Japanese Name Generator
Find an authentic Japanese name with kanji, hiragana reading and meaning. Filter by gender, era and style, pair it with a Japanese surname, and check its Seimei Handan (姓名判断) stroke-count fortune.
Generator Filters
Identity & Form
Era & Character Purpose
Aesthetics & Philosophy
Browse Japanese Names
Every list shows kanji, readings and meanings- Japanese Names & MeaningsAll 100 names, A–Z and by meaning
- Japanese Girl Names29 names with kanji
- Japanese Boy Names33 names with kanji
- Gender-Neutral Names38 unisex names
- Japanese Last NamesCommon surnames & clans
- Your Name in Japanese264 English names in katakana
- Cute Japanese NamesSoft, sweet and playful
- Cool Japanese NamesBold names for characters
- Japanese Nature NamesFlowers, sky, sea & seasons
- Samurai NamesWarriors, warlords & clans
- Japanese Pet NamesFor dogs and cats
- Seimei Handan CalculatorStroke-count name fortune
- How Japanese Names WorkOrder, honorifics & history
Choosing an Authentic Japanese Name
A Japanese name is more than a sound. Because most names are written in kanji, parents choose characters for their meaning as well as their reading: 陽 (sun), 葵 (hollyhock), 蓮 (lotus) or 翔 (to soar). The same name can be written many ways, so the kanji tell you what a name really means.
This generator lets you explore that choice. Every name comes with its kanji, a hiragana reading, Hepburn romaji, an English meaning, a cultural note and a stroke count for each character. You can pair a given name with a common Japanese surname, switch between Japanese and Western name order, hear it pronounced, and turn it into a calligraphy scroll.
Use it as a baby-name browser, or as a name maker for fiction and games: filters for anime and manga characters, gamertags and Vtuber handles, samurai clans, yokai spirits and pet names each draw on a different part of the list. If you would rather see your own name in Japanese, the English-to-Japanese name converter writes it in katakana.
Popular names in Japan change every year. In Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance's 2025 survey the most common kanji names were 翠 (Sui) for girls and 湊 (Minato) for boys, and Haruto was the most popular boys' name by reading for the 17th year in a row.
How to Choose a Japanese Name That Works
- Start from meaning, not sound. The kanji carry the meaning, and the same sound can be written many ways. Decide whether you want light, water, courage or a season first, then look at the characters that express it.
- Check that the reading is natural. A kanji combination that looks beautiful may not be readable. Every name here lists the reading Japanese speakers would actually use.
- Say it with the surname. Japanese names are spoken family name first, so the full phrase matters. Turn on Pair with Clan Surname to hear how the two halves fit.
- Match the name to the era. Names date quickly: -ko endings read as mid-20th-century, while 翠 and 湊 are 2025. The era filter keeps a character or baby name in the right decade.
- Check the stroke fortune if it matters to you. Many Japanese parents run the Seimei Handan numbers before registering a name.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the Japanese name generator work?
The generator picks from a curated list of 100 Japanese names. Choose a gender, historical era, purpose (baby name, anime character, pet, samurai), theme and style, or search by meaning such as "moon" or "fire". Every result shows the kanji, hiragana, romaji, meaning and a stroke count for each character.
Are these real Japanese names?
Yes. The list contains names used in Japan today, historical names of famous samurai and nobles, and traditional pet names. Each name is tagged with the eras and purposes it suits, so you can tell a modern baby name from a Sengoku-period warlord.
How do I get my English name in Japanese?
Foreign names are written in katakana, which spells out the sounds: Emma becomes エマ (Ema) and Michael becomes マイケル (Maikeru). Our names in Japanese page lists 264 English names in katakana, with optional creative kanji spellings called ateji.
Can I use it as a Japanese name maker for a character, nickname or gamertag?
Yes. Set Archetype & Character Role to Anime / Manga OC, Gamertag / Vtuber, Samurai Clan or Yokai & Spirit to get names that fit fiction, games and usernames, or use Lucky Shuffle for a random Japanese name. Every suggestion is a real Japanese name, so your character or handle reads naturally to Japanese speakers.
Which comes first in a Japanese name, the family name or the given name?
In Japanese the family name comes first and the given name second, so 田中太郎 is Tanaka (family name) Tarō (given name). Since 2020 the Japanese government has asked that official English documents also put the family name first.
What is the difference between kanji, hiragana and katakana names?
Most Japanese names are written in kanji, where each character carries a meaning, so the same sound can be written many ways (Yuki can be 雪 "snow" or 幸 "happiness"). Some names, especially girls' names, are written in hiragana (さくら). Katakana is mainly used for foreign names, such as エマ for Emma.
What is Seimei Handan?
Seimei Handan (姓名判断) is the Japanese tradition of reading a name's fortune from the stroke counts of its kanji. It adds strokes into five "pillars" and rates each total as lucky or unlucky. You can try it on the Seimei Handan calculator.