Girl name · Japanese
Sumire
Name meaning, origin and popularity
: violetSumire is a girl's name that comes from Japanese and means "violet". It is used in Japanese.
- Meaning
- Violet
- Origin
- Japanese
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- soo-MEE-reh
Meaning and origin of Sumire
As a girl's name, Sumire comes from Japanese and means "violet". It is used in Japanese.
Say it soo-MEE-reh. Respellings are a guide; accents vary by region.
Its meaning puts Sumire on our names that mean flower list.
Meanings come from published name dictionaries, led by Behind the Name. How we research names
How to write Sumire in Japanese
In hiragana, Sumire is すみれ. In kanji it can be written several ways, and each choice gives the name its own meaning. These are spellings used for the name, with what each kanji means.
| Kanji | Reading | What the kanji mean |
|---|---|---|
| 菫 | すみれ | 菫 violet |
| 寿美礼 | すみれ | 寿 long life + 美 beauty, beautiful + 礼 courtesy, bow |
Kanji and readings from the JMnedict and KANJIDIC2 dictionaries (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0), checked by our editors.
Sumire on Nomezo lists
What our editors wrote about Sumire on 3 lists.
“菫: violet. Say soo-mee-reh”
From Anime girl names, anime girl names that mean flower
“Violet (depends on characters); Japanese 菫. Say soo-MEE-reh”
From Flower names for girls, japanese flower names
“Violet, the small purple flower of spring.”
From Japanese girl names, japanese flower names for girls
How popular is Sumire?
- Recent US rank
- Fewer than 5 babies in 2025
- Best rank
- #9,743 in 2018
- 11 babies that year
- Babies since 1994
- At least 114
- Years with under 5 are not listed
| 1880s | 0 per million |
|---|---|
| 1890s | 0 per million |
| 1900s | 0 per million |
| 1910s | 0 per million |
| 1920s | 0 per million |
| 1930s | 0 per million |
| 1940s | 0 per million |
| 1950s | 0 per million |
| 1960s | 0 per million |
| 1970s | 0 per million |
| 1980s | 0 per million |
| 1990s | 1 per million |
| 2000s | 1 per million |
| 2010s | 3 per million |
| 2020s | 3 per million |
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #12,756 | #18,142 | #9,743 | #10,395 | #17,233 | #12,075 | #17,465 | – | #12,035 | – |
Source: US Social Security Administration baby-name data, 1880 to 2025, as published in 2026. Each spelling is counted separately, a name given to fewer than 5 babies of one sex in a year is left out, and few people born before 1937 have records, which is why the chart shows babies per million rather than raw counts.
Names spelled like Sumire
One or two letters apart, but from a different root: they look alike without sharing a meaning.
- SamiraCompanion in evening talk (Arabic, girl)
- SubiraPatience (Swahili, girl)
- SukieDiminutive of Susanna, lily (Hebrew, girl)
- SumikoClear, pure child (Japanese, girl)
Names with a similar meaning
- IantheViolet flower (Greek, girl)
- ViolaViolet flower (Latin, girl)
- VioletaViolet (Latin, girl)
- ViolettaViolet flower (Latin, girl)
- BanafshehViolet (Persian, girl)
- BoraPurple, violet (Korean, girl)
- CalfurayViolet flower (Mapudungun, girl)
- IoleViolet (Greek, girl)
- IoneViolet flower (Greek, girl)
- SigalViolet flower (Hebrew, girl)
Middle names for Sumire
Picked from our middle-name lists with a different first letter and a shorter length, so the full name flows.
More girl names from Japanese
- AiLove; indigo (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
- AikoBeloved child (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
- AimiLove and beauty, written 愛美 (Japanese, girl)
- AkaneDeep red, madder (Japanese, girl)
- AkariLamplight (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
- AkemiBright beauty (Japanese, girl)
- AkiSecond and hope, written 亜希 (Japanese, girl)
- AkikoBright child; autumn child (depends on characters) (Japanese, girl)
- AkiraBright, clear (depends on characters) (Japanese, unisex)
- AmaneHeavenly sound (depends on characters) (Japanese, unisex)
Sumire: common questions
What does the name Sumire mean?
Sumire comes from Japanese and means "violet".
Is Sumire a boy or girl name?
Sumire is mainly a girl's name.
Where does the name Sumire come from?
Sumire comes from Japanese and means "violet". Today it is used in Japanese.
How do you pronounce Sumire?
Say soo-MEE-reh. Pronunciation can vary between languages and regions.
How do you write Sumire in Japanese?
Sumire is written すみれ in hiragana. Kanji spellings include 菫 (violet) and 寿美礼 (long life + beauty + courtesy). The kanji parents choose decide what the name means.
What names are similar to Sumire?
Names spelled like Sumire include Samira, Subira, Sukie and Sumiko.
What middle names go with Sumire?
Middle names that flow well with Sumire include Anne, Esme, Iris, Joan and Lark. A different first letter and a contrasting length usually sound best.