How to write River in katakana
Japanese writes foreign names in katakana, one of its two alphabets, by sound rather than by spelling. River becomes リバー, made of these parts:
| Katakana | Sound | Note |
|---|---|---|
| リ | ri | |
| バ | ba | |
| ー | – | long vowel mark: hold the sound before it a little longer |
You may also see River written リヴァー (Rivā). Both are used; リバー is the more common spelling.
When you write a full name, Japanese puts a middle dot between the first and last name, for example リバー・スミス for River Smith.