Why is Shuichi's name spelled like Shiyuuichi?

I am breaking the name down phonetically using each symbol of the hiragana as a separate syllable. When I first tried to translate Shuichi's name I used the furigana next to the kanji. These were the hiragana syllables "shi". "yu", "u", "i" and "chi". Together they spell Shiyuuichi.

Since I have now taken basic Japanese I know "shi" and "yu" should be blended together to form "shu". In hiragana, the "yu" is written smaller than the "shi" so you know to contract the syllables. This is not done with furigana. All the syllables are the same size so a person who does not automatically know these syllables are always contracted would make this mistake in translation.

As for the extra "u", it is only for lengthening the sound of the syllable and is not pronounced separately.

This means the name really should be Shuichi. However, since I had already set my spelling standard for my Gravitation fics and site graphics prior to knowing this, I am going to stubbornly keep it Shiyuuichi for all my stories, graphics, etc.

Even Maki Murakami-sensei changed how she spelled her character's name in Romanized letters as the series progressed. In the first art book she spelled his name "Syuichi" and in the second art book she changed and spelled his name "Shuichi".

When I say "Shiyuu" I use one slurred syllable, "sheeyou", light on the 'shee'. If you listen to the anime in Japanese (not the RightStuf crap!) you will hear it pronounced that way by most of the seiyuu. It is a very light glossing of the 'shee' into the 'yu'. It is not the heavy-handed "Shoo" spoken in the horrifically terrible RightStuf dubs.

If this spelling bothers you, you can stop reading the stories, looking at the artwork and just leave. Do not leave a comment about it in any review, guestbook or email! I will delete reviews/guestbook entries and I will not respond to emails.