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Evidence-led referenceJapanese names, readings and kanji
japanesenameatlas.infoJapanese name reference
Canonical reference record
JMnedict-backedKANJIDIC2 character context
Japanese given name

Sei

セイ

Given-name classification varies across source records.

せいセイSei
Compare spellings
Reference coverage

Extended source depth

This reading group has a comparatively broad dictionary footprint across source-recorded spellings or records. The counts describe corpus coverage, not real-world popularity.

Distinct recorded spellings38

group-level written forms

Source spelling/reading rows38

records contributing to this reading group

Coverage levelExtended

based only on the imported source footprint

Pronunciation & romanization

How to read Sei

The kana reading is source-recorded. Romanization and mora segmentation are deterministic reading aids generated from that kana; pitch accent is not inferred.

Source readingせい

Normalized to hiragana for comparison.

Katakana formセイ

The same reading converted to katakana.

RomanizationSei

Macron-style display. Vowel-sequence form: Sei. Personal spelling and true vowel boundaries can differ.

Mora segmentationせ · い

2 morae in this reading. Small ゃ/ゅ/ょ-type kana join the preceding mora.

Audio note: the play button uses Japanese text-to-speech provided by the visitor’s browser/device. It is a convenience preview, not a recorded native-speaker pronunciation or pitch-accent authority.

Meaning by written form

What can Sei mean?

A Japanese name can be written in more than one way, and its meaning can change with the kanji used. Rather than assigning one English meaning to “Sei”, this page explains each recorded spelling separately.

Kanji spellings11

character meanings available

Kana-only spellings1

no kanji meaning attached

InterpretationBy spelling

based on the exact written form

Kana-only spelling

セイ

This spelling is written only in kana. Because it contains no kanji, there is no kanji meaning to interpret here. The kana record the name’s sound; any personal or cultural meaning would depend on context not supplied by the dictionary.

Characters and loaded glosses
セKana characterイKana character
Kanji spelling

世

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Characters and loaded glosses
Kanji spelling

世唯

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Kanji spelling

勢

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Characters and loaded glosses
Kanji spelling

勢井

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Kanji spelling

声

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Characters and loaded glosses
Kanji spelling

征

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Kanji spelling

惺

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Characters and loaded glosses
Kanji spelling

成

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Characters and loaded glosses
Kanji spelling

政

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Characters and loaded glosses
Kanji spelling

整

These are dictionary meanings for the kanji used in this spelling. Together they can suggest associations, but they do not establish one fixed English translation or a particular person’s naming intent.

Characters and loaded glosses

Showing meaning context for the first 12 distinct written forms out of 38. The recorded-spellings section below retains the wider source set.

How to read these meanings

The English words shown here are dictionary meanings of individual kanji. They help explain what a spelling can suggest, but they are not a guaranteed translation of the full name and do not establish why a particular person was given that name.

Reading profile

How Sei is represented

These counts describe records in the imported name corpus. They are not a ranking of how popular a spelling is among people in Japan.

Recorded kana readings2

せい · セイ

Kanji-based spellings37

among the forms analyzed on this page

Kana characters2

in the primary dictionary reading

Morae2

small ゃ/ゅ/ょ-type kana combine with the preceding mora

Kana-only1

recorded spelling

1-kanji forms26

recorded spellings

2-kanji forms11

recorded spellings

JMnedict classification evidence

How this reading is classified in the source corpus

This separates dictionary classification from popularity. The same exact kana reading can be recorded as a given name, a surname, or both, and given-name records can carry male, female or unspecified source labels.

Primary reading recorded asGiven name + surname

せい in the imported JMnedict corpus

Given-name written forms39

39 source spelling/reading rows

Surname written forms16

16 source spelling/reading rows

Given-name labelsfemale 23 · unspecified 16

row counts carrying each JMnedict source label

Exact readingGiven-name evidenceGiven-name labelsSurname evidence
せいSei3939 source rowsfemale 23 · unspecified 16source rows · distinct forms: female 23 · unspecified 161616 source rows
せいSei00 source rows—source rows · distinct forms: —00 source rows

Classification boundary: male/female/unspecified are labels attached to imported JMnedict name records. They are not population shares, probabilities, identity claims, or evidence that a spelling is currently common in Japan. A source row can also be repeated across different written forms, so row counts and distinct-writing counts are shown separately.

JMnedict source text

Source-supplied text attached to Sei records

JMnedict can attach trans_det text to a name-classification block. This may be a Latin spelling, label or descriptor. It is shown only when it adds information beyond this site’s generated romanization.

Written formSource readingJMnedict source text
セイせいSay
セイせいSee

Meaning boundary: this is text supplied by JMnedict for the associated name-classification block. It is not an inferred kanji meaning, a translation of the written characters as a whole, proof of a person’s preferred Latin spelling, or evidence of popularity.

38 source-text items were omitted because they are equivalent to the generated romanization and would add no distinct information.

Spelling anatomy

Corpus structure behind Sei

This section summarizes the exact source-recorded forms loaded for this reading group. Stroke and character-position statistics are descriptive corpus properties, not popularity or style scores.

Kanji forms with complete stroke data37

5–25 strokes observed span

Median total strokes13

among forms with complete KANJIDIC2 stroke data

All-kanji name-classified forms35

all component kanji loaded as jōyō/jinmeiyō classes

Other/unclassified kanji forms2

contains at least one character outside that loaded classification

Reading ambiguity

Can the same writing be read another way?

26 of 38 displayed written forms have more than one given-name reading somewhere in the active JMnedict corpus. This is dictionary-record ambiguity, not a prediction of how a particular person reads the name.

Written forms checked38

distinct spellings displayed on this page

Multiple recorded readings26

exact written forms with 2+ source readings

Single recorded reading12

within this active given-name corpus

Largest reading set27

distinct kana readings for one displayed writing

A reading shown without a link is still source-recorded, but its destination group does not yet meet the reference-depth standard used for the main library. Limited records are not promoted merely to create extra internal links.

Kanji role reference

How recurring characters function across Sei spellings

Position counts are calculated only from the distinct written forms analyzed for this page. KANJIDIC2 nanori are character-level name-reading references; they are not used here to decompose or assert the reading of a specific multi-kanji name.

KanjiCharacter glossesFormsFirstFinalInternalSoloStrokesKANJIDIC2 nanoriLoaded class
衣garment, clothes, dressing505006—Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 4
世generation, world, society320015とし, ゆ, ゆきJōyō · KANJIDIC grade 3
聖holy, saint, sage3200113きよ, さと, さとし, せ +5Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 6
勢forces, energy, military strength2100113せJōyō · KANJIDIC grade 5
星star, spot, dot210019—Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 2
晴clear up2100112はる, はれJōyō · KANJIDIC grade 2
清pure, purify, cleanse2100111あき, さや, し, すが +3Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 4
生life, genuine, birth201015あさ, いき, いく, いけ +21Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 1
誠sincerity, admonish, warn2100113きよ, さと, しげ, とも +4Jōyō · KANJIDIC grade 6
青blue, green210018おJōyō · KANJIDIC grade 1
依reliant, depend on, consequently101008よ, よりJōyō · KANJIDIC grade 8
唯solely, only, merely1010011ゆJōyō · KANJIDIC grade 8

Counts describe this source-recorded spelling set, not population use. A repeated kanji can contribute to more than one position role across different spellings.

Exact writing research map

Move from a spelling to its readings, characters and literal sequence context

These relationships are exact and source-backed. Whole-name readings shown in each card come from JMnedict within the current name class; exact-writing search can surface records from other name classes. Character links open KANJIDIC2-backed kanji pages. Sequence context means the same kanji string occurs contiguously in another recorded written form—it does not prove shared origin or meaning.

Exact written form

セイ

Source-recorded full-name readings in this name class
Seiせい · this page
Characters in order
セKanaイKana

Showing research maps for the first 10 distinct written forms out of 38. Every detailed spelling card below still links to exact-writing search and its component kanji.

Corpus pattern

Kanji recurring across Sei spellings

Only characters appearing in at least two distinct analyzed spellings are shown here. Frequency describes this source-recorded spelling set, not real-world baby-name popularity.

Same reading, different writing

Explore written forms of Sei

38 source-recorded forms use the primary source reading せい. Other source readings can appear in this romanized group when the imported records converge on the same index form. Use Compare to inspect exact spellings side by side.

セイ

セイ · Sei

Katakana セイMorae 2Strokes —

This written form uses kana rather than kanji, so there are no character-level kanji glosses to combine.

声

せい · Sei

Katakana セイMorae 2Strokes 7
Same writing, other recorded reading

Exact written-form relationship inside the imported given-name corpus.

旌

せい · Sei

Katakana セイMorae 2Strokes 11

菁

せい · Sei

Katakana セイMorae 2Strokes 11
Spelling comparator

Compare Sei forms side by side

Each exact written spelling appears once in this table even when JMnedict records more than one reading for that writing. Stroke totals and character glosses come from KANJIDIC2 when all component kanji are available.

SpellingOne source readingCharacter-level glossesTotal strokesLoaded character class
セイセイKana-only spelling—Kana spelling
世せい世 — generation, world5All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
世依せい世 — generation, world · 依 — reliant, depend on13All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
世唯せい世 — generation, world · 唯 — solely, only16All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
勢せい勢 — forces, energy13All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
勢井せい勢 — forces, energy · 井 — well, well crib17All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
声せい声 — voice7All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
征せい征 — subjugate, attack the rebellious8All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
惺せい惺 — realize12All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
成せい成 — turn into, become6All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
政せい政 — politics, government9All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
整せい整 — organize, arranging16All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
斉せい斉 — adjusted, alike8All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
旌せい旌 — flag, praise11Includes unclassified/outside loaded jōyō-jinmeiyō class
星せい星 — star, spot9All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified
星衣せい星 — star, spot · 衣 — garment, clothes15All kanji jōyō/jinmeiyō-classified

The comparison table shows the first 16 distinct written forms; the detailed cards above show up to 80 spelling/reading records.

What does Sei mean?

There is not necessarily one fixed English meaning. The reading identifies the spoken name; different written forms can use different kanji. Character glosses describe individual kanji and should not be treated as proof of the intention behind a particular person’s name.

Related readings

More names beginning with せい

Related by the opening kana of the dictionary reading. This is a deterministic browsing relationship, not a claim that the names share the same meaning.

Shared-kanji relationships

Other names sharing kanji with Sei

These links are calculated from exact characters appearing in source-recorded spellings on this page. Sharing a kanji does not mean two names have the same reading, origin, gender or intended meaning.

Given-name relationship

Seiko

世勢星晴清生聖衣誠青

10 shared kanji · 38 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seira

世星晴清生聖衣誠青

9 shared kanji · 62 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seiji

世勢星晴清生聖誠青

9 shared kanji · 60 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Kōsei

世勢星晴清生聖誠青

9 shared kanji · 47 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seina

世星晴清生聖衣誠青

9 shared kanji · 36 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seiki

世勢星晴清生聖誠青

9 shared kanji · 32 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seizō

世勢星晴清生聖誠青

9 shared kanji · 16 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seika

世星晴清生聖衣青

8 shared kanji · 53 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seijirō

勢星晴清生聖誠青

8 shared kanji · 25 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Issei

世勢星晴清生誠青

8 shared kanji · 11 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Sena

世勢星晴生聖青

7 shared kanji · 40 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Given-name relationship

Seīchirō

勢星晴清生聖誠

7 shared kanji · 38 matching source-recorded spellings

Inspect name →
Continue research

Where to go next from Sei

Use literal reading, character and corpus relationships to continue without treating nearby records as automatically related.

Evidence on this page

What each source establishes

JMnedict establishes recorded written forms, readings and name classifications; where safely associated, this page can also show JMnedict-supplied trans_det source text without treating it as a whole-name meaning. KANJIDIC2 supplies character readings, nanori, stroke counts, grade classes and English character glosses. The Ministry of Justice remains the official reference for Japanese child-name character rules. The Agency for Cultural Affairs romanization guidance is the reference for generated Latin-script reading aids.

Source boundary

The spelling-frequency and structural counts on this page are calculated from imported JMnedict records. They are corpus counts, not population-frequency claims. KANJIDIC2 supplies the kanji metadata used in character and stroke comparisons.

Review sources →