Sarah
サラ
Sara
Also written セーラ.
How It Is Said
- サsa
- ラra
Sara: two 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 | サラ | Sara | the usual form |
| セーラ | Sēra | also in use | |
| German | ザラ | Zara | the usual form |
| ザーラ | Zāra | also in use | |
| French | サラ | Sara |
What Happens to the Sounds
- The Japanese r is a light tap of the tongue, like the quick t in an American "water": ラ (ra).
- In German, an s before a vowel is voiced, like a z: ザ (za); so in German, Sarah is ザラ (Zara).
Abraham's wife Sarah is サラ in the Japanese Bible.
To Type It
On a computer with Japanese input switched on, type sara, 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 サラ 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
