Most Japanese names have several different possible spellings. When Japanese parents choose a name, they must not only pick a name but also select a spelling among those available for that particular name.
Each spelling of a name has its own meaning derived from the meanings of the individual Kanji characters that appear in that particular spelling.
For example, the name Keiko can be spelled as 恵子 (which would mean “lucky child”), 慶子 (which would mean “happy child”), 敬子 (“respectful child”), and there are several other possible spellings as well.
To explore Japanese girl names that begin with ‘K’, we can organize them into groups based on the initial Kanji in one of their common spellings. Because most Japanese names have several different spellings, some names (Kayoko, for example) belong to more than one of these groups.
Kanji characters that frequently appear at the beginning of Japanese girl names that start with ‘K’ include:
Below are some tables of Japanese girl names organized according to the initial Kanji in one of their common spellings.
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kana | 佳奈 | 佳 (ka): excellent, beautiful 奈 (na): no specific meaning |
| Kanae | 佳苗 | 佳 (ka): excellent, beautiful 苗 (nae): seedling, sprout |
| Kanako | 佳南子 | 佳 (ka): excellent, beautiful 南 (na): south 子 (ko): child |
| Kayoko | 佳代子 | 佳 (ka): excellent, beautiful 代 (yo): generation 子 (ko): child |
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kazuyo | 和代 | 和 (kazu): harmony, peace 代 (yo): generation, world |
| Kazue | 和枝 | 和 (kazu): harmony, peace 枝 (e): branch |
| Kazusa | 和紗 | 和 (kazu): harmony, peace 紗 (sa): silk |
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kaori | 香織 | 香 (ka): fragrance 織 (ori): weave, fabric |
| Kayoko | 香代子 | 香 (ka): fragrance 代 (yo): generation 子 (ko): child |
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kotoe | 琴絵 | 琴 (koto): traditional Japanese musical instrument like a zither 絵 (e): picture, painting |
| Kotomi | 琴美 | 琴 (koto): zither 美 (mi): beauty |
| Kotono | 琴乃 | 琴 (koto): zither 乃 (no): of, from |
Kanji characters that often appear at the beginning of Japanese male names that start with ‘K’ include:
Below are some tables of Japanese male names organized according to the initial Kanji in one of their common spellings.
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kotaro | 幸太郎 | 幸 (ko): happiness, good fortune 太 (taro): plump, thick 郎 (ro): son |
| Kōzaburō | 幸三郎 | 幸 (ko): happiness, good fortune 三 (za): three 郎 (buro): son |
| Kojiro | 幸次郎 | 幸 (ko): happiness, good fortune 次 (jiro): next, second son 郎 (ro): son |
| Kōshirō | 幸四郎 | 幸 (kō): happiness, good fortune 四 (shi): four 郎 (rō): son |
| Kōnosuke | 幸之介 | 幸 (kō): happiness, good fortune 之 (no): of, this 介 (suke): mediate, assist |
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kenji | 健二 | 健 (ken): health, strength 二 (ji): two |
| Kengo | 健吾 | 健 (ken): health, strength 吾 (go): self, my |
| Kenta | 健太 | 健 (ken): health, strength 太 (ta): thick |
| Kenjiro | 健二郎 | 健 (ken): health, strength 二 (ji): two 郎 (ro): son |
| Ken'ichi | 健一 | 健 (ken): health, strength 一 (ichi): one |
| Kentarō | 健太郎 | 健 (ken): health, strength 太 (ta): thick 郎 (rō): son |
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Kōhei | 浩平 | 浩 (kō): vast, large 平 (hei): flat, peaceful |
| Kōichi | 浩一 | 浩 (kō): vast, large 一 (ichi): one, first |
| Kōji | 浩二 | 浩 (kō): vast, large 二 (ji): two, second |
| Kōdai | 浩大 | 浩 (kō): vast, large 大 (dai): large, great |
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Keita | 啓太 | 啓 (kei): open, disclose 太 (ta): thick, big |
| Keiji | 啓二 | 啓 (kei): open, disclose 二 (ji): two |
| Keisuke | 啓介 | 啓 (kei): open, disclose 介 (suke): mediate, assist |
| Keiichi | 啓一 | 啓 (kei): open, disclose 一 (ichi): one |
| Keitarō | 啓太郎 | 啓 (kei): open, disclose 太 (ta): thick, big 郎 (rō): son |
| Name | Possible Spelling | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Katsuhiko | 勝彦 | 勝 (katsu): victory 彦 (hiko): boy |
| Katsuyuki | 勝幸 | 勝 (katsu): victory 幸 (yuki): happiness |
| Katsuo | 勝男 | 勝 (katsu): victory 男 (o): male, man |
| Katsunori | 勝範 | 勝 (katsu): victory 範 (nori): model, standard |
| Katsuyoshi | 勝義 | 勝 (katsu): victory 義 (yoshi): righteousness |
One of the difficulties of the Japanese language is that most Kanji characters have several different readings (or pronunciations) depending on the word in which they appear. For example, the terms 幸せ (shiawase) and 幸福 (kōfuku) are synonyms that both mean “happiness,” and the Kanji character 幸 has a different reading in both these terms.
That’s why the pronunciation of Kanji characters in Japanese names may differ from their pronunciation in some Japanese vocabulary words.
Some Japanese names that start with ‘K’ have the same initial Kanji character as Japanese names that begin with other consonants. For example, the name Yukio (which is often spelled as 幸夫) has the same initial Kanji as the name Kotaro (which can be spelled as 幸太郎).