James in Japanese Katakana

Tips for writing James in katakana

• ー is the long-vowel mark: it stretches the sound before it. In vertical writing it turns into a vertical line.
• Write the small ェ at about half size, in the lower left of the square (in horizontal writing). ジェ is one sound, je.
• Japanese syllables end in a vowel (except ン), so the final consonant of James becomes ズ (zu). 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.

James on Japanese forms

Example full name: James Smith → ジェームズ・スミス (Western order, names separated by ・).

Most Japanese forms put the family name first: スミス ジェームズ. 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 じぇーむず); some bank and card forms ask for half-width katakana (ｽﾐｽ ｼﾞｪｰﾑｽﾞ).

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 James in Japanese?

James is usually written ジェームズ (jēmuzu) in katakana, the script Japanese uses for foreign names. You may also see ジェイムズ. In hiragana it is じぇーむず.

Is there a kanji for James?

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.