Giovanni
ジョヴァンニ
Jovanni
Also written ジョバンニ.
How It Is Said
- ジョjo
- ヴァva
- ンn
- ニni
Jovanni: four beats, each about the same length. Japanese has no strong stress, so the name is said evenly, beat by beat.
By Language
| Language | Katakana | Rōmaji | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italian | ジョヴァンニ | Jovanni | the usual form |
| ジョバンニ | Jobanni | also in use |
What Happens to the Sounds
- In Italian, g before e or i is said j: ジョ (jo).
- The double nn is held: ン is a beat of its own before the next.
- Japanese has no v. It is written ヴ (vu) and its row, ヴァ ヴィ ヴェ ヴォ, or more simply with the b row, バ ビ ブ ベ ボ: you will see both, ジョヴァンニ and ジョバンニ.
To Type It
On a computer with Japanese input switched on, type jovannni (nn gives ン), then press F7 on Windows or Control+K on a Mac to turn it into katakana. On a phone, type the same letters with the Japanese keyboard and choose ジョヴァンニ among the suggestions.
The Same Name in Other Languages
Why Katakana
In Japan, names from abroad are written in katakana, the script for words from other languages. Kanji versions of Western names are mostly invented, and a Japanese reader often sees odd meanings in them; the katakana is what a Japanese person would really write. More on katakana and names
