來

Sora (そら)

Posted on by maybeitisdaijirou

Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male, can be female as well
Pronunciation: so-rah [só̞.ɾà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name stems from the word 空 (sora) meaning “sky,” as a name also written as 昊, 宙, 天 and 穹. 大空 and 青空 (also, and more popularly, 蒼空 and 碧空) are also used, normally read as oozora and aozora and meaning “(literally) big sky, heavens, firmament, the blue” and “blue sky” respectively. The first kanji for aozora can also be used as a single kanji.
As far as other 2-kanji combinations go, the single kanji mentioned at the beginning are used as both a first and second element kanji. Other kanji in use for this type of combinations are shown in the table below:

so (そ) ra (ら)
奏 “playing music” 来/來 “arrival”
爽 “fresh” 良 “good”
想 “conception, idea, thought” 咲 “blossom”
颯 “quick, sudden” 楽 “comfort, ease”
壮 “vibrancy, strength, bravery” 桜 “cherry (tree, blossom)”
創 “making, building; start, origin, beginning” 愛 “love, affection”
星 “star”
翔 “fly, soar”
蘭 “orchid”
頼 “request, favour; trust”
礼 “gratitude; manners; gift”
麗 “lovely, beautiful”
大 “large, big”
虎 “tiger”

Image-based kanji combinations are not out of the question for Sora, most of which include:

  • 夏空, the first kanji meaning “summer”
  • 叶空, the first kanji meaning “grant, answer”
  • 希空, the first kanji meaning “rare” or part of 希望 (kibō) meaning “hope, wish, aspiration”
  • 輝空, the first kanji meaning “brightness, brilliance”
  • 幸空, the first kanji meaning “good luck, happiness”
  • 澄空, the first kanji meaning “lucidity, transparency”
  • 星空 – see the table above for 星
  • 美空, the first kanji meaning “beauty”
  • 夢空, the first kanji meaning “dream”
  • 優空, the first kanji meaning “gentle, elegant”

Simply put, the sky really is the limit for this name!

Popularity:
Although in use since at least the early 20th century, the name started to see its first signs of an increase in popularity in the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1990, it was given to just over 0.01% of both boys and girls. By the mid-1990s, the increase gets steeper, the percentages increasing to over 0.08% for boys and over 0.04% for girls by 1996, over 0.3% and over 0.12% by 2000 and over 0.84% and over 0.32% by 2007.
By then, Sora began to maintain its position within the boys’ top 20 and the lower half of the girls’ top 100, though over the past few years, the name flip flops out and back in the boys’ top 20, based on data from Baby Calendar, Tamahiyo and Meiji Yasuda Life.

If you would like to add in your thoughts about this name, please share them in the comments below.

Natsuki (なつき)

Posted on by maybeitisdaijirou

Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female, can be male as well
Pronunciation: nah-tskʸee [nà.tsɨ̥́ᵝ.kʲí]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
There are two main ways of writing this name, the first being 月 or 槻, meaning “moon” and “Japanese zelkova tree” respectively, following a na kanji, such as:

  • 奈 or 那, both phonetic kanji
  • 菜 meaning “greens”
  • 七 meaning “seven”
  • 渚 meaning “beach, shore”
  • 梛, referring to the Asian bayberry tree
  • 和 meaning “calm, gentle”
  • 南 meaning “south”
  • 苗 meaning “(rice) seedling, young plant”
  • 波 meaning “wave”
  • 楠, referring to the camphor tree

The second main way is 夏, 捺, the first meaning “summer” and the second a phonetic kanji that is otherwise referring to the stamping or applying/affixation of a seal, or phonetic writings of Natsu followed by a ki kanji, most including:

  • 希/稀 meaning “rare” or part of 希望 (kibō) meaning “hope, wish, aspiration”
  • 輝/暉 meaning “brightness, brilliance”
  • 樹/木 meaning “tree”
  • 葵, referring to a mallow (e.g. hollyhock) or a wild ginger; part of 向日葵 (himawari) “sunflower”
  • 姫 meaning “princess”
  • 妃 meaning “empress, queen”
  • 生 meaning “vitality”
  • 来/來 meaning “arrival”
  • 綺, either meaning “thin silk” or part of 綺麗 (kirei) meaning “pretty; clean”
  • 貴 meaning “precious, valuable”
  • 己, referring to the 6th heavenly stem in Chinese calendar
  • 季 meaning “season”
  • 毅 meaning “strong”
  • 紀 meaning “account, chronicle”
  • 基 meaning “origin”
  • 規 meaning “standard”

Other ways to write this name include a na+tsu+ki combination (tsu kanji including 津 meaning “harbour, haven,” 都 meaning “metropolis” and 月) and a very rare usage of 懐, from the continuative form of the verb 懐く (natsuku) meaning “to become emotionally attached/take (to).”

Popularity:
This name has been in use since at least the latter half of the Meiji period (1868-1912), however it was in rare use (also more mixed in terms of gender, though slightly masculine leaning). The name first began to see small increases as a masculine name in the 1960s and 1970s, though the latter decade was when it started to increase a tad more steeply as a feminine name.
By 1990, it was already within the top 50 for girls with percentage at over 0.62% (for boys, it was at over 0.07%). Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, percentages flip flopped around the 0.6% line, sometimes being given to over 0.5% of girls, other times at over 0.6%, maintaining its position in the top 50 throughout, even as it started to drop more generally in the mid to late 2000s. By 2009, over 0.43% of girls and over 0.08% of boys received this name.
Based on Baby Calendar rankings data and my preliminary 2014-9 names research, Natsuki is now out of the top 50 but still ranks within the top 100 for girls with over 0.3% of girls receiving this name each year. For boys, there has been a slight increase compared to the 2000s with percentages ranging from 0.14% up to over 0.2% in any given year in that time period.

If you would like to add in your thoughts about this name, please share them in the comments below.

Urara (うらら)

Posted on by maybeitisdaijirou

Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: uu-rah–rah [ɯ̟̀ᵝ.ɾá.ɾá]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is derived from the adjective 麗らか (uraraka) meaning “bright, clear, beautiful, glorious.” The kanji can be prefixed with an u kanji, like 羽 meaning “feather” or 詩 meaning “poem,” or it can be suffixed with a ra kanji, such as 良 meaning “good,” 羅 meaning “thin silk, gauze,” 楽 meaning “comfort, ease” or 来/來 meaning “arrival” (it can also be repeated with 々), also used for u+ra+ra combinations.

Popularity:
Though in use since at least the 1930s, it wasn’t until the 1990s when it gained any significant amounts of usage. More than 0.03% of girls were given this name in 1990, rising to over 0.05% by the mid-1990s. The asadora (morning drama) ‘Ten Urara’, broadcast from April to October of 1998 and whose main character has this name, helped it peak to near 0.1% by 1999. Since then however, it has fallen down in popularity a bit and has remained at around the 0.05% level throughout much of the 2010s.

If you would like to add in your thoughts about this name, please share them in the comments below.

Kurumi (くるみ)

Posted on by maybeitisdaijirou

Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: kuu-ruu–mʸee [kɯ̟̀ᵝ.ɾɯ̟́ᵝ.mʲí]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is derived from the word (胡桃), referring to a walnut. There are multiple theories for its etymology, including a shift from 呉実 (kuremi), made up of 呉, an archaic word referring to China, and 実 meaning “seed; fruit,” the combination stemming from the walnut being introduced to Japan from China via Korea, and a shift from 黒実 (kuromi), the first element meaning “black,” from the dark, brown colour of the nut.
Other ways to write this name are shown in the table below:

ku (く) ru (る) mi (み)
胡桃 see above* 美/深 “beauty”
来/來/徠 “to come, arrive”** 実 “seed; fruit”
久 “long time” 瑠 part of 瑠璃 (ruri) “lapis lazuli” 未 sign of the Sheep; part of 未来 (mirai) “future”
玖 “black jewel; nine” 留 “stop” 見 “looking, viewing”
紅 “crimson” 琉 part of 琉璃 (ruri) 望 “desire, wish, hope”
公 “monarch, ruler” 流 “current, flow” 心 “heart, mind”
空 “sky” 月 “moon”

夢 “dream”

* 胡 on its own is also used
** also used as part of a split 1st element

Popularity:
Usage of this name is relatively recent, having been used since at least the 1940s. Increase in its popularity took place in the 1980s – around 0.095% of girls were given this name in 1990, when 胡 was added to the jinmeiyō kanji list.
From the 1990s to the 2000s, the general trend for its popularity was an upward one, having risen to over 0.39% by 2007, placing the name just below the top 50. By the 2010s, its popularity was already falling down. Based on a combination of Baby Calendar rankings data and my 2014-20 names research, Kurumi has been ranking below the top 100 for a while now, sometimes getting below 0.2%.

If you would like to add in your thoughts about this name, please share them in the comments below.

Kitaru (きたる)

Posted on by maybeitisdaijirou

Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: kʸtah–ruu [kʲɨ̥̀ᵝ.tá.ɾɯ̟́ᵝ]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
The name is derived from the verb 来る/來る meaning “to come, arrive,” ultimately from a combination of 来 (ki), the continuative form of 来る (kuru), and the verb 至る (itaru) meaning “to attain, to reach (a stage); to lead/get to.”
This name can also be written with multiple kanji with a ki kanji, like 喜 meaning “delight, pleasure,” 紀 meaning “account, chronicle” or 希, either meaning “rare” or part of 希望 (kibō) meaning “hope, wish, aspiration,” with a taru kanji like 足 meaning “to be sufficient; to serve.” The second element can be split into two kanji, with a ta kanji like 多 meaning “many, much” or 太 meaning “plump, thick” and a ru kanji like 留 meaning “stop.”

Popularity:
Overall usage for this name is very uncommon to rare with an estimate of around 0.001-2% of men recorded with this name in telephone book data and less than 0.005% of boys receiving this name throughout the Heisei period (1989-2019).

If you would like to add in your thoughts about this name, please share them in the comments below.