Best Japanese Names (Guys)

The names

• Kenji

  Japanese

  "second son; healthy + second; wise + second; modest second"

  A international feeling name of Japanese origin that could be used to refer to a child's place in the family, Kenji has attracted notice in the US as the name of The Food Lab chef, James Kenji…

  

• Akira

  Japanese

  "bright, intelligent"

  Akira is a popular Japanese name for both sexes that's migrated to the West because of its appearance in manga and video games. Akiro is a related name popular for boys.

  

• Botan

  Japanese

  "peony"

  One Japanese name that feels Western, though not quite American.

  

• Benjiro

• Hikaru

  Japanese

  "light or radiance"

  A unisex Japanese name with a beautiful and radiant meaning, it is notably borne by chess prodigy Hikaru Nakamura, and is a central character in the manga series The Summer Hikaru Died .

  

• Hiro

  Japanese

  "broad, widespread"

  Hiro is an apt name for a hero of the show Heroes -- and for our times. Widely used in Japan, sometimes also for girls. Hiroshi is a long form.

  

• Hachiro

• Haru

• Hayato

• Ichiro

  Japanese

  "firstborn son"

  Ichiro is a good classic choice for the first boy in a Japanese family.

  

• Jiro

  Japanese

  "second son"

  Also written as Jirō, this is a commonly used Japanese name, sometimes as a standalone and sometimes as a suffix. Often written to mean "second son", other kanji elements may be used to create the…

  

• Kazuki

  Japanese

  "hope of peace"

  Kazuki is related to names like Kazuko, Kazuo and Kazumi

  

• Kaoru

• Kentaro

• Makoto

• Mizuki

• Ryu

  Japanese

  "dragon"

  This attractive mini-name combines multiple trends: the R initial, vowel-ending boy names, and a fantastical meaning.

  

• Shinji

• Shiro

• Suzuki