top japanese girl names - japan 2020

Akari is a gender-neutral Japanese name used fairly evenly between the sexes in the US.

Anna has become the dominant form of the Ann family, offering a touch of the international to English speakers and a bit more style than the oversimplified Ann or Anne.

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

Common form of Emma found in the Baltic and Slavic states.

Baby names that started off as diminutives -- Ena, Ita, Etta -- seem too insubstantial for a modern female.

Many things to many peoples: a flower name, also spelled Hanae, to the Japanese; a Czech and Polish short form of Johana; and an alternate form of the biblical name Hannah in the US. It also means "craft, work" in Hawaiian and "glow" in Maori.

Light, bright unisex name. Hikari is more popular for girls in Japan these days.

Hinata is a unisex Japanese name and surname but is primarily seen as a given name among women. It has many possible meanings, most of which have something to do with the sun.

Perfect for September babies.

Homophonous with Mae and May, the beautiful (literally) Mei is poised to climb the charts. The hero of the 2022 Disney/Pixar film Turning Red is a Chinese-Canadian teen named Meilin "Mei" Lee, which may boost the name ever further.

Mio is a lovely Japanese name for girls that has migrated beyond its native country. One Berry reports several young girls named Mio in Australia, and the name has potential in the rest of the English-speaking world for parents who want to move beyond Mia and Maya.

Short and sweet alternative to Mia, Mila, Maya, et al.

To most English speakers, Nana is the dog in Peter Pan, the daughter played by Emma Stone in Crazy Stupid Love, and another name for Grandma.

A great name for travel-lovers, with a fun alternative sound to Naomi.

This Old Testament female name has been one of the most popular girls’ names in Israel over the last decade. Also highly popular in Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, and a new entrant to the US Top 1000, it may be misunderstood here as an attempt to streamline and feminize the more familiar Noah – although it's a separate name with a separate derivation.

Riko is a hugely popular name for baby girls in contemporary Japan, and one that easily translates to the West.