affection

Kanoa (かのあ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female, can be male as well
Pronunciation: kah-no-ah [ká.nò̞.à]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is often written as a combination of 叶, in this case a sound shift from the verb 叶う (kanau) meaning “to come true (of a wish, prayer, dream, etc.), be fulfilled, be realised,” and an a kanji, such as 愛 meaning “love, affection” (mostly feminine), 空 meaning “space, room,” 蒼 meaning “blue” (mostly masculine), so on and so forth. As a substitute for 叶, a ka kanji, like 海 meaning “sea, ocean,” 奏 meaning “playing music,” 花/華 meaning “flower” or 和 meaning “harmony, peace; sum” can be written with an option to insert 乃 or 之, which can refer to the possessive particle no.
This name, especially pertaining to its masculine name, can be influenced by the Hawaiian name, which is derived from noa, which refers to freedom (from taboo or restrictions) or a commoner, with the singular definite article ka, as exemplified by the American-born surfer Igarashi Kanoa and given the unusually tight split in phonetic usage between hiragana and katakana (compare カノア and かのあ for girls in the Baby Calendar rankings data – かのあ is not shown for boys).

Popularity:
Usage for this name began rising in the 1990s and 2000s. While only a handful of boys named Kanoa popped up during that decade, by 2009, the percentage for girls rose to around 0.01%. Based on the aforementioned rankings data as well as my preliminary 2014-9 names research, over 0.03% of girls received this name as well as about half of that amount for boys.

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

Niina (にいな)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: nʸee:-nah [ɲ̟íì.nà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name looks to be borrowed from the pan-European name Nina. The table below shows most of the kanji that are used for this name:

nii (にい)* na (な)
新 “new” 菜 “greens”
仁 “benevolence, compassion, humanity” 奈 phonetic kanji
虹 “rainbow” 愛 “beloved”
笑/咲 “smile” 那 phonetic kanji
日 “day; sun” 夏 “summer”
二 “two” 梛 “Asian bayberry”
凪 “calm, lull”
渚 “beach, shore”
名 “name”
南 “south”
波 “wave”
和 “calm, gentle”

* the first kanji can also be followed by an i kanji, like 衣 meaning “clothing,” 依 meaning “reliance, dependence,” 唯 meaning “only,” or 以, or occasionally a hi kanji, such as 陽 (see 日) or 妃/姫 meaning “princess.”

Popularity:
This name had been steadily rising in usage in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1990, it was given to over 0.01% of baby girls, rising to over 0.02% by 1996. The increase briefly became steeper in the late 1990s at which point, by 2000, the percentage rose to over 0.07% before dropping a bit to over 0.06% in 2004. Since then, it rose in a steady manner again and by the late 2010s, based on Baby Calendar rankings data and my preliminary 2014-9 names research, the average percentage of baby girls receiving this name rose to over 0.15%.

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

Asa (あさ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: ah-sah [á.sà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is derived from either 麻 meaning “hemp, flax” or 朝 meaning “morning.” Though 2-kanji combinations were used before the 20th century, nowadays, it is one of the more preferred ways of writing this name and such kanji used today can be seen in the table below:

a (あ) sa (さ)
亜 phonetic kanji 咲 “blossom”
愛 “love, affection” 紗 “gauze”
杏 “apricot” 沙 “sand”
有 “existing” 彩/采 “colouring”*
明 “bright”
暁 “dawn, daybreak”

* can also be used in the first element

Popularity:
By the latter half of the Edo period (1603-1868), Asa had been uncommonly used with an average percentage of over 0.07% based on data from Tsunoda and Collazo. However, it would rise in popularity in the Meiji period (1868-1912) where it would rank within the top 50 in the first half of that period, well over the 0.4% range.
By the turn of the 20th century, the name fell back down below the top 100, though it would remain above the top 200 for until the end of the Taishō period (1912-1926) at which point percentages dropped below 0.1% and then, by the 1950s and 1960s, below 0.01%. Its usage wouldn’t rise above the 0.01% mark again until the 1990s and 2000s, though it was a small rise compared to what happened in the 2010s when it rose well above the 0.01% mark. This is especially the case following the airing of the NHK asadora (morning drama) ‘Asa ga Kita’, featuring the main character Imai (later Shirooka) Asa, from September 2015 to April 2016.
Compared to a percentage of only over 0.01% in 2014 from my 2014-20 names research, by 2016, it rose to over 0.07%. Based on my research with the addition of Baby Calendar rankings data, the name peaked at under 0.1% in 2018 before dropping to below 0.05% the next year, remaining that way in the present time.

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

Hinata (ひなた)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Generally unisex
Pronunciation: khee-nah-tah [çí.nà.tà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is derived from 日向 (hinata), referring to the direction the sun is shining ora sunny spot or place, derived from a combination of 日 (hi) meaning “sun,” the Old Japanese possessive particle な (na) and the suffix た (ta) referring to a direction or side, also found in pronouns, e.g あなた (anata).
Despite 日向 being the original form (and usage of this particular writing being more unisex), 陽向 is the most popular kanji writing for both genders (as a feminine name, the phonetic spelling, usually in hiragana, is the most often used overall). Other than these three main writings, there is a myriad of writings for Hinata as well.

  • Single kanji or combinations related to 日向:
    • 陽, 日陽, 日暖, etc.
    • 暖 meaning “warmth”
    • 光陽, 光 meaning “light; ray, beam, glow”
    • 優陽, 優 meaning “gentle, elegant; excellence, superiority”
    • 光優, 晃優, etc., 晃 meaning “brilliant, bright, dazzling”
    • 陽空, 暖空, etc., 空/天 meaning “sky” (more often used for boys)
    • 太陽, from taiyō referring to the sun (more often used for boys)
    • 大空, from oozora referring to the big sky, the heavens, firmament, etc. (more often used for boys)
    • 陽晴, 天晴, etc., 晴 meaning “clear, fine”
  • Combinations related to 向日葵 (himawari), referring to a sunflower:
    • 陽葵/日葵, 向葵, etc.
    • 陽咲/日咲, 咲 meaning “blossom”
    • 日向葵, 陽向葵, etc.
    • 陽菜/日菜, 菜 meaning “greens”
  • Other imagery or actions for 日向:
    • 陽愛, 愛 meaning “love, affection” (more often used for girls)
    • 陽翔, 陽飛, from 飛翔 (hishō) meaning “flight, flying, soaring” (more often used for boys)
    • 陽詩/日詩, 陽歌, etc., 詩 meaning “poem” and 歌 meaning “song”
      • in turn: 陽奏, 奏陽, 陽音, etc., 奏 meaning “playing music” and 音 meaning “sound”
    • 陽叶, 叶 meaning “grant, answer”
    • 日宝, 宝 meaning “treasure”
    • 日笑, 笑 meaning “smile”

For boys, it is also common to combine a single kanji for this name, like 陽 but also 輝 meaning “brightness, brilliance,” a hi+na combination (which we will get to) or 雛, which means “doll,” with a ta kanji, like 太 meaning “plump, thick,” 大 meaning “large, big,” 汰 meaning “wash, scour” or 多 meaning “many, much,” the final one being used for girls as well. As for hi and na kanji, they are included in the table below:

hi (ひ) na (な)
日/陽 see above 那 phonetic kanji
柊 “false holly” 奈 phonetic kanji
緋 “scarlet” 菜 see above
飛 see above 凪 “calm, lull”
比 phonetic kanji 南 “south”
妃/姫 “princess” 夏 “summer”
和 “calm, gentle”
七 “seven”

Popularity:
In use since at least the 1970s, much of the people with this name were born in the Heisei period (1989-2019) onwards. In 1990, it was given to less than 0.005% of both boys and girls. The name started to rise in 1992, albeit at a small rate, though by the time it experienced a second, more prominent uptick in usage in 1996, it was given to over 0.03% of girls and well over 0.05% of boys. As of the time of writing, I have not being able to determine the cause(s) of these two upticks in popularity.
By 2000, usage of this name briefly flipped towards feminine with over 0.23% of girls and well over 0.15% of boys receiving this name. At this point, Hinata was about to enter the top 100 for both girls and boys. Seven years later, over 0.6% of boys and over 0.48% of girls received this name, by then placing Hinata within the top 50 for both genders. Based on survey data from Tamahiyo, Meiji Yasuda Life and Baby Calendar and my preliminary 2014-9 names research, during this time period, percentages are averaged at over 1% for boys and over 0.7% for girls.

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

Megumu (めぐむ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male, can be female as well
Pronunciation: me-guu–muu [mè̞.ɡɯ̟́ᵝ.mɯ̟́ᵝ]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is derived from the verbs 恵/惠む (megumu) meaning “to bless, to show mercy to” or 芽ぐむ/萌(萠)む (megumu) meaning “to bud, sprout.”
Other kanji used in relation to one of the verbs or both include 愛 meaning “love, admiration,” 慈 meaning “mercy, affection,” 恩 meaning “favour, obligation,” 徳 meaning “virtue” and 仁 meaning “benevolence, compassion, humanity.” They can also be suffixed with a mu kanji, like 夢 meaning “dream,” 武 meaning “valour, bravery” or 務 meaning “service, duty, task.”

Popularity:
Overall usage for this name is very uncommon with percentage levels over the course of modern Japanese history not peaking above 0.03% for both genders. Usage of this name primarily centred on males throughout much of the 20th century before shifting to more unisex territory in the Heisei period (1989-2019). By then, percentage levels dropped to below 0.01%.

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

Akua (あくあ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Generally unisex
Pronunciation: ah-kuu-a [á.kɯ̟̀ᵝ.à]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name is a borrowing of the Latin word aqua meaning “water.” Most of the kanji used for this name are included in the table below:

a (あ) ku (く)*
亜 phonetic kanji 久 “long time”
愛 “love, affection” 玖 “black jewel; nine”
杏 “apricot” 来/來 “to come, arrive”
阿 phonetic kanji 紅 “crimson”
青/碧 “blue”
茜 “Japanese madder”
空 “space, room”**
海 “sea, ocean”**

* can be elided
** can also be part of a+空/海 combination

Popularity:
Mostly in use among those born from the Heisei period (1989-2019) onwards, this name is, for the most part, rarely used. Yearly percentages for both genders are mostly 0.003% or less, peaking at no more than 0.005%.

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

Itsuka (いつか)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: ee-tskah [í.tsɨ̥̀ᵝ.kà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
Here are some of the kanji used for this name:

itsu (いつ) ka (か)
一 “one” 花/華 “flower”
五 “five” 佳 “beautiful, good”
樹 “tree” 香 “fragrance”
逸 “ease, comfort” 夏 “summer”
慈/愛 “affection, love” 風 “wind”
乙 “second”
いつ (phonetic)
衣 “clothing” 都 “metropolis”

The name coincides with the noun 五日 (itsuka), literally meaning “five days” but can also refer to the fifth day of the month, and the adverb 何時か (itsuka) meaning “sometime (or the other), someday, one day, the other day, in due course, in time.”

Popularity:
Itsuka is somewhat of a rare feminine name in Japan. Even though it has been in use since at least the late 19th century, much of its usage is concentrated on females born in the Heisei period (1989-) onwards where percentages every year hover back and forth between under and over 0.01%.

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

Sora (そら)

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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.

Riria (りりあ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: rʸee-rʸee-a [ɾʲí.ɾʲì.à]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
Judging by the name, it is seemingly taken from the name Lilia and the broader Lily family of names (compare Riri and Ririko). As for kanji combinations, most are listed in the table below:

ri (り) a (あ)
莉 part of 茉莉 (matsuri) “Arabian jasmine” 愛 “love, affection”
梨 “pear” 彩 “colour”
里 “village” 亜 phonetic kanji
凛/凜 “cold; dignified” 空 “space, room”
璃 part of 瑠璃 (ruri) “lapis lazuli” 杏 “apricot”
理 “reason, logic” 朱 “vermilion”
李 “Japanese/Chinese plum” 叶 “grant, answer”
俐 “clever” 海 “sea, ocean”
娃 “beautiful”

Regarding how the second ri is written, it can vary from adding another ri kanji to adding the repetition mark 々 to occasionally not including a second ri kanji at all.

Popularity:
Much of its usage is concencrated on females born from the Heisei period (1989-2019) onwards. It was given to only a few girls in 1990, slowly rising to over 0.002% in 1996 before jumping to over 0.015% by 2000. The increase slowed down for some years after but jumped again to over 0.04% by 2007 and 2009. Based on Baby Calendar rankings data and my preliminary 2014-9 names research, percentages in that time period range from over 0.05% to over 0.09%.

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

Aoi (あおい)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female, can be male as well
Pronunciation: ah-o–ee [à.ó̞.í]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
The most commonly used form of this name is 葵, which refers to a mallow or other plants belonging to the mallow family, e.g. the hollyhock, and also a wild ginger (the form mainly used for females, but is sometimes used on males as well). It is generally thought to derive from the stem of verb 仰ぐ (aogu) meaning “to look up to, respect, revere; to seek; to depend/rely on” combined with 日 (hi) meaning “day,” in reference to its heliotropism. It can also be written as 碧, 蒼 or 青, from the adjective which nowadays has the general meaning of “blue,” but also meant “green” until recently and is still used to refer to that colour in certain things today (e.g. traffic lights and leaves). Compared to 葵, this way of writing Aoi is mainly used for males with some feminine usage. 藍, shifted from ai meaning “indigo,” is also occasionally used.
These single kanji can occasionally follow an a kanji, such as 愛 meaning “love, affection” or 彩 meaning “colour,” 明 meaning “bright” or 亜 (向葵 is also used, stemming from 向日葵 (himawari), which refers to a sunflower). It is more likely however that these single kanji are suffixed with a kanji that can be read as i, some of which include:

  • 生 meaning “live, exist”
  • 唯/惟 meaning “only”
  • 衣 meaning “clothing”
  • 依 meaning “reliance, dependence”
  • 彩 see above
  • 海 meaning “sea, ocean”***
  • 一/壱 meaning “one”*
  • 士 meaning “warrior; samurai”*
  • 叶 meaning “grant, answer”
  • 音 meaning “sound”
  • 空/天 meaning “sky”***
  • 愛 meaning “beloved”**
  • 李 meaning “Japanese/Chinese plum”
  • 泉 meaning “(natural) spring, fountain”
  • 大 meaning “large, big”*
  • 陽/日 see above
  • 心 meaning “heart, mind”
  • 維 meaning “tie, rope”
  • 結 meaning “tie, bond”**

* mostly used on males
** mostly used on females
*** mostly follows a kanji for “blue” in reference to the sea/sky’s colour

Popularity:
In use since at least the second half of the Meiji period (1868-1912), the name didn’t start seeing an increase in usage until the 1970s. By 1990, over 0.24% of girls and over 0.01% of boys received this name, placing Aoi just below the top 100 for girls. As time goes on, usage for both genders increase to the point that the name has, for the most part, maintained its position within the girls’ top 10 and stayed within the boys’ top 100 since the late 2000s.
Based on survey data from Baby Calendar, Tamahiyo and Meiji Yasuda Life as well as my preliminary 2014-9 names research, average percentages for that time period were at well over 1.1% for girls and over 0.7% for boys, the boys’ average percentage, in particular, on the up compared to the early third of the decade where Aoi sometimes ranked within the lower section of the top 50 but mostly ranked below it (meaning that percentages back then may have peaked at over 0.4%).

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