Ichirō

Ichirō is the quintessential firstborn-son name in Japan, the ichi literally meaning one and rō denoting son or young man. For a generation of baseball fans worldwide, the name belongs to Ichirō Suzuki, the Seattle Mariners outfielder who reshaped what a Japanese player could do in the American major leagues. The long o at the end gives the name a deliberate, confident close, almost a bow. Written with classical kanji, it carries a faintly old-fashioned air in contemporary Japan, the way Herbert or Walter might sound in English. Traditional, proud, and distinctly gendered. A family name in the making.