Umi (うみ)

Umi is read うみ and has 2 beats. Our data lists 2 spellings: 海 and 宇美. One is feminine and one works for either gender. Some of them are on our hand-reviewed list of everyday names.

Reading

う·み (2 beats)

Kanji spellings

2 in our data

Gender

Depends on the spelling

Source

Hand-reviewed list of everyday names and JMnedict, the open name dictionary

Kanji spellings of Umi

One sound can be written with different kanji. Each spelling below is a different name on paper.

  • 海
    うみ
    CommonEither gender

    Sea

  • 宇美
    うみ
    Feminine

    Universe + beauty

    • 宇(う)— universe
    • 美(み)— beauty

The kanji in Umi

What each kanji means on its own, and in how many of the spellings above it appears.

  • 海sea1 spelling
  • 宇universe1 spelling
  • 美beauty1 spelling

Umi 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.

Uta (うた)Ume (うめ)Uran (うらん)Urara (うらら)

Umi on our lists

Topic pages that include a spelling of this name.

Mythical Japanese NamesNames From Japanese MythologyUnisex Japanese Names3 Letter Japanese NamesJapanese Names in KatakanaShort Japanese Names

Questions about Umi

Is Umi a boy's or a girl's name?

It depends on the spelling: 海 works for either gender and 宇美 is feminine.

What does Umi mean?

Umi is a sound, so the meaning comes from the kanji: 海 reads as "sea" and 宇美 reads as "universe + beauty". Those come from what each kanji means by itself, and parents may have had a fuller picture in mind.

How many ways can Umi be written in kanji?

Our data lists 2: 海 and 宇美. Other spellings exist, so ask how a person writes their own name before you write it for them.

How do you pronounce Umi?

うみ is 2 beats: う · み. 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