I understand surnames and given names usually have some reason for existing,
and have existed for several years. My question, I guess, really is: if
someone were making up a completely different name for themselves and wanted
to use kanji in their surname (or given name) could they use any combination
of sounds (and any of their corresponding kanji) and still get a
comprehensible name?

For instance, in English, I could say that Schterice is a name, but it really
wouldn't make any sense and most people would think it was strange. It had no
history and doesn't really seem to stem from any known names. Still, it would
still be a valid name, yes? I would like to know if the same would apply to
Japanese names?

It seems like a really strange question, but I am confused. Please and thank
you, in advance.
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2013-04-07T23:42:25.890
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kanji names
Is there some way that a Japanese (sur)name must be written for it to make sense?
It's not immediately obvious to me what it means for a name to "make sense" or
be "comprehensible" in this context. If I told you that my name was Schterice,
you would probably believe me, and likely wouldn't think it any odder than any
other unfamiliar name you've heard in the past.

I think what you want to know is **if any combination of Japanese sounds could
theoretically be a name,** and the answer is **yes,** as the characters
approved for names include not only the 常用 kanji and the 人名用 kanji, they
include both _katakana_ and _hiragana_ (which essentially encompass all
Japanese sounds).

If that's not what you want to know, I suggest you reword your question to
clarify what you mean.
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2013-04-08T23:55:38.963
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In Japanese law, **any** of the approved kanji can be used in a surname in
**any** order, and **any** reading can be ascribed to them. This sounds like a
recipe for disaster, until you bear in mind that Japanese law doesn't allow
you to change your name arbitrarily, so in practice, most names are very
traditional.

There is one exception to this: foreigners. If your name is say, Robinson, you
would be perfectly entitled to choose some arbitrary kanji for your name (say,
山田 -- a very common surname) but instruct everybody to read it as "ロビンソン" (a
Japanized pronunciation of "Robinson"). But you'd struggle to open a bank
account....
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