Hiro (given name)

{{Infobox given name

| name = Hiro

| image =

| image_size =

| caption =

| pronunciation = Hi-ro, Hee-ro, multiple pronunciations

| gender = Male / Female

| meaning = Multiple meanings depending on the kanji, language and culture, diamond (Sindhi), hero (paronym)

| region =

| language = Japanese, Sindhi, Tahitian, Rapa Nui, Spanish

| origin = Japan, Polynesia, India, Pakistan, South Asia, Latin America

| alternative spelling =

| nickname =

| variant forms = Hiroo, Hiiro, Heero, Hira

| related names = Hiroshi, Hiroaki, Hiroki, Hirooki, Hiroko, Hiroka, Hiromi, Hirok (Hirock), Hero, Iro, Hiero, Hieron, Chairo, Chiro, Hairo, Herodotus

| name day =

| derived =

| popularity =

| footnotes =

| wikt =

}}

Hiro is a given name with various origins. It is of Japanese, Polynesian, Indian, Pakistani and Spanish origin. It has multiple meanings depending on the cultures.

Background

The Japanese given name {{Nihongo|Hiro|ひろ, ヒロ}} has multiple meanings, dependent on the characters used. The kanji 裕 means "abundant". 寛 means "generous, tolerant" and 浩 means "prosperous".{{cite web |title=Male Japanese Names |website=20,000 Names |url=http://www.20knames.com/male_japanese_names.htm |date=June 1, 2016 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624031439/http://www.20knames.com/male_japanese_names.htm |archive-date=June 24, 2016}} It is a unisex name in Japanese, but predominantly used by males.

The Polynesian masculine given name Hiro originates from Tahitian and Polynesian mythology. Hiro is a rain deity in Rapa Nui mythology. It also means hero and trickster. The highest mountain on Raivavae island is named Mont Hiro.

Hiro is also an Indian and Pakistani masculine given name.{{cite web |title=Structure of Sindhi Language |location=India Mysore |website=Central Institute of Indian Languages |date=April 21, 2024 |url=http://lisindia.ciil.org/Sindhi/sindhi_struct.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241028182548/http://lisindia.ciil.org/Sindhi/sindhi_struct.html |archive-date=28 October 2024}} Its originally from the Sindhi language and means diamond.{{cite book|title=Sindhi Roots & Rituals - Part 2|last1=Harjani|first1=Dayal N.|year=2018|edition=1st|publisher=Lightning Source Inc|location=La Vergne, Tennessee|isbn=978-1642494792|page=258}} It came from the province of Sindh along the Indus River Delta. It is generally in the South Asian countries of India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan. A related feminine given name is Hira in Sanskrit.

The Spanish masculine name Hiro is a variant form of Chairo, Chiro and Hairo.{{cite web |title= Hiro baby name |website=The Bump |date=October 16, 2023 |url=https://www.thebump.com/b/hiro-baby-name |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016132006/https://www.thebump.com/b/hiro-baby-name |archive-date=October 16, 2023}}{{cite web |date=10 October 2022 |title=Hiro |url=http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/1/Hiro |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211203073910/http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/1/Hiro |archive-date=December 3, 2021 |website=Think Baby Names}} It means "sacred name". It comes from a habitational place name in La Rioja from the root faro which means “beacon.”{{Cite web |last=McNamara |first=Emily |date=8 November 2024 |title=Hiro |url=https://www.thebump.com/b/hiro-baby-name |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241114183400/https://www.thebump.com/b/hiro-baby-name#selection-3969.403-3969.412 |archive-date=14 November 2024 |access-date=14 Nov 2024 |website=The Bump}}

Related given names are Hero, Iro and Hiero (Hieron) which have Ancient Greek origin.{{Cite web|url=http://www.behindthename.com/name/iro |title = Meaning, origin and history of the name Iro |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213081342/http://www.behindthename.com/name/iro |archive-date=February 13, 2023}}{{Cite web |date=1962 |title=The Rise of Hiero II |url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Plb.+1.8 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241028191043/https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Plb.+1.8 |archive-date=28 October 2024 |website=Perseus (from: Histories. Polybius. Evelyn S. Shuckburgh. translator. London, New York. Macmillan. 1889. Reprint Bloomington 1962.)}} Hiro is a wordplay and paronym of hero.{{cite web |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/far-flung-correspondents/hiro-versus-hero-big-hero-6-and-the-trouble-with-translation |title=Hiro versus Hero: "Big Hero 6" and the trouble with translation |website=Roger Ebert |author=Jana Monji |date=November 5, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230602051842/https://www.rogerebert.com/far-flung-correspondents/hiro-versus-hero-big-hero-6-and-the-trouble-with-translation |archive-date=June 2, 2023}}

People with the name

Notable people with the name include:

{{Nihongo|Hiro Arikawa|有川浩||born 1972}}, a female Japanese light novelist
{{Nihongo|Hiro Yamagata (artist)|山形博導||born 1948}}, Japanese painter/artist
{{Nihongo|Hiro (music producer) |ヒロ||born 1985}}, Japanese music producer (writer of Kumi Koda's "Taboo")
Hiro (photographer) (1930–2021), American fashion photographer
{{Nihongo|Hiroko Shimabukuro |島袋寛子||born 1984}}, Japanese musician with the stage name Hiro
{{Nihongo|Hiro Mashima|真島ヒロ||born 1977}}, Japanese manga artist and the creator of Rave Master and "Fairy Tail", among other manga
{{Nihongo|Hiro Matsushita|松下弘幸||born 1961}}, Japanese businessman and former racing driver
Hiro Murai (born 1983), American filmmaker
{{Nihongo|Hiro Muramoto|村本博之||born 1977–2010}}, Japanese cameraman and journalist slain during the 2010 Thai political protests
{{Nihongo|Hiro Narita|ヒロ・ナリタ||1941}}, American cinematographer
{{Nihongo|Hiro Fujiwara|藤原ヒロ||born 1981}}, Japanese manga artist, once active under her previous pen name, Izumi Hiro
{{Nihongo|Hiro Mizushima|水嶋ヒロ||born 1984}}, Japanese model and actor
{{Nihongo|Hiro Saga|嵯峨浩||born 1914–1987}}, a Japanese noblewoman and memoir writer
{{Nihongo|Hiro Sasaki|ひろささき||born 1950}}, a professional wrestler
{{Nihongo|Hiro Saito|ヒロ斉藤|born 1961}}, a Japanese professional wrestler
{{Nihongo|Hiro Suzuhira|鈴平ひろ|born 1978}}, Japanese manga artist, character designer and illustrator
{{Nihongo|Hiro Shimono|下野紘||born 1980}}, Japanese voice actor and singer
{{Nihongo|Hiro Kanagawa|金川弘敦||born 1963}}, Japanese-Canadian actor and playwright
{{Nihongo|Hiroki Moriuchi|森内寛樹||born 1994}}, Japanese singer and vocalist from MY FIRST STORY with the stage name Hiro
{{Nihongo|Hiroshi Kawaguchi|川口博史||born 1965}}, Japanese video game composer and keyboardist, aka Master Hiro
{{Nihongo|Hiro Takahashi|高橋ひろ||1964–2005}}, Japanese singer, lyricist, and composer, best known for Yu Yu Hakusho ending themes, "Unbalance na Kiss o Shite" and "Taiyō ga Mata Kagayaku Toki"
{{Nihongo|Hiro Yamamoto|山本紘||born 1961}}, American musician and co-founder of the Grammy Award-winning rock band Soundgarden
Hiro Poroiae (born 1986), Tahitian footballer
{{Nihongo|Hiro Sachiya|ひろさちや||born 1936}}, a Japanese religious scholar and writer of Buddhism
{{Nihongo|Hiro Ohashi|大橋廣||born 1882}}, a Japanese botanist
{{Nihongo|Hiro Yūki|優希比呂|born 1965}}, Japanese voice actor
{{Nihongo|Hiro Ozawa|小澤寛|born 1998}}, Japanese footballer
Hiro Peralta (born 1994), is a Filipino actor
{{Nihongo|Hiro Matsuda|小島泰弘|born 1937}}, a Japanese wrestler and trainer
{{Nihongo|Hiro Fujikake|藤掛廣幸|born 1949}}, a Japanese composer, conductor and synthesizer player.
Hiro Ando (born 1973), a Japanese contemporary artist
{{Nihongo|Hiroyuki Igarashi|五十嵐広行||born 1969}}, Japanese dancer and producer known as Hiro, leader of Exile
{{Nihongo|Hiromitsu-Aoki|青木裕光|Born 1980|}}, popularly known by his stage name Hiro-X
Hiro Badlani (born 1934), Indian ophthalmologist and Hindu author{{Cite web |last=Badlani |first=Hiro |date=29 May 2009 |title=Dr. Hiro G. Badlani’s mini-encyclopedia on Hinduism |url=http://hinduismpath.com/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231003145104/http://hinduismpath.com/ |archive-date=3 October 2023 |website=Hinduism Path}}
Hiro Thakur (born 1943), Indian journalist, research scholar and poet{{Cite web |date=28 April 2021 |title=Hiro Thakur |url=https://thesindhuworld.com/hiro-thakur/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241023181556/https://thesindhuworld.com/hiro-thakur/ |archive-date=23 October 2024 |access-date=23 October 2024 |website=The Sindhu World}}

Fictional characters

Hiro Nakamura, a character in the American television series Heroes with the ability to time-travel
Hiro Hiyorimi, main protagonist of the series Princess Resurrection
Hiro Granger, a character in the Beyblade series
Hiro, a Hero Templates DS Version Marionette/Wooden mannequin Character in Isaac the Nintendo title, similar to the Golden Sun from Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter.
Hiro Protagonist, a character in the science fiction novel Snow Crash
Hiro Sohma, a character in the Fruits Basket anime and manga series
Hiro, a character from the video game Bust a Groove
Hiro, a character from the Hidamari Sketch comic strip
Hiro, the main character in Lunar: Eternal Blue video game
Hiro, a character in Ginga Densetsu Weed series
Hiiro, also known as Nora, a major supporting character in the manga/anime series Noragami.
Hiro Sakurai, a main character in the Original English-language manga Miki Falls
Hiro, a Japanese steam engine character from the Thomas and Friends special "Hero of the Rails"
Hiro Fuse, a character from Scott Westerfeld's book, "Extras", of the Uglies series
Hiro the Mini Ninja, a player character in Mini Ninjas video game
Hiro Miyamoto, a swordmaster and protagonist in the game Daikatana
Heero Yuy (ヒロ・ユイ, Hiro Yui), Pilot of the Zero suit and a main character in Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
Hiro Oozora, a character from Little Battlers Experience W, one of the three protagonists.
Hiro, one of the giant ninja toads from Mount Myoboku from the anime and manga series, Naruto.
Hiro Takachiho, Marvel character from the superhero team Big Hero 6. He was renamed Hiro Hamada in the 2014 Disney film adaptation.
Hiro, a character from the anime Darling in the Franxx.
Hiro, one of the instructors in the video game Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm and Exercise.
Hiro Amanokawa, the main character of Digimon Ghost Game
Hiro-Kala, a fictional supervillain in Marvel Comics
Hiro Okamura, a teenage mechanical genius from Japan first appeared as the Toyman in Superman (vol. 2) #177
Hiro Okuiri, a character from the anime Inazuma Eleven: Ares
Hiro Segawa, a character from the manga A Couple of Cuckoos
Hiro Shinosawa, a character from the game Gakuen Idolmaster
Hiiro Kagami, a character in the tokusatsu series Kamen Rider Ex-Aid
Hiiro Amagi, a character from the rhythm game Ensemble Stars!!

Mythology

Hiro is the god of thieves in Tahiti mythology, and a demigod in Polynesian mythology. {{cite web |title=Documentary Research in Polynesian Mythology |author=Katharine Luomala, Ph.D. |url=https://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_49_1940/Volume_49%2C_No._194/Research_in_Polynesian_mythology_by_Katharine_Luomala%2C_p_175-196/p1 |date=1940-01-01 |publisher=Journal of the Polynesian Society |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180210082141/https://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_49_1940/Volume_49%2C_No._194/Research_in_Polynesian_mythology_by_Katharine_Luomala%2C_p_175-196/p1 |archive-date=February 10, 2018}} He was the first builder of large canoes with planks sewn together called pahi.{{cite web |website=University of Hawaiʻi |title=Hiro, Teuira Henry |date=October 26, 2011 |url=http://www2.hawaii.edu/~dennisk/voyaging_chiefs/hiro.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211104191216/http://www2.hawaii.edu/~dennisk/voyaging_chiefs/hiro.html |archive-date=November 4, 2021}}
In Rapa Nui mythology, Hiro is an ancient rain deity. There is a stone aerophone on Easter Island called Pu o Hiro.{{cite web |title=Pu o Hiro, the trumpet of Hiro |website=Imagina Rapa Nui Easter Island |url=https://imaginarapanui.com/en/easter-island-sightseeing/easter-island-archaeology/pu-o-hiro/ |date=October 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402034320/https://imaginarapanui.com/en/easter-island-sightseeing/easter-island-archaeology/pu-o-hiro/ |archive-date=April 2, 2023}} It was used for fertility rituals and to call the rain deity during drought.