Sunday, September 22, 2013

Winfrey

In Japan, first names are not used as frequently as in the United States or "the West." First names are used to call only those who you are extremely close to, for example, younger family members and very good friends. You would never call a superior by his first name. Last names and titles are used instead. 
For example: Winfrey instead of Oprah. 
If first and last names are given, the family name generally appears before the personal name. Japanese do not usually have middle names. 

Children are normally given their names by parents or other family members. Some considerations are made in selecting names, including birth order, matching the first and family names in meaning, sound and number of kanji character strokes, and birthdate. Perhaps more common, however, is the selection of names for their auspicious meanings and happy associations. 

Here is a list of some Japanese boy names

Akio 昭夫, 昭男, 昭雄 meaning 昭 [aki] (bright) + 夫 [o] (husband, man), 男 [o] (male) or 雄 [o] (hero, manly).

Akira 昭, 明, 亮 meaning 昭 (bright), 明 (bright) or 亮 (clear).

Aoi 葵, 碧 meaning 葵 (hollyhock, althea) or 碧 (blue).

Daisuke 大輔 meaning 大 [dai] (large, great) + 輔 [suke] (help).

Hayato 隼人 means隼 [haya] (falcon) + 人 [to] (person).

Hikaru 光, 輝 meaning 光 (light) or 輝 (radiance).

Kohaku 琥珀 meaning (amber).


Japanese don't have middle names. Many didn't have family names until 1870 when the government required Japanese to take them as part of reform efforts to catch up with the West. Many female Japanese have a given names that end in the suffix "ko," a diminutive expression that means "little" and is sort of like the "ito" suffix in Spanish. "Akiko" and "Yoko" are diminutive versions of the given names Aki and Yo.


 When Japanese write their names in Japanese they write their family name first and their given name second.  In contrast, Chinese and Koreans, usually write their family names first in their native language and in English. 


English names can be translated into Japanese. They would be written in katakana

For example

Grant

グラント

Guranto

Barton

バルトン

Baruton



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