Dragon Ball/Dragon
Ball Z
JAPANESE and AMERICAN Names
| Japanese Name | American Name | Description |
| Son Goku Gokou Gokuu etc. |
Goku | The "Son" part of Son Goku, would be the equivalent to a last name in America/Europe. Basically, here he would be known as Goku Son. The Goku spelling wasn't bad, it even says that on his coffee cup in Movie 3. |
| Kuririn Kulilin Klilyn |
Krillin | Well, this was a tough translation. There are many arguments about whether he should be named Kuririn or Kulilin (Klilyn). So, he was named Krillin, which wasn't bad, since it's a combo! :) |
| Son Gohan Gohan |
Gohan | Again, the "Son" is Gohan's last name. They just shortened it to Gohan, which is correct. |
| Freeza Freezer |
Frieza | I don't really know much about this one, but the Frieza spelling is incorrrect. Freeza/Freezer is a pun, and spelling it Frieza makes it look like something besides freezing. |
| Tenshinhan Ten (nickname) |
Tien | I didn't like this one. If they wanted to shorten it, they should have named him Ten. However, one time in the Vegeta saga, Bulma looked at a photo and said "Tienshinhan", which is still incorrect. |
| Yamcha Yamucha |
Yamcha | This is a good translation. Yamucha would be harder to say, and Yamcha sounds better anyway. :) |
| Vegita Vejita Vegeta |
Vegeta | Well, not many people spell it Vejita, most say Vegita/Vegeta. However, I think the Vegeta spelling is correct, since his name is a pun on vegetable. |
| Kaioh-sama Kaio-sama Kaiou-sama |
King Kai | This wasn't that bad of a translation. They just dropped the "-o" suffix. Actually, the -sama suffix means lord or king, so it's a pretty good translation. |
| Kami-sama | Kami | Not bad, it would be harder for Americans to get used to the -sama, so Kami fit fine. |
| Saichourou | Guru (Eldest Namek) | I don't know what Saichorou means, so I can't explain much about this. Guru wasn't a bad name though. |
| Shenlon Shenron |
Eternal Dragon | I don't know if Shenlon/Shenron has a meaning, but Funimation decided on Eternal Dragon. It does make sense, but I seem to like Shenlon better, since it's a name rather than a term. |
| Kamesennin (Turtle Master) Muten Roshi |
Master Roshi | This is a very accurate translation. "Muten" means master, so Master Roshi fits. Kamesennin isn't his actual name, it's just a way to identify him as a master. |
