Chinese name in Japanese kanji
How does a Chinese name change in Japanese kanji?
Chinese and Japanese share many Han characters, but Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, and Japanese character forms are not always identical. This is a character-form conversion—not a new Japanese name.
Convert my nameSome characters look unchanged until you put them side by side. That’s what we’ll do here; this page is about the writing rather than the sound.
Which characters change in Japanese?
Japanese character forms can differ from both Simplified and Traditional Chinese. 张 becomes 張; Traditional 吳 and 歐 correspond to 呉 and 欧. Characters such as 王 and 明 usually keep their shape.
Chinese-to-Japanese kanji examples
These examples use NameFerry’s current conversion rules; the reading column shows a Japanese on-reading reference.
| Chinese input | Japanese form | Japanese reading | Main change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 张伟 | 張偉 | チョウ イ | 张 → 張 |
| 刘洋 | 劉洋 | リュウ ヨウ | 刘 → 劉 |
| 陈杰 | 陳杰 | チン ケツ | 陈 → 陳 |
| 吴昊 | 呉昊 | ゴ コウ | 吴 → 呉 |
| 黄丽 | 黄麗 | コウ レイ | 丽 → 麗 |
| 欧阳娜娜 | 欧陽娜娜 | オウヨウ ダダ | 欧阳 → 欧陽 |
Enter a Chinese name in NameFerry to compare character forms, kana and Romaji. Replace the sample with your own name.
Three common conversion cases
The character stays the same
Characters such as 王, 小, and 明 usually remain unchanged, although their Japanese and Mandarin readings still differ.
Simplified Chinese changes
Characters such as 张, 刘, 陈, and 吴 map to 張, 劉, 陳, and 呉 for the Japanese display.
Traditional and Japanese forms differ
Traditional 黃, 吳, and 歐 may map to Japanese 黄, 呉, and 欧, so Traditional input is not always preserved verbatim.
Names with older or variant characters
A business card, book or personal profile may retain an older or variant character. Use this chart to compare common forms; keep the source spelling when quoting an actual name.
Conversion reference
More ways to write a Chinese name in Japanese
How do you read a Chinese name in Japanese?
Start with the full guide to kanji, on-readings, katakana, and romaji.
How are common Chinese given-name characters read in Japanese?
Compare Japanese glyphs, on-readings and Mandarin Katakana for common given-name characters.
Why Japanese names cannot be read by on’yomi alone
Compare Chinese-name on-readings and learn how Katakana, Hiragana and Romaji differ.
How are common Chinese surnames read in Japanese?
Look up common Chinese surnames in Japanese glyphs, on-readings and Mandarin Katakana.
See how your name appears in Japanese kanji
Compare Japanese character forms, on-readings, Mandarin katakana, and Hanyu Pinyin in one result.