| Sources | Pronunciation guide |
(Main) gender: Female, can be male as well
Pronunciation: muu-tsuu–mʸee [mɯ̟̀ᵝ.tsɨ́ᵝ.mʲí]
Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is derived from the continuative form of the verb 睦む (mutsumu) meaning “to be harmonious, be intimate/close.” 睦 is used for both genders and 和, meaning “harmony, peace,” is also used as well, albeit rarely.
They can also be combined with a mi kanji, though that tends to be used mostly for females (unless marked with * in which, in this case, it can be used for males as well). They include 美* meaning “beauty,” 実* meaning “seed; fruit,” 海* meaning “sea, ocean,” 未, referring to the sign of the Sheep or part of the word 未来 (mirai) meaning “future,” 望 meaning “desire, wish, hope,” 弓 meaning “bow” and 珠 meaning “gem, jewel.”
As other ways to write this name, for one, a mi kanji can be prefixed with 陸, which looks similar to 睦 but is normally read as riku with the meaning “land, shore” (the opposite tends to happen as well for Riku). Also, a mu kanji, e.g. 夢 meaning “dream,” can be suffixed with 摘 (tsumi) meaning “picking, plucking.”
Popularity:
Overall usage of this name is uncommon, rising in popularity as a feminine name in the 1940s. For the next few decades, percentages would stay within the 0.1% range before dropping below it by the mid-1990s. As for masculine usage, percentages were over 0.02% in the 1940s and 1950s but would drop to 0.005% or below by the 1960s. Masculine percentage levels would stay mostly consistent since then, even as feminine percentage levels remained below 0.02% in the 2010s.
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Beyond Sakura and Hiroshi 