Baby Names for Japan: Names that Work in Both Japanese and English

Naming your baby is no easy task. The name you choose will live with your child forever, so you want it to sound nice while also being functional and easy to use.

If you’re settled in Japan and have decided to make it your home for the foreseeable future, this task may be even harder.

For one, you want something that can ideally work in both languages. You want your child to be respected in both languages and cultures, and a name alone can often make the first impression we have of a person. 

Don’t worry, though, as I have some great name recommendations that work in Japanese and English, as well as some fun ideas to spark some inspiration.

First, let’s learn about Japanese naming conventions.

How To Name Your Japanese Baby: On Japanese Naming Conventions

First things first, if you’re naming your child in Japan and plan to live there for any length of time, don’t give your child a middle name.

In Japan, middle names don’t exist. 

So, if you go ahead and do it anyway, your child’s name will be their first and middle name together without any space between them or a hyphen. 

For example, naming your kid something like “Mary Margaret” means your sweet girl will be called “Marymargaret” in every official document in Japan, not to mention the struggle of trying to spell this name on the phone. Besides, such a name in Katakana writing can be a nightmare to remember. 

That said, if your child has dual citizenship, you can have their first and middle names on their US passport and only the first name in the Japanese one.

About “Kira Kira” Names

Kira Kira (Shiny) names represent a recent trend in Japanese naming that’s largely influenced by Western culture. 

Parents who give their kids kira kira names follow one of three common paths:

• Giving a Western name that can be written using Kanji characters

• Giving a Japanese name that’s written or pronounced uniquely

• Picking an anime character’s name

Western Names Written With Kanji Characters

As I said, some people choose to name their children Western names that can be written in Kanji characters. The intention here is to use a single name that sounds like a standard “American” name while still sounding somewhat Japanese. 

For instance, Sarah, or 聖羅 (Seira), is one such kira kira name that has been rising in popularity as of late.

However, picking your child’s name solely because it can be phonetically pronounced in Kanji may not always be ideal. After all, some names sound good in English, but the kanji meanings may be less than graceful.

You don't want something that sounds beautiful in English but sounds like a Japanese word that kids in school can make fun of your child with.

What’s more, Japanese people also consider the stroke count in a Japanese name, and you want your child’s name not to be too complicated. You may pick a name that can be written Kanji, but if it ends up looking like a long string of difficult characters, I recommend searching a bit more.

While having a balance between the name and its kanji is important, you should also make sure that the characters contained in the name are all registered Kanji characters, also called Jinmeiyō Kanji (人名用漢字).

Uniquely Spelled Japanese Names (Ateji)

The second approach to kira kira naming is giving your child an unusually spelled name. These types of names are called Ateji (当て字).

Ateji are usually made up by spelling already existing names in a “unique” way. However, this isn’t the only way they’re created. 

Some parents in Japan also name their kids Western names but choose “symbolic” rather than literal kanji characters. So, you have names like Luna that are written as “月” which is the kanji symbol for “moon.” 

The surprising part here is that 月 is pronounced as “Tsuki.” So, while the idea here is that both the Western name “Luna” and its Japanese writing are derived from the word “Moon”, which is kind of cool, this leads to pronunciation difficulties.

For instance, who would’ve thought that 澄海 can be pronounced as “Sky?”

Of course, not all ateji names are like this. You also have very popular names, such as Mei (芽依) and Riko (莉子), that are adorable and easy to pronounce. 

Still, some names like Ren (蓮) or Himari (陽葵) are quite hard to figure out from their kanji spellings despite being arguably the most popular boy’s and girl’s names of late, respectively.

Anime Names

Anime is life, and some anime characters are just too iconic not to bless your child with. As a third option for the kira kira names trend, some parents do just that.

This may be a cute approach, but only if you go with a name that actually sounds cool rather than the name of a beloved character. 

After all, this can give the school bullies lots of creative opportunities, let alone the kid eventually getting exhausted of saying, “Haha. Yeah. Just like in the anime.” 

So, maybe don’t name your child 光宙 – ぴかちゅう – Pikachu (please).

Instead, I recommend names like Yuta or Megumi from the anime phenomenon of late, Jujutsu Kaisen, or Renji or Orihime from the mega-popular shōnen Bleach, for instance. These are much more grounded and are obscure enough to not be immediately associated with a series or character.

For more anime inspiration, check out my post on the most popular anime series in Japan.

Most Popular Kira Kira Names

Here are some of the most popular kira kira names for boys in Japan.

• 陽翔 (Haruto/Hinato)

• 蒼 (Aoi/Ao)

• 朝陽 (Asahi)

• 樹 (Itsuki/Tatsuki)

• 湊 (Minato/Sou)

• 十夢 (Tom)

While some of the most popular kira kira names for girls are:

• 凛 (Rin)

• 紬 (Tsumugi)

• 結菜 (Yuina)

• 安奈 (Anna)

• ありす (Arisu/Alice)

If you’re looking for something with a bit more edge, however, here are a few “out there” but popular kira kira names:

• 愛莉 or らぶり (Lovely)

• 皇帝 or しいざあ (Caesar)

• 愛猫 or きてぃ (Kitty)

While some of these kira kira names we mentioned may sound too weird right now, remember that all names originate from somewhere. 

For instance, many names that were considered kira kira in the past are becoming normal names today. Names that end with—ko are great examples of this: Think “Yoko,” for instance.

The Best Names That Are Both Japanese and English for Girls

Now that you understand how creative Japanese naming can be let’s talk about some great girls' names.

Generally, naming girls is a lot easier than naming boys if your child has dual nationalities or you want a name that also works in English. This is mainly due to the sheer amount of options you have.

Here are some common names that work pretty well in both English and Japanese due to being easy to pronounce in Japanese:

• えま (Emma)

• にな (Nina)

• なおみ (Naomi)

• 咲良 (Sarah)

• 淳 (June)

Still, some names are very popular despite the writing and pronunciation being a little different. For instance, はな (Hana) is becoming more and more common as a girl’s name in Japan.

Similarly, despite being spelled slightly differently, some names have become popular due to quirks in Japanese pronunciation. As some common Japanese sounds that start with the letter “R” are pronounced similar to how the “L” sound is pronounced in English, the following names work in both languages:

• りり (Riri) sounds similar to “Lily”

• えみり(Emiri) sounds similar to “Emily”

• りな (Rina) sounds similar to “Lena” 

• りさ (Risa) sounds similar to “Lisa”

This rule works backwards too, of course. For instance, some other English names that contain the letter “r” like えりか (Erika) and かれん (Karen) can be used this way as well.

The Best Baby Names That Work in Japanese and English for Boys

There are admittedly fewer name options for boys that work both in Japanese and English, but there are still great options.

For one, there are lots of classic Western names that can be pronounced just fine in Japanese. Here are a few good ones:

• のあ (Noa) sounds like “Noah”

• けん (Ken) as in short for “Kenneth”

• 譲二 (Jyouji) is pronounced like “George”

• あらん (Aran) sounds like “Aaron”

• えいでん (Eiden) sounds like “Aiden”

In addition, while some names aren’t really Western names, they still sound like they could be and are popular because of this. For instance, れい (Rei) could be “Ray” or “Rey” and れん (Ren) could be “Len.”

Also, remember that the interchangeability between the letters L and R also works here:

• ろん (Ron) is “Ron”

• りく (Riku) is “Rick”

• りお or れお (Rio) is “Leo”

• りおん or れおん (Rion) is “Leon”

• るい or るいす (Rui or Ruisu) is “Louis” or “Luis” work quite well and are nowadays among modern-day parents’ top choices. 

Speaking of which, you might also want to find out what Japanese parents are most commonly naming their babies these days. So, let’s look at the most popular names from last year.

A List of Modern-Day Popular Baby Names in Japan

According to Nippon.com, names that work in both Japanese and English, such as kira kira names and Western-sounding names, are sneaking among classic Japanese names, dominating the list.

Here are the most popular cute boy names in Japan in 2023 – see if you can spot one or two of those kira kira names we talked about:

1. 碧 (Ao, Aoi)

2. 陽翔 (Haruto, Hinato)

3. 暖 (Dan, Haru)

4. 律 (Ritsu)

5. 蒼 (Aoi, Sō, Ao)

6. 颯真 (Sōma, Fūma)

7. 漣 (Ren)

8. 凪 (Nagi, Nagisa)

9. 湊 (Minato)

10. 湊斗 (Minato)

On the other hand, the top ten most popular baby names for girls in Japan in 2023 were as follows:

1. 陽葵 (Himari, Hinata)

2. 凛 (Rin)

3. 紬 (Tsumugi)

4. 結愛 (Yua, Yuna)

5. 結菜 (Yuina, Yuna)

6. 澪 (Mio)

7. 芽依 (Mei)

8. 心春 (Koharu)

9. 陽菜 (Hina, Haruna)

10. 咲茉 (Ema)

As you can see, kira kira names with stylized spelling like 碧 (Ao, Aoi) and Western-inspired names like 咲茉 (Ema) are among the top names parents give to their babies in Japan today. 

Final Note: Giving Your Child Multiple Names Can Be An Option

We’ve looked at some of Japan's most popular names in recent years and explained some of the naming conventions. 

While all this information may be enough to help you pick a name that works in both Japanese and English, if your child has dual citizenship, you might not have to decide on a single name.

If your child has two nationalities, it’s possible to get two passports for them, making it possible to register multiple names for your child. Here’s how to go about it.

First, you’ll have to register the name you want to use in Japanese at a Japanese City Hall, which will be the “main” name here. Then, you can choose to apply for either a foreign or a Japanese passport first. Here’s how to decide.

If you’re giving your child a name that you want to spell unusually, such as “Sara” instead of “Sarah”, you might want to apply for a foreign passport first. 

While this is not always the case, authorities sometimes need proof that a name is spelled a certain way. Your child’s foreign passport with the original spelling of their name is the proof you need.

You can simply give the full name you want to name your child in the other passport (assuming the other country allows multiple names), with one being the “official” name in Japan.

Lastly, keep in mind that Japanese passports also allow for a second name to be included. It’s important to include your child’s other name so that you won’t experience name-related mix-ups during your travels.

That’s it for Japanese names, but you might also want to check out my post on English-speaking babysitters in Tokyo and our guide to childcare for international families after this.