眞

Shinba (しんば)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: sheem-ba [ɕĩ́m̀.bà]
Variant transliterations: Shimba, Simba

Etymology and/or ways to write:
Most of the kanji used for this name can be seen in the table below:

shin (しん) ba (ば)
心 “heart, mind” 羽 “feather”
真/眞 “truth, reality” 絆 “bonds, relationship; tether”
神 “spirit, psyche; god, deity” 葉 “leaf”
伸 “lengthen, expand” 覇 “domination”
信 “honesty, sincerity” 晴 “clear, fine”
新 “new” 芭 part of 芭蕉 (bashō) “Japanese (fibre) banana”
進/晋 “advance, progress” 陽 “day; sun”
芯 “wick, marrow; core, centre”
親 “close, familiar, intimate”
慎 “careful, discreet”
臣 “retainer, attendant”
紳 part of 紳士 (shinshi) “gentleman”

Popularity:
Usage of this name began to rise a tiny bit soon after the release of ‘The Lion King’ in 1994 as usage levels max out at 0.001% for the first few years. From 1999, it rose above 0.002% with its first peak occurring in 2005 and 2006 with 0.010% and 0.011% of baby boys receiving this name in these respective years.
After singer, actress and semi-retired model Tsuchiya Anna gave birth to her second son with this name (Simba) in March of 2010, the name rose further in usage to the point where, more often than not, usage levels rise above 0.02%.

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Mami (まみ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: mah-mʸee [má.mʲì]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
Most of the kanji used for this name can be seen in the table below:

ma (ま) mi (み)
真/眞 “pure, true” 美/深 “beauty”
麻 “hemp, flax” 実 “seed; fruit”
茉 part of 茉莉 (matsuri) “Arabian jasmine” 未 sign of the Sheep; part of 未来 (mirai) “future”
磨/摩 “polish, shine” 海 “sea, ocean”
舞 “dance” 珠 “gem, jewel”
万 “ten thousand” 巳 sign of the Snake
満 “full, whole”* 弥 “increase”
愛 “beloved” 望 “desire, wish, hope”
稀/希 “rare” 見 “looking, viewing”
己 6th heavenly stem in Chinese calendar
水 “water”
心 “heart, mind”
三 “three”

* can also be used as a second element kanji

Popularity:
Mami started rising in usage after the Second World War (before, it was very uncommon to rare), entering the top 100 by the second half of the 1950s. However, it ranked at the bottom half (largely staying within the upper 0.2% range) and would exit the top 100 by the mid-1960s before re-entering in the mid-1970s.
Its general peak of popularity occurred in the 1980s and early 1990s when it ranked up to just outside the top 25 and usage levels generally ranged between 0.7% and 0.8%. From then on, it gradually fell in popularity, leaving the top 100 by the turn of the millennium. Based on Baby Calendar rankings data as well as my 2014-21 names research, the average percentage from 2017-21 fell to below 0.03%.

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Mayuri (まゆり)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: mah-yuu–rʸee [mà.jɯ̟́ᵝ.ɾʲí]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
Most of the kanji used for this name can be seen in the table below:

ma (ま) yu (ゆ) ri (り)
真/眞 “pure, true” 百合 “lily”
麻 “hemp, flax” 由 “reason, cause” 里 “village”
茉 part of 茉莉 (matsuri) “Arabian jasmine” 優 “gentle, elegant; excellence, superiority” 莉 part of 茉莉 (matsuri)
万 “ten thousand” 友 “friend” 理 “reason, logic”
満 “full, whole” 佑/祐/佑/侑 “help” 梨 “pear”
摩/磨 “polish, shine” 有 “existence” 璃 part of 瑠璃 (ruri) “lapis lazuli”
舞 “dance” 悠 “quiet, calm; far off, distant” 利 “advantage, benefit”
愛 “beloved” 結 “tie, bond” 李 “Japanese/Chinese plum”
雅 “refinement, elegance” 夕 “evening” 吏 “officer”
柚 “yuzu fruit” 凛/凜 “cold; dignified”
唯 “only” 栞 “bookmark”
裕 “abundant, rich”
遊 “play”
夢 “dream”

Popularity:
Overall usage of this name is uncommon, only starting to rise in the middle of the Shōwa period (1926-1989). In any given year in the 1990s and 2000s, usage levels generally rise above 0.01%. Based on Baby Calendar rankings data as well as my 2014-21 names research, by that time frame, percentages usually tend to go above 0.02%.

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Kurama (くらま)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: kuu-rah-mah [kɯ̟́ᵝ.ɾà.mà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is a combination of 蔵(藏)/倉/庫 (kura) meaning “warehouse, storehouse” and a ma kanji, like 馬 meaning “horse,” 真/眞 meaning “truth,” 磨 meaning “polish, shine” or 麻 meaning “hemp, flax.”
The writing 鞍馬, the first kanji meaning “saddle,” refers to Mount Kurama in the north of Kyōto and Kurama-dera, the temple at the base of the mountain. At present, no evidence of this writing being used as a given name is found.

Popularity:
In use since at least the early 20th century, this name is rarely used with most of the bearers born in the Heisei period (1989-2019) onwards. Usage levels in the 1990s maxed out at 0.001% but beginning in the early 2000s, percentages rose above it, occassionally rising above 0.005%.

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Manae (まなえ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: mah-nah–e [mà.ná.é̞]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
The first element of this name is most commonly written as 愛 (mana) meaning “beloved,” originally stemming from a compound of 真/眞 (ma) meaning “pure, true” and the Old Japanese possessive particle な (na). These kanji can combined with 苗 (nae) meaning “(rice) seedling, young plant” (though it’s rarely used) and can also be used in a three-kanji combination, which can be seen below:

ma (ま) na (な) e (え)
麻 “hemp, flax” 奈 phonetic kanji 恵/慧 “wisdom”
茉 part of 茉莉 (matsuri) “Arabian jasmine” 菜 “greens” 永 “eternity”
万 “ten thousand” 那 phonetic kanji 絵 “picture, drawing”
満 “full, whole” 江 “inlet, bay”
希 “rare” 枝 “branch, bough”
栄 “glory, prosperity”
瑛 “crystal”
英 “wisdom, brilliance”

Popularity:
Rarely used in the early 20th century, Manae began to see a little bit of a pick-up in usage in the late Shōwa period (1926-1989). By 1990, percentages amount to over 0.02%, remaining that way until late 1995 when the dorama ‘Koibito yo’ aired which featured a character with this name, written as 愛永.
By 1996, the name peaked at well over 0.1% by which point 愛永 briefly became its most popular form. However, it would revert to its pre-dorama levels within a few years and based on Baby Calendar rankings data as well as my 2014-20 names research, percentages fell below 0.01% by the late 2010s.

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Yoshimasa (よしまさ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: yo-shee-mah-sah [jò̞.ɕí.mà.sà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
The first element usually comes from the classical adjective 良し/善し/好し (yoshi, modern yoi/ii) meaning “good, excellent” (can also be written as 吉, 佳 or 宜), though it can also come from 由 (yoshi) meaning “reason, cause.” Other kanji related to the adjective include 義 meaning “morality, justice, honour,” 慶/喜/欣/悦 meaning “delight, pleasure,” 芳 meaning “fragrance, aroma” and 祥 meaning “blessedness, (good) omen.”
As for the second element, it is derived from either 正 (masa) meaning “exact, precise,” as a name also written as 将 (hence the usage of 政 meaning “rule” and 真/眞 meaning “pure, true”) or the verb 勝る/優る (masaru) meaning “to excel, surpass, exceed; to outweigh” (hence the usage of 昌 meaning “prosperous” and 雅 meaning “refinement, elegance”).

Popularity:
Before the Meiji period (1868-1912), this name was used as an adulthood name among the upper class with over 20 examples of its full or partial usage found in the Japanese Wikipedia dating as far back as the early Heian period (794-1185).
As far as post-Edo period (1603-1868) usage is concerned, it is uncommon among the overall population with percentages peaking above 0.2% at times, particularly in the first half of the Meiji period. By the 1990s, it dropped to below 0.05%, falling further to within the 0.01% range by the 2010s.

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

Hayuma (はゆま)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: hah-yuu-mah [há.jɯ̟̀ᵝ.mà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
For the first element, any kanji can be used that contains the stem reading hay-, like 隼 (hayabusa), referring to the peregrine falcon, 颯/駿, from 疾風 (hayate) referring to a gale or otherwise a strong or swift wind, 映, from the classical verb 映ゆ (hayu) meaning “to shine, glow,” or 早 (haya) meaning “early.” It can also be split into two kanji, a ha kanji like 羽 meaning “feather” or 波 meaning “wave” and a yu kanji such as 優 meaning “gentle, elegant; excellence, superiority,” 由 meaning “reason, cause” or 祐/佑 meaning “help.”
As for the second element, any kanji with the reading ma can be used, such as:

  • 磨/摩 meaning “polish, shine”
  • 真/眞 meaning “truth”
  • 馬 meaning “horse”
  • 麻 meaning “hemp, flax”
  • 万 meaning “ten thousand”
  • 茉, part of 茉莉 (matsuri) referring to the Arabian jasmine

Popularity:
With its usage influenced by footballer Tanaka Hayuma, especially after his marriage to model Malia in 2001 and the birth of their son the next year, percentages from 2002 to the end of the 2000s (when 隼磨 was the most popular form) stayed between 0.005% and 0.010%, going above the 0.010% threshold in the second half of the 2010s.

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

Shin’ya (しんや)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: sheew̃-ya [ɕɨ̃́ᵝɰ̃̀.jà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
For the second element, it is most commonly used as 也 (ya), which can refer to the archaic auxiliary verb なり (nari) meaning “to be” but is otherwise phonetic. Others include 哉, 弥/彌 meaning “increase” and 矢 meaning “arrow.” As for the first element, any kanji with the reading shin can be used, such as:

  • 真/眞 meaning “truth, reality”
  • 慎/愼 meaning “careful, discreet”
  • 伸 meaning “lengthen, expand”
  • 信 meaning “honesty, sincerity”
  • 進/晋 meaning “advance, progress”
  • 心 meaning “heart, mind”
  • 新 meaning “new”
  • 紳, part of 紳士 (shinshi) meaning “gentleman”
  • 親 meaning “close, familiar, intimate”
  • 臣 meaning “retainer, attendant”
  • 槙/槇, referring to the yew plum tree
  • 芯 meaning “wick, marrow; core, centre”
  • 森 meaning “forest”

Popularity:
In use since the Meiji period (1868-1912), Shin’ya began rising in usage in the Taishō period (1912-1926), though it was still uncommon (percentages below 0.1%) compared to its usage in the time frame starting from the late 1950s.
By the early 1960s, percentages had risen to over 0.2% and though it did drop a little bit in the latter third of the decade, usage had jumped again to over 0.4% by the early 1970s, spurred by the television drama ‘Arigatō’ which featured a main character going by this name in the first season.
Usage peaked in the early 1980s with percentages at well over 0.9% and began dropping in usage soon afterwards, pulling out of the top 100 by the late 1990s. Since the late 2000s, percentages for this name are at below 0.05%.

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

Machiko (まちこ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: mah-chko [má.tɕì̥.kò̞]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
The second element of this name is usually written as 子 (ko) meaning “child” while the first element can be taken from 町/街 (machi) meaning “town” or 待 (machi) meaning “(a)waiting; anticipation.” However, it is more common for the first element to be written with two kanji, a ma kanji like 真/眞 meaning “truth,” 麻 meaning “hemp, flax” or 万 meaning “ten thousand” and a chi kanji, such as 智/知 meaning “wisdom” or 千 meaning “thousand.”

Popularity:
Among the barrage of -ko names that started rising in popularity in the 1890s, Machiko was uncommonly used throughout the early 20th century, rising to over 0.1% in the 1930s. However, the name peaked in the 1950s (particularly in the first half) with the decadal percentage at well over 0.4%. There are two possible factors at play for its peak:

  • actress Kyō Machiko
    • achieved considerable fame during this name for her roles in such films as ‘Rashōmon’ and ‘Gate of Hell’
  • NHK radio drama ‘Kimi no Na wa’ (1952-4) (no relation to the 2016 film) and subsequent film adaptation (1953)
    • featured a main character with this name, written as 真知子

In particular, the second factor is contributed to the rise of 真知子 as noted by Tsunoda. His data reveals that it ranked 48th place in 1948, slowly rising to 30th in 1951 before peaking at 14th in 1953 and dropping out of the top 50 by 1955.
By the 1960s, the name as a whole was out of the top 100, though it did still see a bit of usage (over 0.1%) until the last years of the Shōwa period (1926-1989). By 2000, less than 0.01% of girls received this name and it continues to be a rarity among baby girls today.

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

Haruma (はるま)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: hah-ruu-mah [há.ɾɯ̟̀ᵝ.mà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is a combination of the element haru and a ma kanji, most of them included in the list below:

  • 真/眞 meaning “truth”
  • 馬 meaning “horse”
  • 磨/摩 meaning “polish, shine”
  • 慎/愼 meaning “careful, discreet”
  • 誠 meaning “truth, reality”
  • 翔 meaning “fly, soar”
  • 雅 meaning “refinement, elegance”
  • 麻 meaning “hemp, flax”
  • 守 meaning “protection”
  • 万 meaning “ten thousand”
  • 舞 meaning “dance”
  • 茉, part of 茉莉 (matsuri) referring to the Arabian jasmine
  • 希/稀 meaning “rare”
  • 将 meaning “exact, precise”
  • 大 meaning “big, large”
  • 満 meaning “full, whole”
  • 優 meaning “excellence, superiority”
  • 天 meaning “sky”

Popularity:
Usage of this name was somewhat rare up until the 1990s when it began to slowly rise in popularity, from over 0.01% in 1990 to over 0.04% by 2000. The rise steepened throughout the 2000s, rising to over 0.15% by 2007 before entering the top 100 for the first time by 2008. By 2009, it was given to well over 0.45% of baby boys, no doubt influenced by the now late actor Miura Haruma.
Based on my preliminary 2014-20 names research combined with survey data from Meiji Yasuda Life and Tamahiyo (+ Baby Calendar in later years), the name peaked in popularity in 2014 with the percentage averaging at well over 1.1%, placing it within the top 10. As of 2020, based on the aforementioned sources, the calculated percentage sits at well over 0.5%, ranking within the bottom half of the top 50.

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