Is 直美 a traditional Japanese name? I was surprised to learn that isn't spelled out using katakana and, according to Wikipedia#Japanese): > Naomi (, ), pronounced [naomi] is a Japanese name. Though it is a unisex name, it is primarily used by women. Naomi can be spelled using hiragana, katakana, kanji, or a combination of kana and kanji. For example; > > * > * > * > * > * > * > * > * > * > ...my question is, did the Japanese name predate (or develop separately from) the Western name? Is this just a coincidence?

This is probably just a coincidence. The "Western" name appears to be of Hebrew origin, whereas in Japanese _nao_ is a common unit that combines with suffixes like _ko_ (Naoko) or _mi_ (Naomi) indicating a female given name.