Cervantes in Japanese Katakana

Tips for writing Cervantes in katakana

• ソ (so) and ン (n) look alike. In ソ the long stroke falls from the top right; in ン it rises from the bottom left.
• Japanese has a single sound for English L and R, so both are written with the ラ-row (ra, ri, ru, re, ro).
• Japanese syllables end in a vowel (except ン), so the final consonant of Cervantes becomes ス (su). Say it lightly.
• Katakana is written left to right like English, or top to bottom in vertical text. Keep every character the same size except the small ones.

Cervantes on Japanese forms

Example full name: John Cervantes → ジョン・セルバンテス (Western order, names separated by ・).

Most Japanese forms put the family name first: セルバンテス ジョン. In a フリガナ (furigana) field write it in katakana; if the field says ふりがな use hiragana (せるばんてす じょん); some bank and card forms ask for half-width katakana (ｾﾙﾊﾞﾝﾃｽ ｼﾞｮﾝ).

Japan has no official katakana spelling for foreign names. Once you use a spelling for a bank account, phone contract or employer, keep using the same one so your records match.

FAQ

How do you write Cervantes in Japanese?

Cervantes is usually written セルバンテス (serubantesu) in katakana, the script Japanese uses for foreign names. In hiragana it is せるばんてす.

Is there a kanji for Cervantes?

No. Foreign names have no official kanji; they are written in katakana. Kanji versions offered online (ateji) are chosen only for sound and look, and their "meanings" are made up, so this site does not provide them.