Aerith 's original Japanese name is エアリス Earisu , pronounced [ eaɽisu ̥ ] . This was transliterated to " Aeris " in Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy Tactics , but in later products has been changed to " Aerith " . Both transliterations have basis , as the Japanese " su " ( ス ) is used when transcribing " s " ( / s / ) and " th " ( / θ / ) to Japanese . However , official Japanese material uses the spelling " Aerith " , and developers have stated that " Aerith " is a near @-@ anagram of " Earth " . Prior to the game 's release , Western gaming magazines , such as the May 1996 issue of Computer and Video Games , also referred to her as " Aerith " .