Japanese name - Raito

Boy Names
1

I’m Japanese and my wife is American. We’re trying to find a Japanese first name that isn’t too hard to say in English. We can’t agree on any names because admittedly most Japanese boy names kind of suck (my name included) when pronounced in English. It would have been so much easier if he was a girl . . . but alas . . .

One name that we sort of like is Raito. Pronounced [name_m]Rye[/name_m]-Toe.

  1. Thoughts on this name and ease of pronunciation?
  2. [name_f]Do[/name_f] you think people will call him RATIO? Phone will certainly autocorrect to that. I even wrote Ratio when I was typing this post quickly.
  3. Any other thoughts?
2

I like it. I think it is cool. I can see how the phone and eyes could make the name Ratio.

One of my favourite Japanese boy’s names is [name_m]Raiden[/name_m] - I love the meaning, sound and look of it.

3

I love Raito!

It doesn’t make me think of ratio, but it does remind me of raita, the [name_f]Indian[/name_f] yogurt dish. :slight_smile:

I also did a quick search for common Japanese boy’s names, and many of them do look easy to pronounce: Haruto, Koki, Riku, [name_u]Ren[/name_u], [name_u]Toma[/name_u], Yamato, etc.

The only ones that I think Americans will have trouble with are the ones that have two vowels next to each other, such as Ryuto or [name_m]Rui[/name_m].

If anything, Japanese names are easier than Chinese names (I’m Chinese) which mostly get completely butchered in this country!

4

Congratulations on your baby boy. It sounds like a difficult search for you both at the moment. It may be useful to take a break from the hunt for a while, just to refresh perspective. But whatever you choose together will end up perfect for him.

As for my thoughts on Raito, it sounds like a good name. I initially pronounced it as ([name_u]Ray[/name_u]-toe) as I’ve never encountered the name before. But now that you’ve shown the correct pronunciation, I won’t be making the same error twice. I think this is the case for many lesser known names - there may be an initial schooling required on how to say the name and after that you’re good to go. It’s a short name so I don’t think this presents major challenges. I wonder what your thoughts are about nicknames - in particular - English sounding nicknames from the Japanese name e.g. [name_m]Tom[/name_m], [name_m]Ken[/name_m], [name_m]Matt[/name_m], [name_m]Mitch[/name_m], [name_m]Ry[/name_m], [name_m]Tad[/name_m], [name_u]Ray[/name_u].

Here are some short and fairly simple names, some of which could have the above mentioned nicknames: [name_f]Jin[/name_f], [name_m]Iku[/name_m], [name_m]Hiro[/name_m], [name_m]Kenji[/name_m], Takashi, [name_m]Junto[/name_m], [name_m]Akio[/name_m], Kento, Ryuji, Kaito, Masaru, [name_f]Sai[/name_f], Tomoki, Tenri, Kenshi, Kotaro, Matsuki, Tomio, Michiro, Reiji, Tadashi, Yuji, Takumi

5

My only problem with it is that it sounds a lot like “righto!”, and less like a name to me.
I like the suggestion of Kaito, it seems more usable to me and it’s a handsome name. That said, if you love Raito you should use it!

6

I do think you’ll get a lot of the “[name_u]RAY[/name_u]-to” pronunciation, but once people hear the name pronounced correctly, they’re not likely to keep saying it wrong. I think it’s a great name, though I’m partial to [name_m]Raiden[/name_m], personally.

Here are some other suggestions for Japanese boy names that are fairly intuitive to pronounce by English speakers:

[name_f]Sora[/name_f] - sky
Benjiro - enjoys peace
Takeshi - military, strong, healthy
Kyoshi - pure
Itsuki - tree
[name_m]Kenji[/name_m] - study, sharpen, two
Asahi - morning, sunlight
Taro - great, eldest son
Kohaku - amber
[name_u]Yoshi[/name_u] - good luck, righteous, virtuous
Riku - land, earth
Saburo - brightness
Haruto - light, sun, clear weather, brightness
Makoto - sincere
Kuro - black, ninth son
[name_f]Tamaki[/name_f] - jewel, tree
Shinobu - endurance
Akihito - bright, compassionate
Saku - remembering the divine
Matsu - pine tree
[name_m]Hideki[/name_m] - excellence, hope, tree
Naruto - maelstrom (the anime is wildly popular here in the US, however)
Sanji - praise
Mako - child of truth
Takashi - noble, prosperous, piety, devotion, courage
Shiro - white, castle, fourth son
Masato - justice
Osami - study, discipline, the body
[name_m]Akio[/name_m] - bright, hero
Kazumi - beautiful, harmony
[name_u]Yuki[/name_u] - happiness, snow
Tadashi - loyal, faithful, right, correct
Shoma - esteemed truth
[name_u]Ren[/name_u] - lotus, love
Haruka - distant, remote, spring, flower
Koji - prosperity, good luck
Nobu - prolong trust
Miyoko - beautiful, generation
[name_u]Akira[/name_u] - bright, clear
[name_m]Fuji[/name_m] - wisteria, the mountain
Katsumi - victory, to overcome
Okami - wolf
[name_f]Hoshi[/name_f] - star
Reiki - healing the spirit
Namiko - wave child, surf child
Sanyu - happiness
Katashi - hard, firm
Hiroki - great, brightness, tree
Minato - harbor
Okina - ocean, charcoal, night
Shin - real, genuine
Tomohiro - vast wisdom
Yasuo - peaceful
Hikari - light
[name_m]Botan[/name_m] - peony
Ichigo - best guardian
Osamu - discipline, study
Ruka - gem, light
Toshiro - talented, intelligent
[name_u]Kai[/name_u] - sea, ocean
Asuka - tomorrow, fragrance, to fly
[name_m]Ichiro[/name_m] - first son
Natsu - summer
[name_f]Michi[/name_f] - path
[name_m]Hiroshi[/name_m] - tolerant, generous, prosperous
Ryoto - like a dragon
Kenshin - humble, modest, trust, belief
[name_u]Nori[/name_u] - ceremony, rites
Yamato - large, harmony

(Obviously these meanings are subjective, and will vary depending on the kanji you choose. I tried to include the most common ones.)

7

I really like it! I can see how people might mistake it for ratio, but it is easy enough to pronounce that with one correction people should be able to say it.

8

For what it’s worth I think Japanese names are lovely!

My only concern with Raito is that I’ve seen so many people butcher names like [name_m]Raiden[/name_m] and I feel like as a result Raito could end up getting the “ray” treatment. To me the -ai making an “eye” sound seems very intuitive but I’ve seen a lot of Americans struggle with this one.

Ryoto is a name that comes to mind with some similarities in sound to Raito and is super clear cut phonetically for anglophones. And I agree with others that Kaito might be a little more workable but again I worry about people butchering, though less so because of the popularity of the name [name_u]Kai[/name_u].

Other Japanese names that are very American accessible:
[name_u]Ren[/name_u]
Akari
Benjiro
Kenshin
Tohru
[name_m]Hiro[/name_m]
Koji
Toshiro
Naoki
Arata
Haru
Rikuto
[name_m]Kenji[/name_m]
Ryota
[name_m]Hikaru[/name_m]
Shin
[name_m]Yukio[/name_m]
Genji

9

I think he would get teased.
What about [name_m]Reo[/name_m]?
Kaito or [name_m]Kenji[/name_m]?