Quote:
Originally Posted by RealJames
Most Japanese people I've met don't give a second thought to the meaning of their name's Kanji, it's more of a western obsession lol.
Parents tend to chose a sound they like for the name, and then see which kanji can fit that sound.
When in a name, the "ko" kanji has a strong feminine nuance, not a strong "child" nuance.
These are my observations, I'm not some final word on anything.
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Not sure what you meant by western obsession, but I do agree that they don't think about the meaning, but more of how it sound. My cousin's wife came from a fairly traditional family, and they believe in bad omens, karma and stuff like that (superstitious??). Anyways, her name is Miyuki, but they only write it in Hiragana - みゆき, and never the Kanji - 美雪, because snow melts, and thats a bad sign indicating short life.
I mean, its not a new discovery, people knew all along that snow will melt, and if they think it carries a bad fortune, then why name her Miyuki? Better yet, why not 美幸