Minami (みなみ; ミナミ; 南, lit. "south") is both a Japanese surname and a feminine Japanese given name (occasionally used for males).
Written forms As a surname, Minami is most frequently written in kanji as , meaning "south". Minami (南) is shared by 100,000+ individuals in Japan. The remaining variants are used by less than 2,000 individuals each and are generally used by related families.
As a given name, Minami may be written as simply "みなみ" and rarely "ミナミ", or it can be written using different kanji characters or a mix of hiragana and kanji to convey different meanings, such as:
People with the surname Akina Minami (南 明奈, born 1989), Japanese gravure idol and tarento Dale Minami (born 1946), Japanese American lawyer Eiko Minami (南 栄子, born 1909), Japanese dancer Haruka Minami (みなみ 遥), Japanese manga artist Haruo Minami (三波 春夫, 1923–2001), Japanese enka singer Hikari Minami (みなみ 飛香, born 1994), Japanese professional wrestler Hiroaki Minami (南 弘明, born 1934), Japanese composer Jirō Minami (南 次郎, 1874–1955), Japanese general and convicted World War II war criminal Kaho Minami (南 果歩, born 1964), Japanese actress Katsuyuki Minami (南 克幸, born 1970), Japanese volleyball player Kunzo Minami (南 薫造, 1883–1950), Japanese painter Moeka Minami (南 萌華, born 1998), Japanese women's footballer Omi Minami (南 央美, born 1968), Japanese voice actress, essayist and columnist Yoshiharu Minami (南 喜陽, 1951–2024), Japanese judoka Yoshikazu Minami (南 芳一, born 1963), Japanese professional shogi player Yoshitaka Minami (南 佳孝, born 1950), Japanese musician Yuta Minami (南 雄太, born 1979), Japanese footballer
People with the given name Women Minami (actress) (美波, born 1986), Japanese actress Minami (singer) (美波, born 1997), Japanese singer , Japanese table tennis player Minami Aoyama (青山 南, born 1985), Japanese pink film actress and AV idol Minami Hamabe (浜辺 美波, born 2000), Japanese actress Minami Hokuto (北都 南), Japanese voice actress Minami Iju (伊集 南, born 1990), Japanese women's basketball player Minami Itahashi (板橋 美波, born 2000), Japanese diver Minami Kato (加藤 美南, born 1999), Japanese idol, singer and former member of NGT48 Minami Kuribayashi (栗林 みな実, born 1976), Japanese singer-songwriter and voice actress Minami Minegishi (峯岸 みなみ, born 1992), Japanese idol and member of AKB48 and no3b Minami Otomo (大友 みなみ, born 1981), Japanese actress and model Minami Ozaki (尾崎 南, born 1968), Japanese manga artist, also known as Ryo Minami (南亮) and Minami Himemuro (姫室ミナミ) Minami Sadamasu (貞升 南, born 1986), Japanese professional shogi player Minami Takahashi (高橋 みなみ, born 1991), Japanese singer, tarento, and former member of AKB48 Minami Takayama (高山 みなみ, born 1964), Japanese voice actress, narrator, singer and composer Minami Tanaka (田中 美海, born 1996), Japanese voice actress Minami Tanaka (announcer) (田中 みな実, born 1986), announcer and tarento Minami Yamanouchi (山ノ内 みなみ, born 1992), Japanese long-distance runner Men Minami Aoyama (青山南, born 1949), male Japanese translator, essayist, American literary researcher, literary critic, picture book writer, real name Shigeru Sugiyama Minami Ichikawa (市川南 (映画プロデューサー), born 1966), male Japanese film producer
Fictional characters As a given name , a character in the manga Jormungand , a character in the Japanese television drama Long Vacation , a character in the Japanese multimedia franchise Lucky Star , a character in the anime series Go! Princess PreCure , a character in the manga and anime series Wake Up, Girls! , a character in manga and anime series Oshi no Ko , a character in the manga Majitora! , a male character in the manga Hana-Kimi , a character in the web novel series The Irregular at Magic High School , a character in the light novel series Baka and Test , a character in the anime series AKB0048 , a character in the manga series Laid-Back Camp
As a surname The Minami (南) sisters (Haruka (春香), Kana (夏奈), and Chiaki (千秋)), characters in the manga series Minami-ke Itsuki Minami (南 樹), a character in the anime and manga series Air Gear Kaori Minami (南 佳織), a character in the Japanese multimedia franchise Battle Royale Ken Minami (美波 ケン), a character in the manga Machine Robo Rescue Kenjirō Minami (南 健次郎), a character in the anime and manga series Yuri on Ice Kohtaro Minami (南 光太郎), a character in the Japanese superhero drama series Kamen Rider Black and Kamen Rider Black RX Kotori Minami (南 ことり), a character in the Japanese multimedia franchise Love Live! School Idol Project Mirei Minami (南 みれぃ), a character in the Japanese multimedia franchise Pripara Rena Minami (水波 レナ), a character in the anime series Puella Magi Madoka Magica Shizuku Minami (南 しずく), a character in the manga Sakura Trick Tsuyoshi Minami (南 烈), a character in the manga Slam Dunk Youichi Minami (南 陽一), a character in the manga Gokusen Yuko Minami (南 夕子), a character in the Japanese superhero drama series Ultraman Ace Yume Minami (南 夢芽), one of the main protagonists of the anime series SSSS.Dynazenon
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