How can I tell if a name is meant to be masculine?


Would Kōsui be considered a male’s name?




Names in Japanese are considered to be male or female mainly by tradition and
customs, there isn't a rule that dictates that. But you can "guess" based on
what usually happens regarding a name being masculine or feminine.

Masculine names usually finish with hiko(彦), rou(郎), o(男,夫,雄), to(人,斗), ta(太)
or suke(助,介).

Female ones with ko(子), (美), 奈(na) and 代(yo).

Also, if a name has more than 4 syllables it's most probably a masculine name.

Lastly, usually a name gives an image of "something" that can be interpreted
as either masculine or feminine. Kousui (perfume), for example, doesn't have
it's gender specified, meaning it can be both masculine or feminine, but is
most probably going to be interpreted as a feminine name because of it's
meaning; though that is not a rule.

You can search for the name and see if it is feminine, masculine or not
specified, as for example in
[jisho.org](https://jisho.org/search/kousui%20%23names) .

