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Shōbu
While I was looking through Bun'ei Tsunoda's book 'Nihon no joseimei: rekishiteki tenbo' two months back, I found this very uncommon name in the section regarding female names from the early part of the Edo period (1603-1868).
It was written as しやうぶ or 志やうぶ (shiyaubu) since, back then, しょう (shō) was written as しやう, しよう, せう or せふ, but I would assume that, in kanji, it would have been written as 菖蒲 (Japanese iris).One final note on this, this name is pronounced sho:-buu (or boo).Anyway, WDYT?My PNL: http://www.behindthename.com/pnl/149249
My blog: https://maybeitisdaijirou.wordpress.com
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The only kanji I think of when I hear "shobu" is 勝負. So, it doesn't sound feminine to me at all. Maybe masculine, but I'm not sure how I would feel meeting a Shobu-kun either..
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I don't like it as a female name, as it looks and sounds more masculine to me. However, the meaning is feminine.
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