Utena in Japanese

If you're new to the whole anime scene, you might have noticed some strange things in anime-oriented websites (as far as name spellings go). Or you may have just watched your first fansub and are puzzling over the numerous suffixes attached to characters names. We hope this page clears up a few things that most other anime sites assume you already know. Kotetsu wrote these pages, because she has been studying Japanese for a little over two years. If she gets something here wrong, please tell her!

Names in Japanese are always written with the last name first and the first name following. This is because in Japan, the family name is more important than the individual's name. For example, "Utena Tenjou" is more correctly written as "Tenjou Utena." Most other anime sites will write names this way.

Romanization is the method used to convert kana (Japanese symbols) into words that conform to the Western alphabet as we know it. Because there are several different methods of romanization, there are also several different spellings of Japanese words. This is especially true to Japanese names. For example, an alternate spelling of "Tenjou Utena" is "Tenjo Utena." Also, many sites spell "Anthy" as "Anshi" or "Anshii." This is probably close to the original katakana spelling, but we have chosen to stick with the North American spelling in this particular case. There's no real justification other than this: "Anthy" sounds cuter!

Technically, "Touga" can be spelled as "Toga," but . . . who would want to do that? Besides, that method doesn't show the u that makes the "o" sound long. Don't let the spellings confuse you. And don't obsess over the "right" or "wrong" way to spell Japanese - the only true way is through the original Japanese system.

By the way, kanji (symbols that stand for words) is not the only way that the Japanese write. Kanji is a system of symbols standing for words that was borrowed from the Chinese. There are around 2,000 Kanji used in Japanese (and over 10,000 used in Chinese.) The Japanese also have two sysems of writing a phonetic alphabet, called the Hiragana and the Katakana. These are like the "letters" in the Japanese alphabet.

Name suffixes are always used to address people in Japanese society. Should a person address another without a suffix attached to their name, it shows that they are extremely close (like husband and wife, or like best friends). Here are some commom suffixes:
-chan indicates endearment. It is used when speaking to friends, loved ones, or those younger than you. Utena and Wakaba address each other as "Utena-chan" and "Wakaba-chan."
-kun is used to address young men or boys. Utena addresses Miki as "Miki-kun."
-sempai is used to address older classmates or friends. Utena calls Juri by "Juri-sempai."
-san is used to address girls, older people, or those the speaker is not very familiar with.
-sama is a term of respect. Anthy addresses Utena as "Utena-sama," despite Utena's attempts to get her to do otherwise.
-sensei is used to address teachers. This is how Japanese students address their school teachers.
That's just a few name suffixes. There are many more! We hope that when you watch fansubs or read fanfics that use these suffixes, you won't be so confused.

Manga will be the final issue discussed on this page. In Japan, manga is printed "backwards" - the opposite of what we are used to in the United States. Manga is read from right to left. When companies in the States publish manga in English, they usually reverse all the artwork so that is can be read from right to left. An exception is Viz Communication's publication of the Neon Genesis Evangelion manga, which is available in English but with normal Japanese printing. Anway, if you get your hands on any Utena manga (which is only available in Japanese), be sure to start from what is your perception of the "back" cover and read up to the "front" cover, going from right to left.

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