Names in Japanese
Here you will find thousands of names in Japanese hand-lettered by Master Japanese Calligrapher Eri Takase. These names have been meticulously researched and documented and, for most names, we provide independent references. These beautiful Names in Japanese may be immediately downloaded when your order is placed.
How Names are Written in Japanese
Japanese has three writing systems. Foreign names are written in katakana, the script reserved for words and names from other languages.
Names are translated by how they sound. The name “Sean” and the name “Shawn” look different in English but sound the same — in Japanese, they produce the same characters: ショーン.
Two people named “Andrea” may pronounce it differently — and each pronunciation produces a different, equally correct Japanese translation. Pronunciations are researched across 11 languages — French, Portuguese, Finnish, Arabic, and more. The right translation depends on how you say your name.
Read the full guide: How to Write Names in Japanese
What You Receive
A high-resolution PDF of your name in fine Japanese calligraphy — crisp at any size, from a business card to a poster.
- Name Designs
- Your name in katakana or hiragana.
- Phrase Designs
- Your name composed into a Japanese phrase — “{Name} is My Life” and “{Name} is My Love.”
- Meaning Designs
- When your name has a meaning, that meaning in kanji. Researched from 19 scholarly etymology sources.
For tattoos, framing, engraving, certificates, martial arts belts, and commercial design.
Every design page links to the dictionary entry for your name's translation.
About Master Takase
Master Calligrapher Eri Takase trained in Japanese calligraphy since the age of six in Osaka, Japan. In 1989, she earned the rank of Shihan (師範) in Japan's most prestigious calligraphic societies — Bokuteki-kai and Bunka-shodo. The rank carries two privileges: to establish her own school, and to create an original calligraphy style.
Her work has appeared in books, film, album covers, and the Emmy Awards. The calligraphy in every design on this site is hers.
“Japanese Calligraphy is too beautiful a bird to be locked in the cage of a thousand years of tradition.”