I've been trying to translate my name into kanji characters. I wont say my real name unless I need to, but my name means "Bearer of Christ". Isn't the way to do this is to find the kanji for the meaning of your name, then translate?
The most common approach would be to transliterate your name as it's pronounced, using katakana. So like "Derek" would be デレク (dereku) or デレック (derekku), depending on how you prefer to pronounce it.
The second approach would be to choose "ateji," which are kanji used for their sounds to make a name, similar to how foreign names are written in Chinese. With a skilled translator, you can sometimes find a combination of kanji that both approximate your English name and have a meaning that you like.
Translating the meaning alone to create a name will usually result in something that wouldn't be recognizable as your name, and may not even be immediately obvious that it's a name at all.
The most common approach would be to transliterate your name as it's pronounced, using katakana. So like "Derek" would be デレク (dereku) or デレック (derekku), depending on how you prefer to pronounce it.
The second approach would be to choose "ateji," which are kanji used for their sounds to make a name, similar to how foreign names are written in Chinese. With a skilled translator, you can sometimes find a combination of kanji that both approximate your English name and have a meaning that you like.
Translating the meaning alone to create a name will usually result in something that wouldn't be recognizable as your name, and may not even be immediately obvious that it's a name at all.
That would be nice, but Derek's not my real name. Idk how i feel about sharing my real name, but you guys seem trust worthy. If you guys swear not to use it, I'll tell you.
That would be nice, but Derek's not my real name. Idk how i feel about sharing my real name, but you guys seem trust worthy. If you guys swear not to use it, I'll tell you.
I believe this is the ateji approach that nice gaijin told you about. In Chinese, foreign words are assigned hanzi with similar pronunciation. OR they are assigned characters based on meaning. OR some combination thereof. In Japanese, however, these two approaches are rare and katakana is almost always used now. But that's not to say that you can't do the same in Japanese. People still do it for names as you're trying to do. Usually for the purpose of creating hanko or tattoos.
I believe this is the ateji approach that nice gaijin told you about. In Chinese, foreign words are assigned hanzi with similar pronunciation. OR they are assigned characters based on meaning. OR some combination thereof. In Japanese, however, these two approaches are rare and katakana is almost always used now. But that's not to say that you can't do the same in Japanese. People still do it for names as you're trying to do. Usually for the purpose of creating hanko or tattoos.
That would be nice, but Derek's not my real name. Idk how i feel about sharing my real name, but you guys seem trust worthy. If you guys swear not to use it, I'll tell you.
I got that, I was just giving an example to explain the approach.
Usually a name in Chinese would be 3 characters, one for the surname and two for the given name, such as 李小龍, (Cantonese: Lee Siu-Loong, Mandarin: Lee Xiao-Long), the Chinese stage name for Bruce Lee. He was born Lee Jun-fan (李振藩), and as is common for people of Chinese descent, he simply had a separate given name to navigate the English-speaking world. A lot of meaning can be packed into those three characters:
When western individuals and entities translate their names into Chinese, they take an approach like the "ateji" I mentioned, trying to find some approximation of balances pronunciation, length, and meaning (as more of an afterthought). This is because Chinese does not have a syllabary like Japanese, so everything is written in hanzi (kanji).
汤姆・克鲁斯 - Tāng mǔ · Kè lǔ sī
Tom Cruise. Note that the given name/surname order is western style
赵喜娜 (simplified) / 趙喜娜 (traditional) - Zhào Xǐnà
John Cena's stage name. In a twist, his first name "John" is made into "Zhao," a Chinese surname, so it seems like a somewhat "normal" name in Chinese while still maintaining the same word order (and overall pronunciation) as his English name
麦当劳 - Mài dāng láo
McDonald's
Japanese names are usually, but not always, two (or sometimes three) kanji each for surname and given name. Kanji in Japanese can be pronounced differently depending on the context, so they will have furigana (using the aforementioned syllabaries of Japanese) to specify the exact pronunciation of the name.
Some foreigners do choose the Ateji approach and approximate their name, such as 有道出人 (Arudō Debido, formerly David Aldwinckle), who formally changed his name, but most simply use katakana.
The transliteration you provided looks to include both your first and last name, seems like something a "name translator" online would provide, as it would try to transliterate every syllable to a kanji with an approximate sound, but it just produces a far-too-long mess of kanji. If you're trying to most closely approximate the pronunciation of your name in Japanese, just use katakana.
クリス (kurisu) or クリストファー (kurisutofaa)
Your last name would be written according to how it's pronounced. If I read your ateji correctly, ギャリソン (gyarison) would be the most common way to transliterate "Garrison." That word does have an actual meaning that can be translated into Japanese words, but if you were to use one of those Japanese words as your name it would probably just cause confusion.
I got that, I was just giving an example to explain the approach.
Usually a name in Chinese would be 3 characters, one for the surname and two for the given name, such as 李小龍, (Cantonese: Lee Siu-Loong, Mandarin: Lee Xiao-Long), the Chinese stage name for Bruce Lee. He was born Lee Jun-fan (李振藩), and as is common for people of Chinese descent, he simply had a separate given name to navigate the English-speaking world. A lot of meaning can be packed into those three characters: View attachment 120755
When western individuals and entities translate their names into Chinese, they take an approach like the "ateji" I mentioned, trying to find some approximation of balances pronunciation, length, and meaning (as more of an afterthought). This is because Chinese does not have a syllabary like Japanese, so everything is written in hanzi (kanji).
汤姆・克鲁斯 - Tāng mǔ · Kè lǔ sī
Tom Cruise. Note that the given name/surname order is western style
赵喜娜 (simplified) / 趙喜娜 (traditional) - Zhào Xǐnà
John Cena's stage name. In a twist, his first name "John" is made into "Zhao," a Chinese surname, so it seems like a somewhat "normal" name in Chinese while still maintaining the same word order (and overall pronunciation) as his English name
麦当劳 - Mài dāng láo
McDonald's
Japanese names are usually, but not always, two (or sometimes three) kanji each for surname and given name. Kanji in Japanese can be pronounced differently depending on the context, so they will have furigana (using the aforementioned syllabaries of Japanese) to specify the exact pronunciation of the name.
Some foreigners do choose the Ateji approach and approximate their name, such as 有道出人 (Arudō Debido, formerly David Aldwinckle), who formally changed his name, but most simply use katakana.
The transliteration you provided looks to include both your first and last name, seems like something a "name translator" online would provide, as it would try to transliterate every syllable to a kanji with an approximate sound, but it just produces a far-too-long mess of kanji. If you're trying to most closely approximate the pronunciation of your name in Japanese, just use katakana.
クリス (kurisu) or クリストファー (kurisutofaa)
Your last name would be written according to how it's pronounced. If I read your ateji correctly, ギャリソン (gyarison) would be the most common way to transliterate "Garrison." That word does have an actual meaning that can be translated into Japanese words, but if you were to use one of those Japanese words as your name it would probably just cause confusion.
Did you not read anything I wrote? The kanji you provided are completely random except their onyomi somewhat approximate the sounds in your name, put together it's pretty much gibberish when read for meaning.
he might get an answer/example for Killian that starts with 鬼 somewhere. Or, he might come to know an old ateji 鬼利死丹 for "Christian."
Contemptuous transcriptions such as 切支丹 and 鬼利死丹 (which use kanji with negative connotations) came into use during the Edo Period when Christianity was a forbidden religion.
FYI, 鬼 doesn't always have negative connotations. It can mean "strong", "big", "great" or something like that. In fact, there really are Japanese names that use 鬼, for example, the founder of Asics Corporation 鬼塚喜八郎 Onitsuka Kihachirō, a TV drama director 鬼頭理三 Kitō Michizō or a famous philosopher 九鬼周造 Kuki Shūzō.
Incidentally, the surname of my music teacher in junior high school was just a single kanji 鬼, reading simply "Oni." He didn't have any horns on his head, of course.
When I make a kanji name from the meaning of the name.
"Bearer of Christ"(キリストの担い手)/(キリストを運ぶ者)
"Christ"＝キリスト/メシア/救世主/ 聖油を注がれた者(The person who was poured consecrated oil)/神に祝福されし者(The Man Blessed by God) 1.「聖」
Hijiri. The person who was superior in knowledge and virtue. A particularly person with advanced course skills. An emperor. A word to name in the thing about the emperor. Refined sake. Of the impurity there is not. Clean. A word about Christianity.
2.「祝福」の意味を持つ漢字(Kanji with the meaning of "the blessing")
「祐」
The meaning "help" "to help you" "help of God"
A character indicating the wish Shinto ritual that I put to name it of "祐." In hope of the life blessed with the saving grace of God and good luck. A wish to want a person and the gentle person who supports it, and helps each other to bring up.
incidentally, the surname of my music teacher in junior high school was just a single kanji 鬼, reading simply "Oni." He didn't have any horns on his head, of course.
Did you not read anything I wrote? The kanji you provided are completely random except their onyomi somewhat approximate the sounds in your name, put together it's pretty much gibberish when read for meaning.
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