that damn japanese word

Bebop0083 · Post by **Bebop0083** » Fri Jul 04, 2003 11:03 am

i want to know what this word means "kun" i see it all the time when i watch japanese version of DBZ. i know san means mr. but how come they put it at the end of women's names too? it doesnt make any sense.

InSaNe KeYbLaDeR · Post by **InSaNe KeYbLaDeR** » Fri Jul 04, 2003 11:06 am

kun is just an ending they put on the end of young boys name usually. They sometimes put it on girls in highschool too. I don't know why. It's like san, but for younger ppl.

Moonlight Soldier · Post by **Moonlight Soldier** » Fri Jul 04, 2003 11:09 am

My understanding in the following:

San=Mrs. Mr. Ms.
Kun= used to describe a MALE friend
Chan= used to describe a FEMALE friend
Sama= Lord/Lady King/Queen (basically a higher class type of thing...though for some reason it can also be translated weird depending on how you say to things like Darling ex: Kodachi refers to Ranma-sama as her darling...)
Sempai= someone older that you have respect for...

Feel free to correct me if i'm wrong but i'm pretty sure that's the right answer....

Org Profile · Post by **Otohiko** » Fri Jul 04, 2003 12:36 pm

Moonlight Soldier wrote:My understanding in the following:

San=Mrs. Mr. Ms.
Kun= used to describe a MALE friend
Chan= used to describe a FEMALE friend
Sama= Lord/Lady King/Queen (basically a higher class type of thing...though for some reason it can also be translated weird depending on how you say to things like Darling ex: Kodachi refers to Ranma-sama as her darling...)
Sempai= someone older that you have respect for...

Feel free to correct me if i'm wrong but i'm pretty sure that's the right answer....

No, not quite, but very close.

Kun is mostly used for males, yea, and mostly for friends. However, keep in mind it's mainly reserved for people same age or younger than the speaker and is sort of semi-informal.

-Chan, on the other hand, is not specific to gender, and is mostly used towards younger people. The female connection here is that girls also use -chan to refer to their close friends (male or female), while guys tend to only use it towards girls or little kids. So, guys can be referred to as -chan - for example Akari from 'To Heart' constantly calls her childhood friend 'Hiroyuki-chan'. Generally though, guys resent being called that - since it's seen as dimunitive or condescending.

The rest of em you got right on though

Moonlight Soldier · Post by **Moonlight Soldier** » Fri Jul 04, 2003 1:58 pm

Thanks for the clarification...

Much obliged

MAS PRODUCTIONS · Post by **MAS PRODUCTIONS** » Fri Jul 04, 2003 2:00 pm

Otohiko is correct.

Here are the definitions for many of the titles given in the Japanese language:

chan - (used after a person's given name to express intimacy and affection): also used as a diminutive for children and pets.

kun - Mr; Ms. (used in addressing younger people or colleagues in place of san or sama).

sama - Mr; Mrs; Ms (formal)

san - Mr; Mrs; Ms

Garylisk · Post by **Garylisk** » Sat Jul 05, 2003 2:50 am

-sama is more than just formal, it's SUPER formal. Not only that, but it implies that the person you speak of is better than you, so to speak. In other words, "Illpalazo-sama" is like saying "Almighty Illpalazzo" BWAHAHA!

Mroni · Post by **Mroni** » Sat Jul 05, 2003 4:18 am

And remember the japs do take this seriously. At least the older ones. They even kill each other over it.

Mr Oni