Japanese Personal Name Punctuation: The Use of “Kanji-Punctuation“115

In the Japanese language, personal names consist of a family name or surname followed by a given name. The family name is often written in kanji, the Chinese characters that are used in the Japanese writing system. The given name, on the other hand, is typically written in hiragana or katakana, two phonetic syllabaries that are also used in Japanese.

When writing Japanese personal names in English, it is common to use a space between the family name and the given name. For example, the name "佐藤太郎" (Satō Tarō) would be written as "Satō Tarō" in English.

However, there is another convention that is sometimes used when writing Japanese personal names in English, which is to use a punctuation mark between the family name and the given name. This punctuation mark is called a "kanji-punctuation".

The kanji-punctuation is a small, vertical line that is written between the family name and the given name. It is similar to the hyphen that is used in English to connect two words. The kanji-punctuation is used to indicate that the two names are part of a single personal name.

There are two main types of kanji-punctuation: the "chūten" (中点) and the "yōon" (拗音). The chūten is a short, vertical line that is written between the family name and the given name. The yōon is a longer, vertical line that is written between the family name and the given name, and it is used to indicate that the given name is pronounced with a long vowel sound.

The use of the kanji-punctuation is optional in English. However, it is becoming more common to use the kanji-punctuation when writing Japanese personal names in English, especially in formal settings.

There are several reasons why the use of the kanji-punctuation is becoming more common. First, the kanji-punctuation helps to indicate that the two names are part of a single personal name. This can be helpful for readers who are not familiar with Japanese personal names.

Second, the kanji-punctuation can help to prevent the confusion that can occur when Japanese personal names are written without any punctuation. For example, the name "佐藤太郎" could be interpreted as "Satō, Tarō" or "Satōtarō" if it is written without any punctuation.

Third, the kanji-punctuation can help to preserve the original pronunciation of the Japanese personal name. When Japanese personal names are written without any punctuation, the pronunciation of the given name can be difficult to determine.

For all of these reasons, the use of the kanji-punctuation is becoming more common when writing Japanese personal names in English. The kanji-punctuation is a simple and effective way to indicate that the two names are part of a single personal name, to prevent confusion, and to preserve the original pronunciation of the name.## Additional Notes
* The kanji-punctuation is not used when writing Japanese personal names in Japanese.
* The kanji-punctuation is also not used when writing Japanese personal names in other languages, such as Chinese or Korean.
* The use of the kanji-punctuation is not universally accepted. Some people believe that the kanji-punctuation is unnecessary and that it can make Japanese personal names more difficult to read.
* However, the use of the kanji-punctuation is becoming more common, especially in formal settings.

2024-12-27

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