Tove
トーヴェ
Tōve
Also written トーベ.
How It Is Said
- トto
- ーo
- ヴェve
Tōve: three 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swedish | トーヴェ | Tōve | the usual form |
| トーベ | Tōbe | also in use |
What Happens to the Sounds
- In Swedish, a final e is said: ヴェ (ve).
- 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, トーヴェ and トーベ.
- The bar ー makes the vowel before it long, one beat more: トー (tō).
Tove Jansson, who created the Moomins, is トーベ・ヤンソン in Japan, where the Moomins are much loved.
To Type It
On a computer with Japanese input switched on, type to-ve (the - key gives the bar ー), 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 トーヴェ 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
