Guardian

Japan introduces rules to put outlandish baby names to bed

Metaculus

Lowest Japanese births by 2100

<span>The regulations target "kira-kira" or flashy names that have proliferated since the late 1980s, including names like Pikachu from Pokemon, Pudding, King, Caesar, and Devil, which have caused confusion in schools, hospitals and public services.</span

Honey

Stuff

The Times

The regulations target "kira-kira" or flashy names that have proliferated since the late 1980s, including names like Pikachu from Pokemon, Pudding, King, Caesar, and Devil, which have caused confusion in schools, hospitals and public services.

<span>Under the new law, only widely accepted readings of kanji characters will be permitted, with authorities having power to refuse names with pronunciations considered antisocial or having negative impact on a child's future.</span

South China Morning Post

Under the new law, only widely accepted readings of kanji characters will be permitted, with authorities having power to refuse names with pronunciations considered antisocial or having negative impact on a child's future.

<span>The change stems from unique features of Japanese language where kanji characters can be pronounced multiple ways, previously allowing parents complete freedom to decide pronunciation without specifying it in family registers.</span

The change stems from unique features of Japanese language where kanji characters can be pronounced multiple ways, previously allowing parents complete freedom to decide pronunciation without specifying it in family registers.

<span>Government officials will send postcards to households requesting name pronunciations from existing registries, with residents having one year to request corrections, while parents of newborns may be asked to explain unusual readings.</span

Mainichi

Japan Today

Government officials will send postcards to households requesting name pronunciations from existing registries, with residents having one year to request corrections, while parents of newborns may be asked to explain unusual readings.

<span>A committee spent years deliberating these restrictions following decades of debate about parental naming freedom, including a famous 1994 case where parents were denied permission to name their son "Akuma" meaning Devil.</span

A committee spent years deliberating these restrictions following decades of debate about parental naming freedom, including a famous 1994 case where parents were denied permission to name their son "Akuma" meaning Devil.

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Metaculus #0

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Japan

Social issues

This government overreach tramples on parental rights and individual expression in a society already obsessed with conformity. Parents should have the freedom to choose creative names that reflect their hopes and dreams for their children, and these "flashy" names represent healthy individualism and uniqueness-seeking behavior that has grown over the past 40 years. The restrictions will create massive bureaucratic paperwork and stifle the natural evolution of language and naming practices.

<span>This government overreach tramples on parental rights and individual expression in a society already obsessed with conformity. Parents should have the freedom to choose creative names that reflect their hopes and dreams for their children, and these "flashy" names represent healthy individualism and uniqueness-seeking behavior that has grown over the past 40 years. The restrictions will create massive bureaucratic paperwork and stifle the natural evolution of language and naming practices.</span>

Japan Enforces New Rules to Limit 'Flashy' Baby Names

Japan introducesEnforces rulesNew Rules to putLimit outlandish'Flashy' babyBaby names to bedNames

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Japan Enforces New Rules to Limit 'Flashy' Baby Names

Japan introducesEnforces rulesNew Rules to putLimit outlandish'Flashy' babyBaby names to bedNames

The Spin

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