How to write Stephen in katakana
Japanese writes foreign names in katakana, one of its two alphabets, by sound rather than by spelling. Stephen becomes スティーブン, made of these parts:
| Katakana | Sound | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ス | su | |
| ティ | ti | two characters read as one sound |
| ー | – | long vowel mark: hold the sound before it a little longer |
| ブ | bu | |
| ン | n | n on its own |
You may also see Stephen written スティーヴン (Sutīvun). Both are used; スティーブン is the more common spelling.
When you write a full name, Japanese puts a middle dot between the first and last name, for example スティーブン・スミス for Stephen Smith.