Naming your baby is an important process as it may affect your kids' lives, so it is better to think of the name more than once as they will bear it for the rest of their lives.
In Japan, especially, if you have an unusual name or a name sounding foreigner, people tend to throw you looks when they read it or hear it.
I always have that kind of experience when going to the hospitals, for example.
Not to mention that I also have a middle name and when I get called to the reception, literally everyone in the area turns their heads towards my direction.
However, I feel that things have been slowly changing lately, and there have been a couple of schools and kindergartens that give their children English names to use during the classes or with their English teachers.
The kids seem to enjoy it, and their parents also seem to like the idea a lot! Most are thinking that if their child goes traveling or studying abroad, they can also use an English name so it will be a lot easier for them.
The many types of Kira Kiraキラキラ Names
“Kira Kira” means “shiny” in Japanese, and it refers to the unique names that feel so special and make you think of a jewel.
Sometimes, they are too special, and that is when it becomes a problem.
I think parents sometimes let their personal preferences go wild, and then names like “光”(Kanji from Hikari, but pronounced in English as “Light”) are born.
I don’t consider it something unusual, but it might get a bit confusing, and the old generation in Japan will have a hard time reading them.
However, this is one of the good examples as I have heard worse!
Parents give the children these rare names in the hope their baby will grow up to be unique, but names that sound different from the usual ones stick out and sometimes might have an opposite effect.
I believe it is better not to force the limits if you don’t want to risk your child getting bullied or having a bad experience because of a too outstanding name.
Some of the types of shiny names are:
Names of the characters(as an example: Pikachu ピカチュウ, Naruto ナルト, etc.)
Unsuitable names for children: I remember I read something a long time ago that a couple named their children “devil”, Akuma/悪魔 in Japanese. Some parents choose names of objects and some very inappropriate, too!
Written in Kanji, but pronounced in English: An example would be the “光”(Hikari) above that is pronounced translated in English as “Light”.
How do you feel about the Kira Kira names? We would love hearing what you have to say on this subject so don’t forget to share your opinion with us on our Facebook page.
Naming your baby is an important process as it may affect your kids' lives, so it is better to think of the name more than once as they will bear it for the rest of their lives.
In Japan, especially, if you have an unusual name or a name sounding foreigner, people tend to throw you looks when they read it or hear it.
I always have that kind of experience when going to the hospitals, for example.
Not to mention that I also have a middle name and when I get called to the reception, literally everyone in the area turns their heads towards my direction.
However, I feel that things have been slowly changing lately, and there have been a couple of schools and kindergartens that give their children English names to use during the classes or with their English teachers.
The kids seem to enjoy it, and their parents also seem to like the idea a lot! Most are thinking that if their child goes traveling or studying abroad, they can also use an English name so it will be a lot easier for them.
The many types of Kira Kiraキラキラ Names
“Kira Kira” means “shiny” in Japanese, and it refers to the unique names that feel so special and make you think of a jewel.
Sometimes, they are too special, and that is when it becomes a problem.
I think parents sometimes let their personal preferences go wild, and then names like “光”(Kanji from Hikari, but pronounced in English as “Light”) are born.
I don’t consider it something unusual, but it might get a bit confusing, and the old generation in Japan will have a hard time reading them.
However, this is one of the good examples as I have heard worse!
Parents give the children these rare names in the hope their baby will grow up to be unique, but names that sound different from the usual ones stick out and sometimes might have an opposite effect.
I believe it is better not to force the limits if you don’t want to risk your child getting bullied or having a bad experience because of a too outstanding name.
Some of the types of shiny names are:
How do you feel about the Kira Kira names? We would love hearing what you have to say on this subject so don’t forget to share your opinion with us on our Facebook page.