Hikari (ひかり)
Hikari is read ひかり and has 3 beats. Our data lists 4 spellings: 光, 光加里, 光莉 and 灯加里. Three are feminine and one works for either gender. Some of them are on our hand-reviewed list of everyday names.
Reading
ひ·か·り (3 beats)
Kanji spellings
4 in our data
Gender
Mostly feminine
Source
Hand-reviewed list of everyday names and JMnedict, the open name dictionary
Kanji spellings of Hikari
One sound can be written with different kanji. Each spelling below is a different name on paper.
- 光ひかりCommonEither gender
Light
- 光加里ひかりFeminine
Light
- 光— light
- 加— chosen for sound
- 里— chosen for sound
- 光莉ひかりFeminine
Light
- 光(ひか)— light
- 莉(り)— chosen for sound
- 灯加里ひかりFeminine
Lamp
- 灯(ひ)— lamp
- 加(か)— chosen for sound
- 里(り)— chosen for sound
The kanji in Hikari
What each kanji means on its own, and in how many of the spellings above it appears.
- 光light3 spellings
- 加chosen for sound2 spellings
- 里chosen for sound2 spellings
- 莉chosen for sound1 spelling
- 灯lamp1 spelling
Hikari with common surnames
Full names with a different spelling and surname on each card. Tap a card for the kanji breakdown.
Names that sound similar
Names that start or end with the same sounds.
Other names that use 光 (light)
Hikari on our lists
Topic pages that include a spelling of this name.
Questions about Hikari
Is Hikari a boy's or a girl's name?
It depends on the spelling: 光 works for either gender, 光加里 is feminine, 光莉 is feminine and 灯加里 is feminine.
What does Hikari mean?
Hikari is a sound, so the meaning comes from the kanji: 光 reads as "light", 光加里 reads as "light" and 光莉 reads as "light". Those come from what each kanji means by itself, and parents may have had a fuller picture in mind.
How many ways can Hikari be written in kanji?
Our data lists 4: 光, 光加里, 光莉 and 灯加里. Other spellings exist, so ask how a person writes their own name before you write it for them.
How do you pronounce Hikari?
ひかり is 3 beats: ひ · か · り. Give every beat the same length and keep vowels short and clear; Japanese has no stressed syllable the way English does.
Where this comes from
The spellings are from our hand-reviewed list of everyday names and from JMnedict, the open Japanese name dictionary. Meanings are built from what each kanji means on its own, so they describe the characters, not what a particular family had in mind.
How we check names · Content last reviewed: 2026-11-08.
Want a full name to go with it? Pick a style and generate a few.
Open the name generator