Gary in Japanese Katakana
Gary (common English boy's name) is written ゲイリー — read geirī.
ゲイリー
| Katakana | ゲイリー |
|---|---|
| Reading (romaji) | geirī |
| Hiragana | げいりー |
| Half-width katakana | ｹﾞｲﾘｰ |
| Other spellings | ゲーリー (another spelling seen in Japan) |
Character by character
| Katakana | Hiragana | Sound |
|---|---|---|
| ゲ | げ | ge |
| イ | い | i |
| リ | り | ri |
| ー | ー | long vowel mark |
Tips for writing Gary in katakana
- ー is the long-vowel mark: it stretches the sound before it. In vertical writing it turns into a vertical line.
- Japanese has a single sound for English L and R, so both are written with the ラ-row (ra, ri, ru, re, ro).
- 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.
Gary on Japanese forms
Example full name: Gary Smith → ゲイリー・スミス (Western order, names separated by ・).
Most Japanese forms put the family name first: スミス ゲイリー. In a フリガナ (furigana) field write it in katakana; if the field says ふりがな use hiragana (すみす げいりー); some bank and card forms ask for half-width katakana (ｽﾐｽ ｹﾞｲﾘｰ).
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 Gary in Japanese?
Gary is usually written ゲイリー (geirī) in katakana, the script Japanese uses for foreign names. You may also see ゲーリー. In hiragana it is げいりー.
Is there a kanji for Gary?
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.
Similar names
How spellings are chosen: the first spelling is the one most commonly used for this name in Japanese books, media and everyday writing, checked against the Japanese government's rules for writing foreign words (Cabinet Notice No. 2 of 1991, 外来語の表記). The list was compiled by this site; it is not an official register. Pronunciation matters more than spelling — if your name is pronounced differently, the katakana can differ too.