Means your name in Japanese. Your name in Japanese

Reading time: 6 min.

A unique* opportunity to find out how your name is written and read on Japanese! Just enter the name in the box below and the result will magically appear below. To start, I wrote my name in this field and you can see how it is written and read.

For the converter to work, you need a browser with JavaScript.

For the paranoid: the converter does not transmit anything anywhere and works entirely within the framework of this page. You can even save this page and disconnect from the Internet and it will work ;-)

100% correct work converter not guaranteed. Please report bugs in the comments.

The Japanese language characters used for writing are alphabetic characters katakana. Each katakana character is a separate syllable, which is why this alphabet is called syllabic. Since the number of individual syllables in the Japanese language is quite limited (let’s face it, there are many times fewer of them than in Russian or English), foreign words that enter the Japanese language often undergo strong changes for the sake of Japanese phonetics.

Since the Japanese are currently most actively borrowing words from in English, this process has been well studied and is described on Wikipedia in the Transcription Rules section. In general, it can be boiled down to the fact that the original pronunciation is divided into syllables, and single consonants are given the addition of vowels to complete the syllable, the syllables being simplified to match those found in the Japanese language.

This is exactly how the converter above works. It is far from perfect, but in general it gives an idea of how transcription into katakana occurs. In addition, by default the converter does not try to "clever", that is, use rare combinations of katakana, and instead tries to simplify syllables.

Remember that if you want to get the most correct and adequate transcription, nothing can replace a native speaker!

This is especially important if you intend to use the transcribed name in official documents. Try to make your name easy to pronounce for the Japanese and comfortable for you.

As for other words, even a transcription made according to all the rules may be erroneous, since in the Japanese language there may already be another, generally accepted transcription for a given word. More information about katakana: paragraph “Katakana" in " Complete Guide

in Japanese", article "Katakana" on Wikipedia.

If you are interested in the source code of the converter, it is available on Github.

Alternative converters

For Russian words:
Yakusu.RU - supports accents to lengthen vowels

Kanjiname – plus phonetic selection of hieroglyphs (fun, but useless)

Name translation

The method of phonetic transcription was discussed above, but there is another one: direct translation of the name into Japanese. This is achieved by selecting a Japanese name whose meaning corresponds to the original. For example, for the name Alexey (“protector”), this analogue would be 護 (Mamoru). Accordingly, a good dictionary or native speaker can help you in translating the name. Alas, lists with similar comparisons that circulate on the Internet are very inaccurate.

Beware of fakes! :)

There is a joke method floating around the Internet (and a script that implements it), the essence of which is to replace each letter with a specific syllable. For example, “a” can be replaced by “ka”, and the letter “n” by “to”, as a result for the name “Anna” we get “Katotoka”, which, of course, has nothing to do with real Japanese. Although due to the syllabicity it sounds very Japanese, I must admit. Be careful!

* The only opportunity without leaving this page. ;-) Can this be done using hieroglyphs, or is there another way to write proper names? This issue causes problems for large quantity

people who have just begun to learn Japanese. Let's figure out together how best to write our name in Japanese.

If you are learning Japanese, then you definitely need to know how your name is written and sounded. Many students have initial stage

learning, there are some difficulties with how to do this correctly, because in the Japanese language there are three types of writing. Let's look at the correct and incorrect ways of writing. katakana

Katakana is one of the Japanese syllabaries that is used to write foreign words, including our names. Foreign names are written phonetically. For example, the name Chris would be written as クリス Kurisu, and Sarah will become セーラ Sarah.

The Japanese even drew a conventional “friend/foe” line through their language, because when a person sees that a name is written using katakana, he automatically understands that there is a foreigner in front of him.

Nowadays you can easily find the generally accepted spelling of your name on the Internet. But this is not a strict rule, you can write it however you want and no one will judge you.

But there are people who want to write their name using hieroglyphs. In fact, this is not a very good idea. Let's find out why.

Incorrect option: characters 漢字 kanji

You might think that writing a name in hieroglyphs looks cool. This is probably true, but only for foreigners. In reality, you are simply causing inconvenience to both yourself and the people around you.

Some suggest writing names in hieroglyphs that are consonant with the name. (Translator’s note: “When I was in my first year, one of the tasks we had was to choose hieroglyphs that were consonant with the name. We also had to come up with the history of this name and associate it with ourselves. But it was just a game, and, frankly speaking, in my heart, I’ll say that it was quite difficult, and some guys never managed it”).

Therefore, there are a number of reasons why it is better not to experiment like this.

1. It is difficult to choose hieroglyphs that are consonant with your name. But even if you do this, the meaning of the hieroglyphs will most likely be strange and untrue. (Translator's note: "This way you will only give the Japanese a reason to think of you as a バカ外人 baka gaijin")

For example, if our hero Chris wanted to write his name using hieroglyphs, one option would be 躯里子, which means "adopted child's corpse." I don't think you'd want to go around with a name like that.

2. Another problem is that hieroglyphs have more than one reading, sometimes their number reaches up to 10. Of these, there are those that are used more often than others. If you choose a non-frequency reading of the hieroglyph, then get ready for the fact that your name will constantly be pronounced differently than you wanted.

Surely the Japanese’s attitude towards you will change a little, because they are unlikely to like it when they treat hieroglyphs so carelessly.

There is also another way to write your name in hieroglyphs. In this case, hieroglyphs with a similar meaning are selected to match the history of your name.

And this method doesn't work very well either. The fact is that if you select hieroglyphs only by meaning, without paying attention to the “reading”, then your “Japanese” name may sound completely different, different from your real name. Ultimately, it will be difficult to pronounce not only for you, but also for the Japanese. It may be that your new name will be consonant with some “bad” word, which you may not even be aware of.

We could explain that the hieroglyphic name Chris means “Christian martyr and patron of travelers.” But most likely the Japanese will not even ask about this, and you will not be able to explain the secret meaning of your name to everyone.

Yes, there are foreigners whose names are written using hieroglyphs. They have already assimilated and have long felt part of Japanese society (although sometimes this is difficult).

Be proud of your name

Instead of wasting time searching for the perfect hieroglyph, pay attention to the origin of your name.

What's his story? Why did your parents name you that way? Is answering these questions much more useful than learning to write your name in hieroglyphic characters?

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Can this be done using hieroglyphs, or is there another way to write proper names? This question causes problems for a large number of people who have just begun to get acquainted with the Japanese language. Let's figure out together how best to write our name in Japanese.