Japanese form name fields

How to fill in Furigana with a Chinese name

Separate the name field from its pronunciation field, then check whether the form asks for Katakana, Hiragana or Roman letters.

Prepare a pronunciation
From NameFerry

A form rejecting your name is frustrating. Before changing the reading, let’s check the script, spaces and character width it expects.

Furigana is a reading, not a new Japanese name

氏名 usually means the name itself, while 姓 and 名 split family and given names. フリガナ commonly asks for a Katakana reading; ふりがな commonly indicates Hiragana. The service’s own example and character restrictions take priority.

One page may ask separately for the name, its Roman-letter spelling and a Kana reading. Read the label first, then adjust spaces, middle dots and long vowels to the field rules.

Common Japanese name fields

These are recognition cues, not one universal answer for every service.

FieldUsually asks forExample for 张伟Check before submitting
氏名/姓名The name itself in allowed kanji or Roman letters張偉 or ZHANG WEIWhether Kanji or only Latin letters are accepted
姓/名Family and given names separately姓: 張/名: 偉The visual order may vary
フリガナUsually full-width Katakana readingチャン/ウェイMiddle dot, spaces and long vowels
ふりがなUsually Hiragana readingちゃん/うぇいWhether Hiragana is explicitly required
ローマ字/英字The name written in Roman or Latin lettersZHANG/WEICase, order and spacing rules

Try it with your kana spelling

Already have your name in kana, but a form will not accept it? Check the field’s instructions, then choose that format below. These examples show what to look for.

  • Full-width, no spaces or middle dots: チャン ・ ウェイ → チャンウェイ
  • Full-width: リー → リー. Keep the long-vowel mark ー.
  • Hiragana: チャン → ちゃん. Small ャ becomes small ゃ, not full-size や.
Try an example

Follow the instructions on the actual form. This tool does not split your name into first and last names or change their order.

Four common mistakes

Putting Katakana in a Roman-letter field

ローマ字 and English name fields normally expect Latin letters, not Kana.

Reversing family and given names

Match 姓 / Family / Last name and 名 / Given / First name by label rather than relying on the left-to-right layout.

Ignoring full-width Kana rules

Some forms reject half-width Kana, middle dots, spaces or Latin letters. Adjust the format to the page’s validation message.

A field asks for full-width Katakana with no spaces or middle dots. Which version of リー・ミン fits?

Show the explanation

リーミン keeps the long-vowel mark ー, removes the separator and uses full-width Katakana. リミン loses a long vowel; りーみん uses Hiragana.

Prepare the rest of your Japanese name formats

Guides

Prepare a reviewable name reading

Compare Japanese on-reading, Mandarin Katakana, Hiragana, Romaji and Pinyin, then choose according to the form’s rules.

Generate name formats