Save Gender Feminine Usage Japanese Scripts ばにら(Japanese Hiragana) 母似蘭, etc.(Japanese Kanji) Pronounced Pron. BAH-NEE-ṘAH [key] Meaning & History From Japanese 母 (ba) meaning "mother", 似 (ni) meaning "becoming" combined with 蘭 (ra) meaning "orchid". Other kanji combinations are possible.Usage of this name is, most likely, influenced by the word vanilla.