名前

Japanese

Kanji in this term
名	前
な Grade: 1	まえ Grade: 2
kun'yomi

Alternative forms

• 名まえ

Etymology

Compound of 名 (na, “name”) +‎ 前 (mae, used as a suffix in words describing a person to emphasize a quality or feature). Cognate with Okinawan 名前 (nāmē, “name”)

Appears as a term only in the last couple centuries, becoming more widely used during the Meiji period (starting 1868).

Noun

名(な)前(まえ) • (namae) ^{←なまへ (namafe)?}

1. a name (word or phrase indicating a particular person, place, class or thing)
   • 2013 April 7 [2012 December 9], ONE with Murata, Yusuke, “15撃(げき)目(め)　趣(しゅ)味(み)と仕(し)事(ごと) [15th Hit: A Hobby, or a Job?]”, in ONEPUNCH-MAN(【ワンパンマン】) [ONE-PUNCH MAN], 6th edition, volume 2 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN, page 178:

     音(おん)速(そく)のソニック？誰(だれ)ですか？その頭(ず)痛(つう)が痛(いた)いみたいな名(な)前(まえ)の人(じん)物(ぶつ)は？

     Onsoku no Sonikku? Dare desu ka? Sono zutsū ga itai mitai na namae no jinbutsu wa?

     Sonic the Sound Speed? Who’s that? Is he giving you a headache with that redundant name?

   • 2008 August 16, Gosho Aoyama, “ＦＩＬＥ(ファイル).5　憎(ぞう)悪(お)の村(むら) [FILE.5 Village of Hatred]”, in 名(めい)探(たん)偵(てい)コナン [Legendary Detective Conan], volume 61 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN:

     新(しん)一(いち)〰‼ちょ、なんで⁉どうして新(しん)一(いち)が…

     Shin'ichi~‼ Cho, nande⁉ Dōshite Shin'ichi ga…

     Shin’ichi〰‼ Wait, why… Shin’ichi, why are you…

     ………新(しん)一(いち)…それが僕(ぼく)の名(な)前(まえ)ですか？

     ……… Shin'ichi… Sore ga boku no namae desu ka?

     ……… Shin’ichi… Is that my name?

2. (more specifically) a given name (excluding the surname)

See also

• 名(な) (na, “a name, a title (as of a book or other work)”)
• 名(みょう)字(じ), 苗(みょう)字(じ) (myōji, “a surname”)
• 姓(せい)名(めい) (seimei, “a full name”)
• 氏(し)名(めい) (shimei, “a full name”)
• 名(めい)称(しょう) (meishō, “a name, an appellation, what something or someone is called”)

Further reading

• 名前 entry at Gogen Allguide (in Japanese)
  

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Okinawan

Etymology

名 (nā, “name”) +‎ 前 (mē). Cognate with Japanese 名前 (namae, “name”).

Noun

名前 (hiragana なーめー, romaji nāmē)

1. a name (word or phrase indicating a particular person, place, class or thing)
2. (more specifically) a given name (excluding the surname)