Honorifics: A Guide to Common Anime/Manga Lingo for Newbies

As I stated in my previous posts, Navigating Genre and Navigating Media, I’m not a well seasoned expert to all things anime/manga related.  When anime characters start calling people “senpai” and ” <first name> – chan,” my first though was “…are, are they dating now?”

So, I’ve learned through my research that Japanese people are all about honoring one another. There are multiple words and suffix (that can be tacked onto names) to show respect.  It may take a bit of time, but given how important reverence is to Japanese culture, it’s wise to brush up on these terms. Being the kind-hearted person I am, I’m sharing with you what I’ve learned over the last couple years in a series of posts called A Guide to Common Anime/Manga Lingo for Newbies.

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So lets review some words you may encounter when it comes to Japanese honorifics. Enjoy!

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Honorifics

Naruto loves Kakashi-sensei!

Senpai – anyone who is above you in terms of organizational hierarchy (age, class, work rank). For example, at school, students in higher grades are senpai. In business, those with more experience than you are senpai.

However, one would not refer to a teacher or boss using this term. You would use the term Sensei (see definition below)

Kōhai – similar to Senpai, this term is used to denote someone in a junior position. However, it is not normally used as an honorific.  Instead, someone who is of equal or lower rank tend to be referred to with –Kun (see definition below)

San – a common title of respect of respect used between equals of any age by adding it to the end of someone’s name. It can be used in both formal and informal situations.

Sama – another common title of respect. It is used for people of higher rank than oneself, to refer to guests/customers, or towards someone you admire.

People who use it in relation to themselves, it is an expression of arrogance; as in praising oneself.

Kun – used by people in senior ranking to refer to those of junior status. Although it can be used for either gender, it is mostly associated with male children/teenagers/friends.  It is often used by males and females to address a male they are emotionally attached to (or have known for a long time.)

Chan – meant to sound like a “cute” version of San, Chan is used as an expression for someone the speaker finds endearing.

It is often used to refer to babies, young children, grandparents, and teenagers.  It can also be used towards animals, lovers, clothes, friends, or young women.

Bō – like Chan, this is an expression of endearment, used exclusively for boys.

Sensei – this term is used to address someone who has achieved a certain level of accomplishment. It is used to address teachers, doctors, politicians, lawyers, and other authority figures.

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Family Honorifics

Umaru chan loves (and annoys) Oniisan

Otōsan – Father

Ojisan – Uncle

Ojiisan – Grandfather

Okāsan – Mother

Obasan – Aunt

Obāsan – Grandmother

Oniisan – Big Brother

Onēsan – Big Sister

<First Name> + – Chan – used to describe one’s children, younger siblings, or other junior family members.

Kāsan – when a man addresses his own wife

Tōsan – when a woman addresses her own husband

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Common Occupations

Tonari, in Japanese, means ‘Neighbor’

Tomodachi – Friend

Tonari – Neighbor.  Can be used to literally describe neighbor, but can also mean someone sitting next to you in class.

Keisatsu – Police

Hime – Princess

Gaka or Geijutsu Ka – Painter/Artist

Kashu – Singer

Hei Shi – Soldier

Kyoushi – Instructor/Professor; Senpai may also be used

Gakusei – Student

Shougaksuei – Elementary School Student

Chuugakusei – Junior High School Student

Koukousei – High School Student

Daigakusei – College Student