Kanji is one of 3 writing systems used in Japanese. It originally came from China 2000 years ago and has over 3000 unique characters. Each character has meaning attached and sounds which when written with other characters, creates words.

When translating names into Japanese, the first thing I consider is pronunciation. Using the name Emily as an example – it would be broken into three sounds; E – Mi – Ly

In Emily’s case we have the following kanji to choose from –

            E –  絵 (picture)，得 (earn)，恵 (grace)，笑(laughter)　

            Mi – 美 (beautiful)，見 (look)，未 (not yet)，実 (fruit)  

            Ly –  理 (truth)，利 (gain)，離 (leave)，里 (village)   

From the selection of kanji we have available, you can see that some of the kanji meanings are more suitable for names than others. The kanji meanings best suited to name creation from the above are –

          E –    恵 (grace) and  笑(laughter)　

         Mi –  美 (beautiful),

         Ly  –   利 (gain) and  理 (truth)

The final consideration is simply how the kanji looks. Each kanji character has its own stroke flow and aesthetic. Longer lines allow for more interpretation and flourishes of the brush. I often think long and hard about which kanji I opt for when considering appearance. Do I sacrifice good name meaning for a better final visual product? Or,  do I go for the kanji with better meaning at the expense of visual appeal?

Not an easy choice but for artistic reasons, I would probably finalise Emily as –    

         E –    恵 (grace)

         Mi –  美 (beautiful)

         Ly  –   利 (gain)