Your Name in Japanese: How to Write It in Katakana (With a Name Converter)

Your name in Japanese: how to write it in katakana

Your name in Japanese is your name written in katakana, spelled by how it sounds: Smith becomes スミス and Sarah becomes サラ. To see how the Japanese names dictionary writes yours, type it into our name converter, then read on for why it works this way.

Katakana is the script Japanese uses for foreign words and foreign names. Every character is a sound, so a name can be spelled by ear. Nothing is translated: Sarah is respelled with the sounds Japanese has. That is why one name can come out in several spellings, and why you pick the one that sounds most like you. New to katakana? Start with What is Katakana?.

Why foreign names are written in katakana

Japanese uses three scripts together, and katakana is kept mainly for words from other languages. Hiragana vs Katakana vs Kanji explains the split, and Hiragana vs Katakana shows how the two kana differ.

The government has a guideline for this, called 外来語の表記 (roughly, how to write loanwords). The Cabinet issued it on 28 June 1991, and the Agency for Cultural Affairs publishes it. It covers foreign words and foreign place and personal names in katakana.

Two limits matter. The guideline is meant for laws, official documents, newspapers, magazines and broadcasting. And it says it doesn't reach proper nouns such as personal names where it doesn't fit them. So no rule fixes one official katakana spelling of your name.

How the name converter works

The converter has two parts.

Look your name up. Type your name in English letters, up to four words. For each word, the tool shows the katakana spellings recorded in JMnedict, the Japanese names dictionary kept by the EDRDG. It holds more than 67,000 katakana names, each labelled as a girl's, boy's or given name, a family name, a place or unclassified. The first spelling is pre-selected and you can tap another. A full name appears once every word has a spelling, with a copy button.

Type it as it sounds. If a word isn't found, spell its sound in romaji. This part converts letter by letter and does not guess how English words are pronounced. Typing sumisu gives スミス. A double letter adds a small ッ, so emma gives エッマ and ema gives エマ (the lookup gives Emma as エンマ, a different word). A hyphen makes a long vowel. Typing mike gives ミケ, so for the English sound you type maiku.

Three limits. The dictionary has no figures for how common each spelling is: the tool lists girl's and boy's names first, each group in kana order, so the first one is not the best. A foreign family name such as Smith may be labelled a place, so judge by sound. And Japanese names written in kanji are not in the tool.

How English sounds become katakana

Japanese syllables are a consonant plus a vowel, with no consonant clusters. So katakana adds vowels and uses a few conventions. These are the main ones, with spellings the name tool shows.

Wikipedia's page on transcription into Japanese describes the added vowels, the l and r merger and the th sounds. The 1991 guideline says long vowels are written with ー, that endings like English -er normally become a long vowel, and that a small stop is written with ッ; using it after short English vowels is the habit the dictionary spellings show. It lists ジェ, ティ and ファ as everyday katakana, puts ウィ and ヴァ among the sounds for writing closer to the original (common for personal names), and allows ヴ to be written with the b row instead.

The guideline gives no rule for th, so those spellings are what the dictionary records, not a law. And sound decides, not English spelling: the double m in Emma is one sound, and Thomas starts with a plain t.

Why one name has several spellings

Michael is a good example. The dictionary lists マイケル, ミカエル, ミハエル and ミヒャエル. マイケル follows the English pronunciation, and ミハエル and ミヒャエル often follow the German one.

David has more than twenty, from デイビッド and デビッド to ダヴィド and ダビデ.

The dictionary doesn't say which is most common. So pick the spelling that sounds like how you say your name, and use it every time. A name listed only as unclassified may follow another language's pronunciation: check it against the sound box.

How to write your full name in Japanese

Write each part in katakana and put a middle dot between them. The dot is called 中黒 (なかぐろ, nakaguro, “middle dot”). Sarah Smith becomes サラ・スミス. Japanese Wikipedia says the middle dot separates the parts of names written in katakana. Some writers use a double hyphen (＝) instead: the government guideline shows both, マルコ・ポーロ and マルコ＝ポーロ, and leaves the choice to each field.

A Western name is usually written in its own order, given name first, as in English. Chinese and Korean names usually keep the family name first. The word for a name is 名前 (なまえ, namae, “name”).

Kanji for your name: a choice, not a translation

A foreign name has no kanji of its own. Any kanji version is made by picking characters that sound right, a method called ateji, and their meanings come along whether you wanted them or not.

Ateji was once used for foreign names and places, such as 亜米利加 for America. Wikipedia says katakana has largely replaced it for foreign words, and that アメリカ is far more common now.

Tofugu, one learning site, tells foreigners to avoid kanji for their own names. It warns that kanji chosen for sound can carry odd meanings, and recommends katakana. It adds that Chinese and Korean names can use kanji naturally. If you want a kanji name anyway, ask a Japanese friend to check what the characters mean together.

Look it up, then learn to read it

Use the name converter to get your spelling, then learn its characters.

Questions about your name in Japanese

What is the Japanese for my name?

The Japanese for your name is your name written in katakana, by sound. Use the name converter to see the spellings in the names dictionary, and pick the one that sounds like you.

How do I make my name in Japanese?

Break your name into its sounds, then write each in katakana, using the table above. Or type the sound into the converter.

How do you write your full name in Japanese?

Write each part in katakana and join them with a middle dot, as in サラ・スミス. A Western name usually goes given name first, as in English.

What is a Japanese female name?

A Japanese female name is a given name written mostly in kanji, such as 涼子 (Ryoko) or 喜代 (Kiyo), two examples the full JMnedict names dictionary marks as girl's names. A given name can be read in more than one way, so the kanji alone does not tell you the sound.

What does Kiyo mean in Japanese?

Kiyo has no single meaning, because it comes from the kanji the parents chose. The full JMnedict lists Kiyo mainly as a girl's name, written 喜代, 清代, 清 and many other ways. The word 清い (きよい, kiyoi, “clean”) is one thing 清 can mean. Don't confuse it with 器用 (きよう, kiyō, “skillful”), also said きよう.

Is Kido a Japanese name?

Yes, Kido is a Japanese family name. The full JMnedict lists it with many kanji, including 木戸 and 城戸. For the most common family names, see Japanese Last Names.

Is Ryoko a Japanese girl name?

Yes, Ryoko is a Japanese girl's name. The full JMnedict lists dozens of kanji spellings for it, including 涼子 and 綾子. The converter holds katakana names only.

Can you say san to a girl?

Yes, さん (san, “Mr”) is a polite ending used for anyone, whatever their gender, and it also covers Mrs, Miss and Ms. It goes after a family name or a given name. You don't add it to your own name.

What does suki mean in Japanese?

好き (すき, suki, “liking”) means liking someone or something, and it can mean liking romantically. In the right setting it is also how people say "I love you". See I Love You in Japanese for how people really use it.

What does "I suki you" mean?

"I suki you" is not Japanese. It mixes the English words I and you with the Japanese 好き, and anyone who says it most likely means "I like you" or "I love you".

Why don't we call it Nippon?

English says Japan because the word reached Europe along trade routes: Wikipedia says Marco Polo recorded the Chinese Cipangu, and Portuguese traders met the Malay Jepang. Nippon is real too: にっぽん is a correct reading of 日本 (にほん, nihon, “Japan”), along with にほん. The government declined to pick one, and Nippon is often used for money, stamps and sport, Nihon in words like Nihongo.

How do you say "what the f***" in Japanese?

There is no safe one-line translation, so this page doesn't teach swearing. The plain word for "what" is 何 (なに, nani, “what”).

Sources

• Readings and meanings: JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0).
• Names: JMnedict/ENAMDICT (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0). The converter's katakana spellings are built from it; the kanji entries for Ryoko, Kiyo and Kido are from the full dictionary file. Facts on this page last checked on 2026-10-01.
• The guideline on writing foreign words and names in katakana: Agency for Cultural Affairs, 外来語の表記 (Cabinet Notification No. 2, 28 June 1991), including the foreword, the principles, and the notes on special sounds and long vowels, small tsu and other points.
• How English sounds are carried into Japanese: Wikipedia, Transcription into Japanese and Japanese phonology.
• Ateji and katakana for foreign words: Wikipedia, Ateji and Katakana.
• The middle dot in katakana names: Japanese Wikipedia, 中黒.
• Katakana versus kanji for foreigners' names: Tofugu, Your Name in Japanese.
• Japanese names, their kanji readings and -san: Wikipedia, Japanese name and Japanese honorifics.
• Nippon, Nihon and the origin of "Japan": Wikipedia, Names of Japan.
• Reviewed independently; the points about the katakana spellings, the order of a full name, the kanji advice and the Japanese names are waiting for a native speaker's check.