Japan Know How archive
Your Name in Japanese
Japanese names usually place the family name first, but their kanji may allow several possible readings. Learn how surnames, given names, furigana, and Japan’s 2025 name-reading rules fit together.
Writing & Language
Radical, stroke count, handwriting pad or phone camera. Four ways to look up a kanji you have never seen, ranked by how fast they actually are.
Japanese Crafts
In Sakai the smith, the sharpener and the handle maker are different businesses. Forge-welded steel, single bevels, and what rust says about the steel.
Your Name in Japanese
Spanish names enter Japanese through their original pronunciation, not an English reading of their spelling. Learn why José becomes ホセ, how Japanese handles ñ, ll, and rolled r, and which name terms matter on forms, cards, and bookings.
Japanese Eras
Heisei ended in 2019, but its flip phones, purikura, loose socks, and gyaru styling already look retro to young consumers. Here are the Japanese terms that explain how a recent era became a cultural label.
Writing & Language
The same kanji can sound completely different from one word to the next. This guide explains the compound-versus-okurigana shortcut, compares on’yomi with kun’yomi, and shows the exceptions that make guessing dangerous.
Japanese Eras
Hirohito, Emperor Showa, Naruhito, and Emperor Emeritus Akihito are not interchangeable labels. The correct choice depends on whether the emperor is reigning, retired, or deceased—and whether you are writing in English or Japanese.
Japanese Crafts
Six ancient kilns, one porcelain town, and a glaze that changes color with use. Which region makes what, and how to tell them apart on a shelf.
Your Name in Japanese
Japan’s residence card normally follows the name in your passport and prints it in Latin letters. Kanji can be added only when officially documented, while a commonly used alias belongs to the resident-record system and requires evidence of real-world use.
Writing & Language
Not the school order and not the JLPT order. Which kanji repay learning first, how the readings work, and what to do with characters you only read.
