Naming babies Japanese Names

My wife and I are hoping to go to Japan to teach in a school there and help plant churches. We currently have one child and would like to have more. The question is: If we were to have babies in Japan, would it look weird naming them Japanese names?

No, it wouldn't look weird.

If we were to have babies in Japan, would it look weird naming them Japanese names?

To Japanese in Japan? It would probably raise some level of curiosity, so you might get questions as to why your (presumably) non-Japanese looking children are Taro and Hana Smith.

People back in the states might also wonder about the heritage of their names. But other than that I don't think there's anything weird about it.

No problem

If you're really worried but still want to name your child after Japanese names, there are certain names that wouldn't sound or perceived as weird in either English or Japanese like Erika, Erin, Emi, Rio, Miki etc.

There are lots of names that work well in both languages (see above), so you could pick one like that. There seem to be more girls' names that work better in both languages than boys, however... (Ken, anyone?).

Besides, people name their children all sorts these days! Don't worry about where a name is from, just choose the right name for you!

For boys, yes, Ken would be one, so would George (���� in one kanji combination, for example), too, though the "r" pronunciation would be dropped in Japanese).

Note that your child(ren)'s names would be all written in alphabets into their birth certificates (you are free to select kanji you like, but they cannot be registered anywhere as your child will not have Japanese family register - I am assuming the two of you are non-Japanese), so unless you are thinking of staying for the rest of your life in Japan, you "might" feel more comfortable selecting name(s) that flow well in English, rather than selecting exotic names. And it is true people backin the States might wonder wy. But there is nothing weird about it. Just my thought.

Oh, lately there seem to be Japanese boys named Eugene - written �I�m in kanji!

Someone said there are not as many boy names that could work for both Japanese and Western names but actually there are a few more boys names than they thought, which could work if you ever have boys. Japanese boy names that can work both as Japanese and Western names: Tomoya which can be shortened to Tom, Hideto and Hideki which both can be shortened to Hide or Hyde, and Seiji which is commonly written as Seth when in English form.

The person who mentioned Ken meant the Japanese form of the name Ken would be Kenji or Kentaro but can be shortened to Ken.

^ Wow. How did that comment get approved?

Anyway, Emi and Erin are both pretty nice names. But the rest are definitely Japanese. You might want to be careful, though. Naming your child a Japanese name might raise some eyebrows and even invite a certain group of people to call you a certain word that begins with a "w'.

How about Milla, which can be written in Japanese as Mira?
Mai can also be a Japanese and a Vietnamese name.
Chie.

That's all I can come up with at the moment. :P

^ why? I did not insult anyone, I just added some boys names for ideas in case that person ends up having a boy/s. I did not mean anything else but to give some ideas for boys names since other people couldn't find examples for the male gender. I don't see how its offensive.

No, not you. There was another post that insulted the OP for whatever reason. I was referring to that. Guess they had a grudge or something. :P

So OP, have you decided on a name?

Not yet. We've not had another baby yet. Nor have we left for Japan. We're just thinking ahead.