Tom: I’m learning kanji, but I can’t read most Japanese names. Why do they use difficult kanji? Miho: Because people have started to use kanji in names only for their phonetic value, even Japanese people can’t read them correctly. Tom: What does phonetic value mean? Miho: It means that kanji characters are used to give meaning to names that would normally be written phonetically in katakana characters. When Westerners have a hanko or personal stamp made, they use kanji to spell out their names in the same way. That’s what I’m referring to. Tom: I see. Then what are these “kirakira names” that I’ve been hearing a lot about recently? Miho: Like the names of big Western stars, these sound rather flashy. Tom: What names were commonly used in the past? Miho: There were many girl's names with ko at the end, such as Kazuko and Aiko, and boy's names with o at the ending. So it was easy, because they either reflected the era or were traditional. Tom: Why do people use confusing kanji nowadays? Miho: I think it is the influence of globalization. Tom: Is just any name okay? Miho: Although almost anything goes, if you give your child a weird name, they'll likely be bulled. Tom: Is it possible to change your own name? Miho: It is difficult, but possible, if the court grants permission for the change. It caused quite a stir when someone called Oujisama (Prince-sama) was allowed to change his name.