Anime and Manga Stack Exchange
Anime and Manga Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [japanese-language]

For questions which are likely to require knowledge of the Japanese language to answer. Note that generic questions about the Japanese language are off-topic here. Questions with this tag must still be primarily about anime or manga.

Use this tag for questions related to anime or manga that are likely to require some knowledge of the Japanese language to answer. Note that generic questions about the Japanese language are off-topic here. The primary focus of questions with this tag must be anime or manga.

Questions about the Japanese language that aren't related to anime or manga may be on-topic at Japanese Language Stack Exchange.

269 questions
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What does 'moe' mean?

I've now watched quite a few anime and I'm still at a loss as to what the term moe represents. Is there an agreed upon definition for it? If a character is moe, what does that mean?
coleopterist
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Why is Edward Newgate called Whitebeard?

Why do they call him "Whitebeard"? He doesn't even have a beard!
Sam I am says Reinstate Monica
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Why is "I won't forgive you" a commonly used threat?

In a number of shows, "I won't forgive you" or some variation is used as a threat. Rukia uses it when she is trying to keep Ichigo to follow her into the Soul Society, saying, "If you follow me, I will never forgive you." It is used similarly in…
kuwaly
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Has the "It's over 9000!" meme spread back to Japan?

Has the "It's over 9000!" meme from DBZ spread back into Japan? Is it referenced in other manga or anime? If it is, do they use 9000 (which is, depending on who you ask, a translation error or an intentional mistranslation) or 8000?
coleopterist
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Where does the word "Nyanpasu" come from?

Renge usually greets people with "Nyanpasu". The sub says "Meowning" which probably comes from "Morning" as a greeting. But "Morning" as a greeting in Japanese is Ohayo which is quite different than "Nyanpasu". here's a YouTube video of how Renge…
Darjeeling
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Why does Himura Kenshin say ～ござる (~gozaru) at end of every sentence?

Why does Himura always end almost every sentence with gozaru in this show? Is this normal for people in that time period?
Ken Li
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How can Sebastian use "I am a butler and a devil" so casually?

To my ears, the Japanese means: I am an akuma (demon), and a shitsuji (butler). I guess it must have a pun meaning, too. On one occasion, a bad guy cried out "a-a-akuma?", but that's the exception: everybody seems cool after hearing it. How can…
Jesvin Jose
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Why does Mayoi get embarrassed about this tongue twister?

In Bakemonogatari, Mayoi says a tongue-twister that goes 「生ムミ、生モメ、生ママモ」 ("namamumi, namamome, namamamamo") then gets embarrassed because they sound like another word. What's the reference they're making?
éclairevoyant
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What does the symbol 油 on Jiraiya's headband mean?

Jiraiya is shown wearing a headband with 油【あぶら】 drawn onto it. I know that 油 is the symbol for abura, and that it means "oil". But how is it related to him? Does it have anything to do with the fact that he is a sage from Mount Myoboku?
debal
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What is the proper romanization of the wolf-girl's name?

There is a debate between fans as to the romanization of the name of the wolf-girl character in Spice and Wolf. Some claim it should be romanized as Holo, whilst others say Horo. Is there official word on which is correct?
Megan Walker
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What is the opposite of "seme" according to otakus?

I don't understand the joke behind "opposite of seme" scene. Can you please explain it to me?
hkBattousai
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What is the original text of Black Hanekawa's tongue twister?

Bakemonogatari episode 14 has a fairly famous tongue-twister in it, which Black Hanekawa recites with her cat voice. It was translated as: "Can you imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie?". The scene is here…
Logan M
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Why does text in anime read horizontally?

It is my understanding that Japanese text is written top-to-bottom. I think the Japanese manga also follow this format: That was a quick Google search so not even sure it is real. However, watching Anime, I've noticed that the text seems to be…
David Starkey
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What does "padoru padoru" mean?

In the short Nero in a Santa outfit sings a "Jingle Bells" with some rather casual lyrics. Hashire sori yo, kaze no you ni, tsukimihara wo, padoru padoru The lyric is a song of this clip (for the full clip, click here). The song sounds like a…
Gagantous
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What is the proper pluralization of "anime" and "manga"?

The words "anime" and "manga" both originate from Japanese, and have no English roots (though "anime" comes from French). To me, it doesn't make sense for an "s" to be attached ("animes" and "mangas"). However, I still see people do this quite…
Cattua
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