada. Japanese Names and How to Read Them 2005 ISBN 0-7103-1102-eight Kegan Paul International Ltd.
- Nichigai Assembly, Inc. ( 日外アソシエーツ株式会社 Nichigai Asoshiētsu Kabushiki Kaisha) 1990. Japan seimei yomifuri jiten ( 日本姓名よみふり辞典 "Dictionary of readings of Japanese names in Chinese characters"), vols. Sei-no bu (family names) and Mei-no bu (given names). Tokyo: Nichigai Associates.
- O'Neill, P.G. Japanese Names 1972 ISBN 0-8348-0225-2 Weatherhill Inc.
- Plutschow, Herbert. Japan's Name Civilization 1995 ISBN 1-873410-42-5 Routledge/Curzon
- Poser, William J. (1990) "Evidence for Foot Construction in Japanese," Linguistic communication 66.1.78-105. (Describes hypochoristic formation and some other types of derived names.)
- Throndardottir, Solveig. Name Construction in Medieval Japan 2004 Nostrand, Name Construction in Medieval Japan - $38.66 : Potboiler Press, Books for the Practical Archaeologist ISBN 0-939329-02-vi Potboiler Printing
- Society of Writers, Editors and Translators. Japan Style Sheet 1998 ISBN 1-880656-xxx-2 Stone Span Press
External links
- Japanese names department of sci.lang.japan FAQ
- 全国の苗字(名字)10万種掲載 ("Publication of 100,000 surnames (names) in the country") (in Japanese)
- 静岡大学人文学部 城岡研究室 ("Shirōka Lab of the Department of Humanities in the Shizuoka University") surnames of Nippon, Shizuoka prefecture, Okinawa prefecture and Germany. (in Japanese)
- 名字見聞録 ("Records of names") Japanese names in Kanji and Hiragana. (in Japanese)
- 苗字舘 ("Museum of surnames)" statistics of Japanese surnames. (in Japanese)
- Trends in Japanese Baby Names, Namiko Abe, 2005
- WWWJDIC online lexicon with over 400,000 Japanese names.
- How to read Japanese Names
- Japanese Names For Boys
- Japanese Names For Girls
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_name
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