Ben Bullock wrote:
> 
> "Martin Beutler" <martin.beutler@ulmslabo.de> wrote in message 
> news:DJ9Qe.72$6_5.54@news1.dion.ne.jp...
> 
>> Kira Yamato wrote:
>>
>>> As far as I know, all Japanese have their family names in Kanji.  
>>> However,
>>> for first names, both Hiragana and Katakana are used too.
>>>
>>> Even so, most Japanese have Kanji first names, while some women (about
>>> 5% according to my parents) have Hiragana first names.  Foreign names 
>>> are
>>> almost always in Katakana.
>>>
>>> What I'm asking here is this: How popular are first names given in
>>> Hiragana and Katakana for boys in Japan?
>>>
>>> Does anyone know?
>>> Thanks.
>>>
>>> -kira
>>
>>
>>
>> Here in Tokyo I have seen first names in Hiragana of men,
>> which are on posters of candidates for election  but those
>> are not their real names.
> 
> 
> Not just first names. Our representative in Ibaraki is にわ ゆうや. But 
> they are the real names, just written in hiragana. I'm not sure what the 
> kanjis for "Niwa Yuuya" are, I think it is 丹羽 perhaps? I don't know 
> the kanjis for "Yuuya" at all.
> 
>> According to a girl friend of mine, it would be unpopular to
>> give first names in Hiragana and Katakana for boys because
>> those are just for girls.
> 
> 
> I don't know any Japanese men with names in hiragana or katakana. I 
> suppose this topic of writing names in hiragana/katakana comes up rather 
> frequently here. One lady I know called her daughter ユカ because she 
> was worried her daughter would be brain-damaged due to a difficult 
> birth. Fortunately she was OK, but that is another possible reason which 
> might apply to boys too.
> 

I hear it often happens when boys are given a name in kanji that is
either too long or too hard to write.

They write it in hiragana in everyday life because it's faster and more
convenient, but they have and use the kanji when they fill out official
forms or on their business cards.

As for the few boys with only hiragana names, it seems sometimes parents
give their kids a name that's nice but too common so they write it in
just hiragana instead of the used-off kanji for it.
The only example I kind think of is Takashi, 'cause I have a friend
called Takashi with only hiragana.

Does someone have other examples ?