Japan: people won't have kids we don't know why
this post was submitted on 05 Jun 2025
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We asked our kids how they would feel if they got a silly name like Pikachu. Snorlax said it would be awful but Bulbasaur didn't see it as all that bad.
Well, duh. A baby Pikachu is called Pichu.
- 0 - 12 years old - Pichu
- 13 - 20 years old - Pikachu
- 21+ years old - Raichu
For Pacific islanders, at 21 they change their name to Alolan Raichu
In middle age, they become Gorochu.
Sometimes I am quite happy about strict german naming laws.
The first name ...
- must be recognizable as a first name
- must not be a widespread place name or brand name.
- must not be a family name. Exceptions have been made in particular for East Frisian middle names (for example “ten Doornkaat”) and for very rare, unusual surnames (for example Wannek, Birkenfeld), as well as of course for surnames that are mainly known as first names (such as Gerhart).
- may not denote a title such as Lord or Princess.
- does not have to be clearly masculine or feminine, as was the case until 2008, but may also be neutral.
- must not harm the child's welfare by ridiculing the child or creating a connection “to evil”
Pikachu absolutely falls under ridicule and maybe even brand name
"does not have to be clearly masculine or feminine, as was the case until 2008, but may also be neutral."
If my child is a boy, I will name him fish. If a girl, Fishwife. If non-binary or it doesn't like the other names, scaly skin.
(just in case people misunderstand and think I'm making a more pointed attack than I really am, I'm just making a reference to the 1880 essay "The Awful German Language" by Mark Twain)
No maybe about that lol
Fine. Charmander it is.
This is actually not what this law does. The problem is that Japanese parents name their kids using kanji characters, except that they are using creative interpretations on the pronciation of those characters (YouTube short that can better explain the phenomenon). Basically, you can still name your kid Pikachu, it just has to be spelled like Pikachu
- WHA~?
- Go to sleep, Agumon. We're safe.
I don't believe it actually bans "Pikachu" when spelled as 光宙 because ピカチュウ is actually a pretty reasonable reading, although maybe not the #1 most obvious one. Based on a random Japanese article I read about it (link), I really don't think 光宙/Pikachu will be technically illegal, although all the English articles will say so because it's click fodder.
The law bans: things that are not related to the kanji reading at all, things that add unexpected extra stuff on the end of the obvious reading, or things that mean the opposite of what the kanji means.
I don't believe any of this applies to Pikachu, and the examples they cite are not really comparable.
My mom told me someone named their kids first name "Rebel Alliance"
That's a great way for your kid to hate star wars and you
Good. I can't imagine any child appreciates growing up with a name like that.
At least Pokemon names have a fun background.
Now imagine all the girls named Khaleesi after Game of Thrones. Especially after her character arc finished. That wasn't even her name, it was a title. They're literally just named Queen.
Mercedes… Lexus… Summer… Autumn…
Mercedes was a name before being a car brand.
Mercedes is a Spanish female name, derived from María de las Mercedes ("Our Lady of Mercy" or "Mary of Mercies"), which is one of the Roman Catholic titles of the Virgin Mary.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes_(name)
Emil Jellinek was an Austrian-Jewish diplomat based in Nice who ran a profitable business selling cars, and, as a racing enthusiast, had been racing DMG automobiles under the pseudonym Mercédès, after his daughter, Mercédès Jellinek.[2] Later he contracted with DMG for a small series of dedicated sports cars containing an engine that officially bore his daughter's name.
And Isis was also a name before the terrorist organization. Sadly lexicons change over time.
(But that is a cool history)
I actually really like names like summer, autumn, river, rain. Idk why because I feel like they should be bad names.
I think nature-y names are awesome, personally
...I'm not biased or anything because of my chosen name, nooooo
I have had students or known kids named Princess, King, and Legend. Charleigh Brown. Atilla Hunt. Harley Quinn. Their name just becomes the collection of phonemes you use to address them. It’s funny when you see it, then you don’t even think about it anymore.
Well, Typhlosion has a certain background…
Many names have meanings similar to that, and yet they're names. I don't think a name such as khaleesi is inherently bad
Not inherently, no but you should never pick a name from any sort of media until their character arc is complete. Khaleesi was arguably fine until the character became an incestuous genocidal maniac.
That is now a major part of what people remember about the character. Just like you probably wouldn't choose to name your child Hitler now, the name is linked with a certain individual and their actions even though the name had nothing to do with it.
When you pick a specific name or word from fiction that doesn't otherwise exist, that link becomes even stronger, because that's the only source.
Yeah but naming someone after something from an unfinished series is still a very bold move. I could imagine a world where I name a kid after a fantasy character, but definitely not one where I name them after a fantasy character from an unfinished series. I mean, who knows where things might go!
But Snorlax is still on?
Nah it’s kirakira names in general. So weird made-up readings, pop culture references 光宙 (pikachuu falls under both), foreign words, and taboo/denigrating names.
For example.
- 皇帝 (koutei) meaning emperor, read as Kaiser
- 光宙 (kou, light and chuu, space) read as Pikachuu
- 愛保 (ai, to love, and ~~go~~ ho, to keep) read as Rabuho (love hotel)
- 宝冠 (takara, treasure and kanmuri, crown) read as Tiara.
This is probably a typo but 保 is ho, not go.
Ah, thanks. I typed it all out on my phone. It constantly corrects stuff I don't need corrected.
Fine i'll name my kid Ekans you bunch of ingrates
That's ok, digimon is cooler anyways.