What does Kanata mean ?

I know a lot of Japanese names and their meanings but 'Kanata' is the name that I've heard quite less than others..It seems quite uncommon to me. So, I just wanted to know its meaning..

I can't quite imagine the word "kanata" used as a name, but by itself it means "beyond" or "far off (in the distance)".

I think it is Katana, not "Kanata"

Jill,

It is difficult to give a precise answer without knowing exactly how the name is written, but if it is "金田", then I suppose it could be translated as "metal/gold field". You can look up other possible combinations of characters used using Jim Breen's online dictionary.

"金田" is spoken in "kaneda", not kanata

The word Kanata is not found in my dictionary.

**,

"金田" is spoken in "kaneda", not kanata

For your interest, the name "金田" can also be read as "Kanata".

The word Kanata is not found in my dictionary.

As it is a proper name, it is unlikely to be found in most paper dictionaries. That is why I suggested looking it up in Jim Breen's online dictionary, as that contains a huge number of proper nouns.

kana examples;

金槌（かなづち）=hinto: you all know this means 'hammer'?

金縛り（かなしばり）
金聾（かなつんぼ）
金沢（かなざわ）
金物（かなもの）
金網（かなあみ）
金具（かなぐ）
金釘流（かなくぎりゅう）
etc.

All these words can be found in paper dictionaries, particulary in Japanese dictionaries.

* My recomendation for the learners is not to rely on PC since it has tendencies to print out wrong kanji or words and sentences are often mismatched or 金釘流 unless you know Japanese well enough to check it before send.

Sorry, you are right
I examined "Kanata" with a who's who book, I found 2 name "嘉向""金田"　in the book
大変　失礼な事を言って垂ｵ訳ございませんでした。名詞の名前と思っていました。
from next time, I read a post very carefully,

Kanata is a literary word for "that direction" or "far away" and is unlikely to be a personal name.

I can easily imagine "Kanata" meaning "far away/far beyond" used as a teenager's first name or something, considering all those "interesting" names that parents name today.

I'm just wondering where the original poster heard this name "quite less than others". A manga of some sort?

Hi, I'm Avantika, the girl who posted this question here at the forum. Thanks for all your answers as I might keep it as my adopted
son's name later in my life !
And this is for Uko or Uco - Yeah, Even I have heard it only once, its the name of the character lead character of the Anime and Manga - UFO Baby. Thanks again to all !

Wow, Wikipedia tells me that the kanji (letters) representing Kanata is very unique. The kanji is usually read "houkou" which means to "wander about", so I guess the author put an alternative reading to it. I'm not sure if it's even legal (there are regulations on what kanji you can officially use for names), but it certainly is perfect for a popular boy in a fictional manga.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UFO_Baby

Kanata is a name, for those who arent sure.
I dont know how its written but its the name of an actor named Kanata (Hongo)