Lorenzo
ロレンソ
Rorenso
How It Is Said
- ロro
- レre
- ンn
- ソso
Rorenso: 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish | ロレンソ | Rorenso | |
| Italian | ロレンツォ | Rorentso |
What Happens to the Sounds
- In Spanish, z and c before e or i are said s in Latin America (th in much of Spain); Japanese writes them with the s row: ソ (so).
- Japanese has one sound where English has two, l and r: a light tap of the tongue, written ラ リ ル レ ロ. So the l and the r of Lorenzo sound alike: ロ (ro), レ (re).
- ン is a humming n, and it counts as a beat of its own.
- Italian z is said ts: ツォ (tso); so in Italian, Lorenzo is ロレンツォ (Rorentso).
To Type It
On a computer with Japanese input switched on, type rorennso (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 ロレンソ 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
