Japanese parents can no longer freely choose the names of their children after the presentation of new standards for pronouncing Kanji characters this week.
Changing goals to stop the use of names Kirakira (brilliant or brilliant), who multiplied among parents seeking to add a creative touch to the names of their children, creating administrative headaches for local authorities and, in some cases, causing to tease classmates.
Although reviews of the Family Register of Family do not prohibit Kanji – the characteristics of Chinese origin in the written Japanese language – parents must inform local authorities about their phonetic reading, trying to expel unusual or controversial pronunciation.
From now on, only officially recognized interpretations of Kanji’s characters will be allowed, since the government intends to put an end to confusion, which bizarre names can cause in schools, hospitals and other public services.
The discussion by the names of Kirakira dates back to the 1990s, caused by an increase in the nickname based on the unorthodox readings of Kanji.
The government described the emphasis on standard pronunciations as a way to simplify the digitalization of administrative procedures, but is also considered an attempt to stop the distribution of extravagant names of the battery – and for many incomprehensible.
Parents were criticized that they put their children names of famous brands or characters: Pikachu, Pokémon, Naiki (Nike), Daiya (Diamond), Pū (like Winnie Pow) and Kitty, from Catty Kitty Cat. Others were news for their alleged impudence: Odzhisam (Prince) and Akuma (Devil).
Seiko Khashimoto, a former Olympic skateboard and a cyclist, who subsequently headed the Tokyo 2020 Organizational Committee, called a commotion when he called his children Girisia (Greece) and Torino (Turin), because summer and winter Olympic Games were held in these places. Choosing Kanji herself, Hasimoto knew how to pronounce them, but others scratched their heads.
Parents defended their elections as a model of an individual style in a society in which the pressure on the formation can be stunning, especially when it comes to raising children.
What does a change mean
Although most of the almost 3,000 kanji, permitted by the reviewed law, have several traditional indications, some characters have linguistic flexibility to adapt more strange phonetics. Leaving aside the unexpected factor, the officials complained that, at first glance, many were simply unjustified.
Now parents who have chosen pronunciations that are clearly departing from the usual will be proposed to explain the choice of their name in writing and, if necessary, they represent an acceptable alternative.
Although the media suggest that only the most terrible examples will be rejected, the phonetic requirement is an unusual change in the register of the Japan family, or ConsecksIn the legal register, which lists the names and date of the birth of the head of the family, her spouse and their children.