Japanese First Names and What They Mean
Updated June 29, 2026
Popular Japanese first names include 蓮 (Ren), 陽翔 (Haruto), and 湊 (Minato) for boys, and 葵 (Aoi), 凛 (Rin), and 陽菜 (Hina) for girls, and most are written with kanji chosen for their meaning. Here are common given names you will hear in anime and J-dramas, with their readings and meanings.
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 蓮 | Renliterally: lotusmale |
| 陽翔 | Harutoliterally: sunlight, soaringmale |
| 湊 | Minatoliterally: harbourmale |
| 樹 | Itsukiliterally: treemale |
| 大翔 | Hirotoliterally: big, soaringmale |
| 葵 | Aoiliterally: hollyhockunisex |
| 凛 | Rinliterally: dignified, cold and clearfemale |
| 陽菜 | Hinaliterally: sunlight, vegetable or greensfemale |
| 結愛 | Yualiterally: bind, lovefemale |
| 紬 | Tsumugiliterally: pongee silkfemale |
| 莉子 | Rikoliterally: jasmine, childfemale |
| 結菜 | Yunaliterally: bind, greensfemale |
Want these to stick? Hear them in real context: LingoBinge surfaces words like these while you watch Japanese shows on Netflix, and saves them for spaced review.
Hear them in: Old Enough!, Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories.
Frequently asked questions
- How do Japanese given names work?
- Most given names are written in kanji chosen for meaning, and the same sounds can be written several ways. Many names are clearly male or female, while some, like 葵 (Aoi), are used for both.
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