Sonoka (そのか)
Sources | Pronunciation guide |
(Main) gender: Female
Pronunciation: so-no-kah [só̞.nò̞.kà]
Etymology and/or ways to write:
The first element is taken from 園(薗)/苑 (sono) meaning “garden, orchard, park.” It can also be split into two kanji, the second part written as either 乃/之 (no), referring to the possessive particle, or 野 (no) meaning “field.” Most kanji for the first part can be seen in the table below alongside some of the ones used for the second element:
so (そ) | ka (か) |
素 “plain” | 佳 “beautiful, good” |
想 “conception, idea, thought” | 香/郁/薫/馨 “fragrance” |
早 “early” | 花/華 “flower” |
初 “first, new” | 加 “addition” |
颯 “sudden, quick” | 夏 “summer” |
蒼 “blue” | 果 “fruit” |
奏 “playing music”* | 歌 “song” |
爽 “fresh” |
* also used for the second element
Popularity:
The name started rising in usage in the 1980s, though usage levels at the beginning of the Heisei period (1989-2019) were within the 0.01% range. It rose to over 0.03% in 1994 and 1995, dropping slighty out in 1996 before peaking at around 0.045% in 1997. By 1999, it fell back down below 0.02%, largely remaining within the 0.01% range since then.
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