Can you have a different name in Japan?

The short answer is that you can have any name you want, providing four conditions: It has to be written exclusively or a combination of (modern, not archaic) hiragana, katakana, or kanji.

Are last names important in Japan?

Japan has style and grace and is one of those rare places that straddle both the future and classical history. Both are absolutely breathtaking, and so are their last names. Depending on the characters used to spell them, names can have multiple meanings.

What is the legal age for marriage in Japan?

In Japan, accordingly, an adult is any person of 20 years of age or more. 39. Under the provisions of the Civil Code, a man may not marry until reaching 18 years of age, nor a woman until reaching 16 years of age.

Can husband take wife’s last name Japan?

Generally in Japan, a woman takes her husband’s name and is adopted into his family. A non-Japanese husband may also take his Japanese wife’s surname instead of Japanizing his own, if he wishes to naturalize.

Do Japanese take their husband last name?

Under Article 750 of the country’s Civil Code, a couple must adopt “the surname of the husband or wife” at the time of marriage. Although the law does not specify which name, 96 per cent of women adopt their husbands’ surnames.

Do you have to have a Japanese surname to be Japanese?

Long answer: All Japanese are required to have a Japanese surname & at the very least a transliterated first name as all official records are in Japanese only. When taking on Japanese citizenship, it gets a little interesting as how does one take a non-Japanese name & make it into a Japanese one?

What is the best way to write your name in Japanese?

Using a name in Kanji will help a lot to seem less foreign, if that’s your intention, which is why a fair number of naturalized Japanese and foreigners doing business in Japan will give themselves Japanese names using kanji (plus the law requires a name to be hiragana, katakana, or kanji). Kanji come off as more refined, too.

Why do some foreigners in Japan have Japanese names?

This is one reason why some foreigners here adopt a Japanese-looking common name, or settle on a kanji transliteration upon naturalization.

Do I have to take a Japanese sounding name?

Yes, you do, though it doesn’t have to be Japanese “sounding”. A phonetic rendering of your former name in kana is perfectly acceptable. More here: Did the Ministry of Justice ever FORCE those who naturalized to take “Japanese-sounding” names? Others have addressed the “need to” in the original question.