Foreign names are written in Japanese with katakana, the syllabary reserved for words that come from abroad. Here is how to transcribe yours, step by step.

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🟩 1. You transcribe sounds, not letters

Japanese does not copy spelling: it reproduces pronunciation. So you break the name into sounds, then find the closest katakana for each one.

Example: "Marie" is pronounced Ma-ri → マリー.

🟨 2. Japanese works in syllables

Each katakana is a syllable (a consonant plus a vowel), except ン (n). A lone consonant therefore takes a support vowel, most often u.

Name	Breakdown	Katakana
Tom	To-mu	トム
Sophie	So-fi	ソフィ
Lucas	Ru-ka-su	ルカス
Emma	E-m-ma	エンマ

⚠️ The L sound does not exist in Japanese: it becomes R (Lucas → Ruka).

🟦 3. Long vowels

A lengthened vowel is written with the ー mark.

"Lea" → Rē-a → レーア.

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🟧 4. The method in 3 steps

1. Say your name slowly, sound by sound.
2. Break it into Japanese syllables (consonant + vowel).
3. Replace each syllable with its katakana using a chart.

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🎯 Your turn

Keep the Kanakana katakana chart in front of you and practise recognising each syllable: it is the best way to transcribe your name (and your friends') with confidence.

👉 Tip: to get an instant first result, try our katakana name converter.