Paper short abstract:

Since 1912 the start of each new era had an immediate impact on baby names. This paper discusses the more muted influence of the Reiwa Era, explores its manifestations in currently bestowed names, and explains this phenomenon in the light of the major changes in name selection over the last decades.

Paper long abstract:

The selection, or creation, of a Japanese given name is an elaborate process inspired by particular ideas about the named individual and aspirations for his or her future life, guided by a number of criteria, including the meaning of the kanji used, the sound and the overall image the name evokes, and also a fortunate number of strokes to ensure the child a good fate. The choice of a particular name depends on individual factors such as personal preferences and education, but given names also reflect the period in which they were bestowed, providing interesting clues about social attitudes and values of that particular time, and testifying to short-term influences and fashion trends as well as more fundamental changes in society (Makino 2012, Barešová 2016).

The beginning of a new era is an important event, which many Japanese naturally associate with positive expectations for the future. In the past century, the start of each new era had an immediate impact on baby names bestowed in its first years.

This paper discusses the more muted influence of the beginning of the current Reiwa Era, commencing on May 1, 2019, on subsequent name selections. Based on an analysis of a corpus of names bestowed in 2019 and information concerning the name selection (nazuke episōdo, or name-selection stories), it explores the various manifestations of this long-awaited event. This phenomenon is compared to those of the previous three eras, i.e. Taisho (1912-1926), Showa (1926-1989), and Heisei (1989-2019), and explained in the light of the major changes in name selection over the last several decades (e.g., Kobayashi 2009).

Barešová, Ivona. 2016. Japanese Given Names: A Window Into Contemporary Japanese Society. Olomouc: Palacký University Press.

Kobayashi, Yasumasa. 2009. Nazuke no sesōshi. "Koseiteki na namae" o fīrudowāku. Tōkyō: Fūkyōsha.

Makino, Kunio. 2012. Kodomo no namae ga abunai. Tōkyō: Besuto serāzu.