Why are Japanese names written with family-name last in English?
OK, this is what most Japanese think: Why do we need to write our names in English (or romaji)? Because we need to let English-speaking ppl read our names. Then, it goes without saying that the name order should be arranged accordingly. Why do Chinese and Koreans refuse to write their given names first? I guess their family-comes-first consciousness is stronger than that of the Japanese. Japanese really don’t care which comes first as long as it is written in a foreign language. Another reason may be the fact that Chinese and Korean family names are shorter (usually written in one Kanji character) than that of the Japanese (usually written in two or three characters). Phonetic-wise, it may be more natural for Chinese and Koreans to call their names in one breath as if they are inseparable — this is just my guess. On the other hand, Japanese names are longer and harder to pronounce without placing a “short break” between the two (at least on conscious level) which makes them less “rebe
