My name, Haru, is not a common name in Korea. Those who know a bit of (East) Asian culture often ask me if I am Japanese, since Haru is a common name in Japan.
My given Korean name, now my legal middle name, is Myunghoon 명훈. Named by my grandfather per the tradition (my younger brothers were named by my parents), Myung means ‘bright’ and Hoon means ‘achievements’.
When I moved to the states in 2010, I was in high school and was encouraged to pick a nickname for ease of pronunciation.
I didn’t want a typical American name like Tom or John. I wanted it to be a bit unique and possibly represent my Korean heritage while it wasn’t difficult for Americans to pronounce.
Back then, I felt like a little kid who regretted a lot about my past (not being as productive or not being any better) and worried a lot about my future (needing to figure out my new life in America, finding stability in life, and helping out my younger brothers). I wanted to be able to live each day to its fullest. Tumblr was popular back then, and I named my first blog Carpe Diem.
In Korean, the word “today” is 오늘 oh-neul which isn’t easy for Americans to pronounce. 하루 ha-ru means a day, but I felt like it was the second closest word to mean today, since 오늘 and 하루 are often put together (like 오늘 하루) to mean “the entire day today” or “today’s day”.
I’ve had my name Haru since then. It still is a good reminder, and I still like it and plan to keep it. I like its uniqueness, its meaning, and how it sounds.
p.s. Haru can sound both masculine and feminine, so it’s good that I didn’t have to change my name again as I started transitioning (though I did consider a few names)