Anime Cat Names

Now that Kenji is rising up the ranks, it's only a matter of time before parents discover Renji. Renji Abarai is a character in the anime series Bleach, in which the kanji used for his name mean "second love" or "second romance."

Like many single-syllable R names right now, Raye is on the rise.

One of the many names with a strong "er" sound, like Bertram and Ernest, that was huge in the 1920s and is languishing in style limbo now. One famous bearer is the physicist Erwin Schrödinger, as in Schrödinger's cat.

Common choice for anime characters.

Hanabi is the Japanese word for fireworks and is rarely given as a name to babies. The most famous Hanabi is Koko the Gorilla — "birth" name Hanabi-ko, or "fireworks child." Koko, known for her use of "Gorilla Sign Language," was born at the San Francisco Zoo on the 4th of July, hence the meaning of her name.

Michi can be a playful yet charming Japanese name or a friendly German diminutive of Michael (or Michaela), pronounced similarly to Mickey. Either way, it is a unisex option with broad appeal.

A romantic choice, this appealing Spanish name for boys is both accessible and distinctive.

Popular name in Japan in its own right, but also as a nickname for Miyako or Makiko. It appears in the visual novel Danganrompa, borne by the character Maki Harukawa.

A very popular girls' name in Japan with an unfortunate English pronunciation: picture a toddler with a hurt knee saying "owee."

Sachiko was one of the first Japanese names familiar to Americans when it was used in the 1950s by actress Shirley Maclaine for her daughter, called the adorable short form Sachi. While Sachiko does not rank on the US Social Security baby names list, Sachi was given to 25 girls in the most recent year counted.

Koji, also written as Kōji, is a common name among men in Japan. It is also featured as a character name in many anime series.

A succinct Japanese with plenty of positive meanings, Kei can denote wisdom, celebration, and excellence, along with (square) gemstones and Japanese Judas-trees, depending on which kanji is used. In recent years, it has become notably feminine leaning in Japan, often as a short form of Keiko. It is however unisex and may also be used as shorten version of Keita, Keisuke, Keisaku, and more.

The childhood name of the heroine of Memoirs of a Geisha is pretty and accessible. Chiyiko is a pet form.

Common Japanese name with a bright floral meaning.

Older Japanese name given new life in the anime series One Piece.

Gem names are having their moment — metal names could feasibly be next.

Japanese surname and given name, with multiple meanings dependent on kanji used.

Lovely Japanese name that would certainly be appreciated in Europe and the U.S. It was rarely used in Japan until the 1990s, and draws its current popularity from the fact that it is deeply connected to Japanese traditional culture without sounding frumpy and old-fashioned.

Kouki is an uncommon choice in Japan today, but it's been used for several anime characters.

The Japanese word for "weasel" was chosen as the name of Itachi Uchiha, a character in Naruto. In anime, name meanings often relate to a character's story. Weasels are bad luck in Japanese culture and are associated with death. In this case, Itachi killed his entire family besides his brother, so his name's meaning was appropriate.