As a foreigner to Japanese culture and language, I find this name adorable. It's funny though, because back when I was around 10 years old I used to make a LOT of French/Japanese anime-like characters, and my favorite character I have today I gave the name Hanako because it's cute. I would either pull names out of my memory from media/games, or pick a random one I liked the sound of. Now that I'm older though I realize that the name is- strange, and when creating characters I often do far more research into names that aren't from my native language. I am not going to change Hanako's name though especially since my story is insignificant to those who aren't English, but take this as a lesson to be careful of what names you give your characters with cultures that are not your own!
I created an account just to say this! Hanako is not a masculine name! I know about the anime, I know one of the character's names is Hanako and is male. That anime is based off a Japanese creepypasta, similar to bloody Mary. It is a girl named Hanako that roams the toilets. Hanako is a feminine name no matter any circumstances, and any name that ends with "ko" is feminine, with a few exceptions like Imoko. As a Japanese, I am saying facts and if I asked random Japanese people, they would all say it is a feminine name. Please do not name a male Hanako, unless it is for the anime. They could have named him something less confusing and masculine like Hanato or something, but please do not think Hanako is a male name! Thank you.
Have you guys seen the anime called tbhk/jbhk toilet bound Hanako kun? It's a very good anime I fell in love with Hanako, he's hot, btw and the show is great but when you read the manga- some of the chapters had me in tears, tbh.
I love this name for a girl. I love its sound.However, the girl in the toilet story is very unsettling, so...I probably wouldn't use it. I do wish that there wasn't that story, because I really love this name. P.S., don't try to summon Hanako, if you try you're an idiot that deserves what comes for you.
Hanako Muraoka is a Japanese translator, known for translating Lucy Maud Montgomery's "Anne of Green Gables" into Japanese.
― Anonymous User 12/12/2018
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Hanako Oku is a pop singer famous in her native Japan for her piano ballads. She rose to fame after performing the end-title track for the Madhouse film The Girl Who Leapt Through Time in 2006.
This name is so out of fashion in Japan it's considered a joke name. It's because of Hanako the toilet ghost - plus "ko" names are old hat now. Plus, it's kind of a stereotypical name for Japanese characters in American media, kinda like Pierre is for French characters. Not totally unusable, but it might be better to skip this one.
A very tacky name in Japanese. Anybody well acquainted with Japanese culture would also recognize "Hanako" as the infamous girl ghost who haunts school toilets for some reason or other. In other words, though the explanation "flower child" sounds pretty, it's really not the smartest of things to name your child.