In general, each Japanese name has several different possible spellings; the meaning of that name depends on the chosen spelling.
Choosing a Japanese name involves making two choices: picking a name and also selecting a particular spelling among the available spellings for that name.
For example, the name Yumi can be spelled as 優美 (the first Kanji character means “gentle” and the second one means “beauty”). It can also be spelled as 由美 (with characters meaning “origin” and “beauty”). Another possible spelling is 裕美 (“abundance” and “beauty”).
We can identify a group of Japanese girl names that begin with Y consisting of those that can be written with the Kanji character 優 (which can mean “gentle” but can also mean “excellent”). Here are some examples of such names:
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Yūko | 優子 | 優 (yū): gentle 子 (ko): child |
| Yumi | 優美 | 優 (yu): gentle 美 (mi): beauty |
| Yumiko | 優美子 | 優 (yu): gentle 美 (mi): beauty 子 (ko): child |
| Yumika | 優美佳 | 優 (yu): gentle 美 (mi): beauty 佳 (ka): good |
We can also identify a second group of Japanese girl names that start with Y, this one consisting of names that have a possible spelling that begins with the Kanji character 雪 (which can mean “snow”). Here are some examples of these:
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Yukiko | 雪子 | 雪 (yuki): snow 子 (ko): child |
| Yukie | 雪絵 | 雪 (yuki): snow 絵 (e): picture, painting |
| Yukina | 雪名 | 雪 (yuki): snow 名 (na): name |
| Yukino | 雪乃 | 雪 (yuki): snow 乃 (no): from |
One of the difficulties of the Japanese language is that the same Kanji character can have several different readings (or pronunciations) depending on the word in which it appears.
For example, the character 安 (which means “peaceful,” “tranquil,” or “safe”) is read as “an” when it appears in the word 安心 (pronounced “anshin,” and meaning “peace of mind”), but that same character is read as “yasu,” when it appears in the name Yasushi, spelled as 安志.
Among Japanese male names that start with Y, we can identify a first group consisting of those that can be spelled with the Kanji character 安 (it is important to remember that most Japanese given names have several different possible spellings).
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Yasuo | 安男 | 安 (yasu): peaceful 男 (o): man |
| Yasushi | 安志 | 安 (yasu): peaceful 志 (shi): intention, plan |
| Yasuhiko | 安彦 | 安 (yasu): peaceful 彦 (hiko): boy, prince |
| Yasunori | 安則 | 安 (yasu): peaceful 則 (nori): rule |
| Yasuyuki | 安幸 | 安 (yasu): peace 幸 (yuki): happiness |
| Yasumasa | 安正 | 安 (yasu): peaceful 正 (masa): righteous |
The Kanji character 裕 means “abundance” and it appears in the word 裕福 (yūfuku) which means “wealthy.” Several Japanese male names that start with Y contain this Kanji character in one or more of their possible spellings.
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Yūji | 裕司 | 裕 (yū): abundant 司 (ji): rule |
| Yūsuke | 裕介 | 裕 (yū): abundant 介 (suke): mediate |
| Yūya | 裕也 | 裕 (yū): abundant 也 (ya): to be |
| Yūta | 裕太 | 裕 (yū): abundant 太 (ta): thick |
| Yūichirō | 裕一郎 | 裕 (yū): abundant 一 (ichi): one, first 郎 (rō): son |
| Yūto | 裕斗 | 裕 (yū): abundant 斗 (to): Big Dipper |
When used as a standalone word, the Kanji character 義 is read as “gi” and it means “justice.” But when it appears in Japanese given names, this same character is often read as “yoshi,” as can be seen in the examples below:
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Yoshiaki | 義明 | 義 (yoshi): justice 明 (aki): bright |
| Yoshihiro | 義弘 | 義 (yoshi): justice 弘 (hiro): vast |
| Yoshio | 義雄 | 義 (yoshi): justice 雄 (o): masculine |
| Yoshitaka | 義孝 | 義 (yoshi): justice 孝 (taka): filial piety |
| Yoshihiko | 義彦 | 義 (yoshi): justice 彦 (hiko): boy, prince |
| Yoshinori | 義徳 | 義 (yoshi): justice 徳 (nori): virtue |
| Yoshikazu | 義和 | 義 (yoshi): justice 和 (kazu): harmony |
The Kanji character 幸 can be used as a standalone word that is pronounced “kō” and means “happiness.” But when this character appears in names, it is often read as “yuki”; as a result, it can be used at the beginning of several Japanese names that start with Y.
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Yukio | 幸夫 | 幸 (yuki): happiness 夫 (o): man |
| Yukihiro | 幸弘 | 幸 (yuki): happiness 弘 (hiro): vast |
| Yukihiko | 幸彦 | 幸 (yuki): happiness 彦 (hiko): boy, prince |
| Yukiya | 幸也 | 幸 (yuki): happiness 也 (ya): to be |