arrival

Kushina (くしな)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: kshee-nah [kɯ̟̥̀ᵝ.ɕí.nà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
The first element of this name is written as either 櫛 (kushi) meaning “comb” or a combination of a ku kanji, like 久 meaning “long time,” 紅 meaning “crimson” or 来/來 meaning “to come, arrive,” and a shi kanji, such as 志 meaning “will, aim, goal” or 詩 meaning “poem.” As for the second element, any kanji with the (partial) reading na can be used, such as 奈, 菜 meaning “greens” or 凪 meaning “calm, lull.”
Kushina is included in part of the name of the mythological goddess Kushinadahime (also known as Kushiinadahime, Inadahime, etc.). There, the first part of her name is interpreted to come from the adjective 奇し (kushi) meaning “mysterious, wonderful, miraculous,” the second part, 稲田 (inada), referring to a rice field or paddy field.

Popularity:
Rarely used as a modern given name at just over 0.005% at its peak, it didn’t come into usage until at least the early 2010s, after Naruto character Uzumaki Kushina (whose name is speculated to be influenced from the mythological goddess), the mother of the titular character, first made her manga debut in January 2008 followed by her anime debut in ‘Naruto Shippūden’ in September 2009.

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Haruku (はるく)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: hah-ruu-kuu [há.ɾɯ̟̀ᵝ.kɯ̟̀ᵝ]

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

  • 空 meaning “sky”
  • 久 meaning “long time”
  • 玖, meaning “black jewel” but also refers to the number 9 in legal documents
  • 琥, part of 琥珀 (kohaku) meaning “amber”
  • 駈 meaning “run, dash”
  • 来/來 meaning “to come, arrive”
  • 句 meaning “section, sentence”

Popularity:
Usage of this name is relatively recent, having only risen in usage in the 2000s. Usage rose from less than 0.005% before the turn of the millennium to over 0.02% by the late 2000s and largely staying that way throughout the 2010s.
Based on Baby Calendar rankings data as well as my 2014-21 names research, Haruku experience a jump in usage in 2021 with percentages averaging at well over 0.07% (compared to over 0.03% the year before). This jump in usage is influenced by Ōmura Haruku, son of comedian Ōmura Tomohiro, whose appearances were becoming increasingly frequent in that year (examples of Japanese articles featuring him here).

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Kaera (かえら)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: kah-e-rah [ká.è̞.ɾà]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
At the moment, the most popular forms of this name contain 楓/椛, shortened from kaede which refers to a maple tree, combined with a ra kanji, like 來/徠/来 meaning “arrival,” 蘭 meaning “orchid” or 良 meaning “good.” The first element can also be split into two kanji, a ka kanji like 夏 meaning “summer”, 華/花 meaning “flower” or 香 meaning “fragrance,” and an e kanji, such as 笑/咲 meaning “smile,” 瑛 meaning “crystal” or 絵 meaning “picture, drawing.”

Popularity:
Popularised by pop rock singer, lyricist, fashion model and television presenter Kimura Kaela from 2004, the name first peaked at over 0.004% in 2007, when the name was mainly written in hiragana and katakana. Based on Baby Calendar rankings data as well as my 2014-20 names research, the average percentage from 2017-2020 is well over 0.01%.

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Raito (らいと)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: rah-ee-to [ɾá.ì.tò̞]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
Normally, this name follows a rai+to kanji combination, some of the kanji used shown in the table below:

rai (らい) to (と)
來/来/徠 “arrival” 斗 “the Dipper”
頼 “request, favour; trust” 翔/飛 “fly, soar”
礼 “gratitude; manners; gift” 人 “person”
蕾 “bud” 叶 “grant, answer”
雷 “lightning, thunder” 音 “sound”
麗 “lovely, beautiful” 都 “metropolis”
萊/莱 “goosefoot” 大 “big, large”
良 “good” 偉 “greatness” 虎 “tiger”
羅 “thin silk, gauze” 杜 “shrine grove”
采 part of 采配 (saihai) “order, command”
心 “heart, mind”
門 “gate”

You may notice that Raito also transcribes to the English word light. It is indeed the case that, sometimes (especially among babies born from the Heisei period (1989-2019) onwards), kanji either related to the word or otherwise used for image conjuring are used, like 光 meaning “light; ray, beam, glow,” 月 meaning “moon,” 輝 meaning “brightness, brilliance” and 煌 meaning “glitter, sparkle.” While single kanji are used for this name, they are more likely to be combined with a to kanji or another kanji with some sort of connection to light, examples of the latter being 煌月, 輝星 and 月輝.

Popularity:
In use since at least the 1920s, much of its usage is concentrated on those born in the Heisei period onwards. In 1990, it was only given to around 0.005% of boys, remaining stable until the late 1990s when it began to rise in usage. By the late 2000s, well over 0.12% of boys received this name.
Based on my 2014-20 names research, by 2014, it already ranked in the top 100 with 0.253% of boys receiving this name and peaking at 0.332% and ranking 74th in 2015. By 2020, it fell to around 0.104%, just above the top 200 threshold (when combined with Baby Calendar rankings data, the 2020 percentage increased to just below 0.12%).

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Tatsuko (たつこ)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: tah-tsko [tá.tsɨ̥̀ᵝ.kò̞]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
The second element of this name is usually written as 子 (ko) meaning “child.” As for the first element, any kanji with the reading tatsu can be used, such as:

  • 達 meaning “reach, arrive, attain”
  • 辰, referring to the sign of the Dragon
  • 龍/竜 meaning “dragon”
  • 建 meaning “build, erect”
  • 立 meaning “stand, rise”
  • 起 meaning “rise”

The first element can also be written with a combination of a ta kanji, e.g. 多 meaning “many, much,” and a tsu kanji, e.g. 津 meaning “harbour, haven.”

Popularity:
As with most names ending in -ko, Tatsuko began to be used more widely in the general population in the latter half of the Meiji period (1868-1912), peaking at around the 1920s when well over 0.2% of girls received this name and the name placed itself around the bottom of the top 100 for a short time. By the 1960s, it already dropped down in popularity, not going above 0.01%, and by the Heisei period (1989-2019), it already became a rarely used feminine name.

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Satoshi (さとし)

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Sources Pronunciation guide

(Main) gender: Male
Pronunciation: sah-to-shee [sá.tò̞.ɕì]

Etymology and/or ways to write:
This name usually stems from the classical adjective 聡し/敏し (satoshi) meaning “clever, smart; sharp, discerning,” however it’s also possible to connect Satoshi to the continuative form of the related verb 諭す (satosu) meaning “to admonish, persuade, warn.” Other kanji which expand on these are used, listing a few examples with meanings, 聖 meaning “sacred, holy,” 学 meaning “learning, study,” 達 meaning “reach, arrive, attain” and 暁 meaning “dawn, daybreak.” Some other kanji used are listed below:

智/知 哲 悟 賢 慧 理 訓
怜 啓 敬 利 覚 総 了
玲 惺 朝 憲 誠 巧

They, alongside 里 meaning “village” and 郷 meaning “country(side),” can also be combined with a shi kanji, like 史 meaning “history,” 志 meaning “will, aim, goal,” 司 meaning “office” or 士, referring, in this case, to a man or samurai. For the first element, a sa kanji, e.g. 佐 meaning “help,” can be combined with a to kanji, e.g. 斗, referring to the Chinese constellation known as the Dipper. Another uncommon way to write this name is to combine a sa kanji with one that can be read as toshi, e.g. 寿 meaning “congratulations; longevity.”

Popularity:
By the latter half of the Meiji period (1868-1912), Satoshi had already started being placed in the bottom quarter of the top 100, which would last throughout the early 20th century. By that time, percentage levels didn’t exceed 0.4%. Fast forward to the early 1950s and it was ranked within the top 50, being given to well over 0.5% of boys born in that time period.
After stagnating for a little while, it rose again in the late 1950s which culminated in its first appearance within the top 10 by the early 1960s. At that point, percentage levels would exceed 1%, peaking in the late 1970s and early 1980s with over 1.4% of boys born back then receiving this name. By the late 1980s, it was already starting to drop down in popularity, falling below the top 20 and below 1%. Based on Baby Calendar rankings data and my preliminary 2014-9 names research, average percentage levels today have fallen to 0.05% or below.

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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%.

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