Martin
マーティン
Mātin
How It Is Said
- マma
- ーa
- ティti
- ンn
Mātin: 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | マーティン | Mātin | |
| German | マルティン | Marutin | |
| French | マルタン | Marutan | |
| Spanish (Martín) | マルティン | Marutin |
What Happens to the Sounds
- An r after a vowel is not said in British English, and Japanese writes the vowel long instead: マー (mā).
- A small kana joins the one before it into one beat: ティ (ti).
- ン is a humming n, and it counts as a beat of its own.
- In German and Spanish, an r before a consonant is said, so it is written ル (ru): マルティン; so in German and Spanish, Martin is マルティン (Marutin).
- French nasal vowels are written with ン (n): マルタン; so in French, Martin is マルタン (Marutan).
To Type It
On a computer with Japanese input switched on, type ma-thinn (the - key gives the bar ー and 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 マーティン among the suggestions.
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
