# Japanese and Japanese inspired betta names



## Tamyu

Since joining this forum, I have noticed a huge number of betta names are either Japanese or Japanese inspired. 

I am kind of curious about it, since bettas are from Thailand not Japan. 

If your betta has a "Japanese" name, why did you choose it? Is it because bettas are sometimes called Japanese fighting fish? Or because of anime? Or because you are learning Japanese? Or...some other reason?


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## nel3

i got 3 of that type. Nel, Nelliel, Grimmjow from bleach characters. Nel is also the shortend version my brother gave him (bubble face nelson) which was a bit too long imo. the other 2 are colour and tail coordinated to the name which is what i usually do in case of my pets' names.


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## Sheldon31

Kyon is a character from one of my favourite Anime, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. My other favourite is Chobits so he was almost Hideki


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## Bombalurina

I think they are just really cool sounding names. Bettas look amazing in Japanese "zen" set-ups, so it seems appropriate. 

That being said, I can't break away from my Greek theme.


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## nel3

Bombalurina said:


> I think they are just really cool sounding names. Bettas look amazing in Japanese "zen" set-ups, so it seems appropriate.
> 
> That being said, I can't break away from my Greek theme.


i had such an idea for mine but couldnt find appropriate decor in any stores i know of. most of the decor i have is greek wall ruins (4-5 inches tall). i did used to keep a greek wall ruin background pic for my 2.5g but i havent bothered to use it lately.


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## Tamyu

To me, bettas in Japanese/zen style setups look weird and like they are out of place. :lol: They just don't fit in... Bettas have an "Asian" look to them, but a very different Asia, in my opinion. There is a strong association with Thailand. But I guess if you are not familiar with Asia, it all ends up kind of lumped together.


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## Bombalurina

I just love the look of a perfectly formed betta (symmetrical conformation, perfect colour) in a simple zen garden-esque setup. 

That being said, both of my fish tanks are totally natural, barring a Thai buddah in one, and a Thai village in my CRS tank...so I suppose I like a Thai sort of look too.


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## dramaqueen

I was looking at behindthename.com and found the name Makoto and liked it. It means sincerity in Japanese.


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## inareverie85

I actually have three betta named Sashimi, Bento, and Fugu


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## SpookyTooth

I called my betta Kaze because he reminds me of a gentle breeze. The way he flows around his tank and is always on the move just made me think of the wind... which ironically is something I don't get to feel much (at home a lot).

I thought I'd call him "Kaze" (Japanese for wind) instead of "Wind" or "Windy" because I simply preferred it hah. Japanese is a language that I've always liked... though foreign languages intrigue me no end anyway. 

I understand where you're coming from though, it can be a bit confusing.


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## April R

inareverie85 said:


> I actually have three betta named Sashimi, Bento, and Fugu


hahahah, LOL. So cute ....or should I say Kawaii ;-)

Oh, so to resurrect a very old thread 

I named my first two bettas Sekihan and Kaosu
Sekihan (Seki) was because of his (used to be more so) red marbeling on a white body. Now is he almost solid red, but the name stuck. It means red beans and rice, a dish traditionally served during the New Year and other celebrations in Japan, and I was celebrating my very first betta.
Kaosu (Kay) is my girl and I named her the Japanese word for chaos because of her color, it's just so random and beautiful, like chaos
My last betta is Spike, because it just fit his CT looks and ironically because of his non-aggressive personality, like calling a big guy Slim, LOL. In Japanese it would be Supaiku, which didn't sound as good to me as simply Spike.


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## BettaBeau

I named my last betta Taikomochi because his coloring reminded me of a Geisha, so I Googled "male Geisha" and found that a Taikomochi, or "drum bearer", was the male equivalent of the Geisha, part entertainer, part jester, part confidante. It fit perfectly!


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## Vergil

I think most people nowadays have at least 1 or 2 anime titles they really follow and/or quite possible Nico Nico and Vocaloids for songs.

Bettas are very Oriental looking fish and in general they tend to look like mini dragons to me - the Asian kind with the beard, long body etc. rather than their solid Western cousins. 

Mine so far have been named Shachihoko (Tiger Carp), Hisui (Rocket Larkspur), Hisui (Jade), Hinoto (Ward), Hibiki (Echo). Two of the newer bettas also ended up with Jap names - Yue (Moon) and Shana-tan (tiny version of Shakugan no Shana).

The ones with Western names are Liza, Bob, Wisteria, and Undine.


The boy in my avvie is unnamed but I'm leaning towards Munenori.


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## April R

I would caution against using the word Jap to describe anything Japanese..it has an extremely negative connotation


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## ZeesTyphoon

My betta's Japanese names started as a joke between my husband and I. We lived in Okinawa Japan for almost 5 years, and when I got back to the states and I got a betta, he didn't have a name for a while. I was just so stumped on what to name him. One day I said to my husband that I was admittedly a little sad that we didn't have to deal with typhoons any more. We had at least 3-5 a year there. So he replied, somewhat jokingly. "Just name the fish Typhoon, then you have to deal with one every day." Well Typhoon died after a month and a half sadly, and then I got Tsunami, which was something else we had to deal with in Japan. Then came Monsoon. Monsoon season was always fun. So much rain! And lastly we got Jishin, (earthquake) Yet another thing we had a lot of there. Now the joke is that I can't get any more bettas because I'm running out of natural disasters/storms we dealt with to name them after. XD


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## nel3

ive still kept up with Japanese names, the latest are Kurama (Naruto) and Ryuk (DN).


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## FinalFishasy1991

My betta is named Kenji, after the composer Kenji Ito. Ito is notable for writing music for the Mana series. In this picture, you can see Kenji chilling in his aquarium.


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