Help with Names in Japanese

[tmd]

Can anyone help; I want a new Tat to commemorate reaching 1st Kyu and would like the names of my wife and children either in Japanese or like a decorative kanji (if either of these are possible) - Acceptable compromise would be the initial in the N-S-E-W positions of a kanku... Any thoughts from those of a more creative nature duly excepted.

I would post my rough outline but I can't seem to upload pics...

[Bloke]

Try using imageshack from the quick links menu

[tmd]

Cheers to Bloke! I used the technology!!! I am aiming for the names to be N-S-E-W rather than at 10-2-4-8 and will not be having the skull etc...

[kakatootoshi]

Charlotte シャルロット
Alex アレックス
Sarah サラ
Brandon ブランドン

Dear tmd,
The above are quite stable translations of those names in Japanese.
What do you mean by Kanji? Does that include Katakana? Many Gaijin use "Kanji" to include Japanese written characters in general. But I have seen some Gaijin really have their names translated into Kanji, and they do so by finding the thing in Japanese which "sound like" closest to how the name is in pronounced in Japanese, and the results always look satisfactory for Gaijin and anyone who cannot read or write Japanese (I guess you know what is being suggested here).

One note for the tattoo artist. As you see there are some characters which are smaller in size (I put them in red), and that is done on purpose. You must pray for the artist to get all the strokes right.

OSU!

[Dent]

Osu!

It may be better to have someone fluent in Japanese with you when you first speak to the artist, and when you're having the tattoo done.

Better safe than sorry.

Osu!

[smoothsake]

Maybe it just sounds differently in my head, but I think this works better:

Charlotte = シャルレット (shya-ru-retto)


Just my opinion...
Osu!

[kakatootoshi]

Dear smoothsake,
I have googled the names and I got many results of "Charlette" with シャルレット.

My version is what "Charlotte Church" is using in Japan for the press (シャルロット・チャーチ).

OSU!

[tmd]

kakatootoshi, welcome your input, given what you have said about Gaijin using Japanese names in tattoo's I was hopping you would post, thank you. As there is quite a difference in character length and so the tat could look unbalanced could I ask, what would the the Japanese for S,C,B,A be?

Also Alex's full name is Alexander, would this be different?

Japanese fluency is kinda thin on the ground round here but the guy I used for my other tat was very artistic and I have confidence that if I give him your notes he will follow them.

OSU, to Smothsnake for his attention to detail also

[kakatootoshi]

Dear tmd,
Names are different from other slogans, as these names are just want would appear on an obi.

Alexander is アレクサンドロス(as in Alexander the Great).

I notice the problem about word length.

what would the the Japanese for S,C,B,A be?

I do not know how to answer this. I think there are Japanese ways to pronounce the alphabets but the results will be comical and not making any sense.

OSU!

[tmd]

Originally Posted by kakatootoshi

Dear tmd,
I think there are Japanese ways to pronounce the alphabets but the results will be comical and not making any sense.

OSU!

Thanks Kakatootoshi - it's this kind of comical or offensive error I was trying to avoid.

I will use the full names as shown but maybe set the design out differently.

lastly what of numbers? Or years I guess as the dates of their births could be used to symbolize them; 1972,1991, 1995 and 2000.

Feel free to call me a cheeky monkey for taking up so much of your time and refuse to answer my ever growing list of questions - I just want something that's going to be on my skin for ever to be at least kinda right.

[kakatootoshi]

A, B, C, D are not offensive when pronounced in Japanese. But there is no distinction between B, be and bee, C and sea. A can mean a kind of fish (Batoidea). Of course it can be argued that when A, B, C, D appear together we all know what they mean.

As for the Kanji, it is pretty much like the case of "Batoidea". In most Kanji (not Katakana)translations words are picked based on similarity between some real Japanese words and the Japanese pronouncation of the English names. And some of these names contains animals or other objects, adjectives (of course they will not pick "Batoidea") and they will break down your name and tell you, this means tiger, that means beautiful, that means powerful whatsoever and it always make people feel satisfifed, as long as that person cannot read the whole thing. A good reverse example will be to translate the Japanese name of "Jigoro" into "Gigolo", a real example I heard years ago.

lastly what of numbers? Or years I guess as the dates of their births could be used to symbolize them; 1972,1991, 1995 and 2000.

What do you mean? You mean the Kanji for the years?

OSU!

[Dent]

Osu! TMD,

Originally Posted by tmd

Japanese fluency is kinda thin on the ground round here

Try local colleges as well as better quality Japanese restaurants. You'd be surprised who you might find in there.

Osu!

[tmd]

Originally Posted by kakatootoshi

What do you mean? You mean the Kanji for the years?

OSU!

Yes the Kanji for the years if this is possible in a format that would suit going around the edge of the design.

Please don;t worry to much I think I can make something good out of the info you have provided, unless the years in kanji look particularly cool I think I'll go with he names as you have outlined.

Osu! TMD.

[oniyuri]

Originally Posted by kakatootoshi

Dear tmd,
Names are different from other slogans, as these names are just want would appear on an obi.

Alexander is アレクサンドロス(as in Alexander the Great).

OSU!

I think another fairly common way to spell Alexander is; アレクサンダー　(which literally reads 'Arekusandaa'). Hope you'll work the tattoo out.

[kakatootoshi]

Dear tmd and oniyuri,
Sorry I have made a big mistake here (hope the tattoo has not been done yet).
The original answer I made was "Aleksandros".

In English Alexander should be アレグザンダー, the answer kindly given by oniyuri.
In French Alexander should be アレクサンドル.

OSU!

[kakatootoshi]

1972 一九七二年
1991 一九九一年
1995 一九九五年
2000 二〇〇〇年

年 is "year". If you want to leave it out in your tattoo it should be alright.

OSU!

[Nix]

I thought Japanese people used rōmaji for numbers. You learn something new every day.

How are you picturing it to be, tmd? Like the kanku above, only without the horrible skull?

[tmd]

Originally Posted by Nix

I thought Japanese people used rōmaji for numbers. You learn something new every day.

How are you picturing it to be, tmd? Like the kanku above, only without the horrible skull?

Yep - but with the names more N-S-E-W positioned, as in they are my compass?