Philip in Japanese Katakana

Tips for writing Philip in katakana

• Write the small ィ at about half size, in the lower left of the square (in horizontal writing). フィ is one sound, fi.
• The small ッ is a short pause that doubles the next consonant. Write it half size; a full-size ツ would be read "tsu".
• 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 Philip becomes プ (pu). 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.

Philip on Japanese forms

Example full name: Philip Smith → フィリップ・スミス (Western order, names separated by ・).

Most Japanese forms put the family name first: スミス フィリップ. 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 ふぃりっぷ); some bank and card forms ask for half-width katakana (ｽﾐｽ ﾌｨﾘｯﾌﾟ).

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 Philip in Japanese?

Philip is usually written フィリップ (firippu) in katakana, the script Japanese uses for foreign names. In hiragana it is ふぃりっぷ.

Is there a kanji for Philip?

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.