Why do the readings change?


Forgive my title as I don’t really have a good one at the top of my head.

I’ve always been into word play when it comes to naming characters, but when
it comes to Japanese it’s kinda difficult for me. I’ll put together a word
that I think means one thing and it completely translates into something
different.

**Ex:** Kōaki- Kō(孝) _Filial piety_ and Aki(彰) _Clearly_ but when it but when
I put the two together it’s Takaaki.

Is there something that I’m misunderstanding?




I'm not entirely sure I understand your question, but for the record:

  1. Due to the way the Japanese writing system evolved, the same kanji can have many different readings, including onyomi (Chinese origin) and kunyomi (Japanese origin).
  2. Usually the way a kanji is read is determined by its context within a sentence or what kanji it is paired with, but with names there are less rules. In particular, onyomi and kunyomi are usually not mixed within the same word, but it can occur in names.
  3. A kanji's reading and its meaning are entirely separate. Just because a kanji reads differently in different contexts doesn't mean the meaning is different. Vice versa, the same reading can have multiple meanings.

As an example, the following kanji has 11 possible readings when placed inside
a name. When you make a Japanese name, you have to choose both the kanji and a
corresponding reading.

[![tetsu](https://i.stack.imgur.com/CgJGD.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/CgJGD.png)

