For information about this supplement see The Anime Companion Supplement main page. Additions are in the Anime Companion Supplement News page.
Hyphenated Japanese terms are listed as single words.
The inclusion of an anime or manga title in these entries is not a recommendation of that title see my Recommended Anime and Manga page for a list of my recommendations
- rabu hoteru (love hotel) ラブホテル (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.105)
- Sources:
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.67
Japanese Inn & Travel p.32
Living Japanese Style p.99
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Bachelor's Japan p.156
RACCOON DOG see: tanuki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.133)
RADIO CALISTHENICS see: rajio taisō (The Anime Companion 2 p.72)
RADISHES see: daikon (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.21)
- Raijin (god of thunder) 雷神 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.105)
- Sources:
Today's Japan p.91
Must-See in Kyoto p.57
Must-See in Nikko p.113
RAILWAYS see: tetsudō (The Anime Companion 2 p.100)
- Rainbow Bridge レインボーブリッジ (The Anime Companion 2 p.72)
- Sources:
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo image facing p.89
Tajima Noriyuki. Tokyo: A Guide to Recent Architecture p.20
Tokyo Metropolitan Atlas p.9, 19
RAIN CHARM see: teruteru bōzu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.136)
RAIN DOORS see: amado (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.5)
RAINCOAT MADE FROM REEDS see: mino (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.84)
- rajio taisō (radio calisthenics) ラジオ体操 OLD FORM ラヂオ體操 (The Anime Companion 2 p.72)
- Sources:
Discover Japan vol. 2 p. 24
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1246
Salaryman In Japan p. 23
- rāmen (noodles) ラ−メン (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.105)
- Sources:
Japanese Family and Culture p.125
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1247
Today's Japan p.81
- Ramune ラムネ (The Anime Companion 2 p.72)
- Sources:
Condon, Jack and Camy Condon. The Simple Pleasures of Japan p.98
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.118)
- ranma (transom) 欄間 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.105)
- Sources:
A Look Into Japan p.162
RANZAN see: Arashiyama (The Anime Companion 2 p.6)
RAW FISH, SLICED see: sashimi (The Anime Companion 2 p.79)
RECORD OF ANCIENT MATTERS see: Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters)
RED AND WHITE see: aka to shiro (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.4)
RED BEANS AND RICE see: sekihan (The Anime Companion 2 p.81)
RED LANTERNS see: aka-chōchin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.4)
RED MANTLE see: akamanto (red mantle)
RED PAPER BLUE PAPER see: akai-kami-aoi-kami (red paper blue paper)
RED PEPPER IN BOTTLE see: kōrēgūsu (Korean pepper)
RED RICE sekihan (The Anime Companion 2 p.81)
RED SAKE CUPS AT WEDDINGS see: sakazuki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.109)
- red triangle (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106)
- Sources:
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.116
- redii (lady bikers) レヂイー
-
Lady, while the English word is used to refer to women it also has another use. Lady can also refer to a teen aged female bōsōzoku (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.14), in fact such young women prefer this term. Originally ladies' organizations were secondary groups to male bōsōzoku groups. However in the mid 1970s male groups cut back their activities due to police crackdowns. The ladies then became an independent phenomenon and continued to be significantly active into the early 1990s. They formed their own organizations with names like Baby Face and Evil Girls. Imagine what it must have been like to see over a thousand teen girls in tokkofuku (kamikaze party uniform) on loud motorcycles cruising down a major avenue ignoring traffic lights and kicking the ass of anyone in their way. Much of their style was modeled on the earlier sukeban movement. They even had Teen's Road, a magazine devoted to the ladies and their activities which sold about 20,000 copies a month until it ceased publication in 1992 when the phenomenon was winding down.
Anime:
In Salaryman Kintaro (ep.4) we see a lady talking to a bōsōzoku member about the famous Hasshu run which Kintaro had led as a teen.
Manga:
In Pink Sniper (p.86) we find that Yukari was the fourth head of the legendary Yokohama Paradise Butterflies.
Sources:
Macias, Patrick and Izumi Evers. Japanese Schoolgirl Inferno p.34-45
- redikomi (ladies' comics) レディコミ
-
A contraction of "ladies comics", these are manga (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.80) publications aimed at adult women. The term is often used as a synonym for jōsei (adult women) manga. Redikomi have generated some controversy in the regular press over the explicit and sometimes extreme sexual content found in many redikomi magazines. This has led the term to be often narrowly defined as erotic manga for women, rather than to refer to all women's manga. It is still at times used broadly to also refer to jōsei manga.
Sources:
Shigematsu Setsu. "Dimensions of Desire: Sex, Fantasy, and Fetish in Japanese Comics" in Themes & Issues in Asian Cartooning p.138-
Thompson, Jason. Manga: The Complete Guide p.500
REED RAINCOAT see: mino (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.84)
REED SCREEN see: yoshizu (The Anime Companion 2 p.119)
REFRIED RICE see: yakimeshi (The Anime Companion 2 p.114)
REGION see: chihō
REGISTRATION OF A DIVORCE see: rikon todoke (Notification of a Divorce)
REIKIN see: kenrikin (key money)
REISHIKI KANJŌ SENTŌKI see: Zerosen (aircraft) (The Anime Companion 2 p.122)
- renge (chinese spoon) れんげ or 蓮華 (The Anime Companion 2 p.73)
- Sources:
Eating in Japan p.98
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.118
- renkon (lotus root) 蓮根 (The Anime Companion 2 p.73)
- Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.902
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.119
- renraku-sen (ferryboat) 連絡船 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106)
- Sources:
Outlook on Japan p.179
Living in Japan p.274
Japanese Inn & Travel p.120
- renting (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106)
- Sources:
Living Japanese Style p.36
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.775, 1254
RESTAURANTS CHINESE see: chūka ryōri-ya (The Anime Companion 2 p.14)
REVERE THE EMPEROR, EXPEL THE BARBARIANS see: sonnō jōi (The Anime Companion 2 p.90)
revolving sushi bar see: kaiten sushi
REZU see: rezubian (The Anime Companion 2 p.73)
- rezubian (lesbian) レズビアン (The Anime Companion 2 p.73)
- Sources:
Cherry, Kittredge. Womansword p. 115-116
Schreiber, Mark editor. Tokyo Confidential p.10
RICE BALLS see: nigirimeshi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.93)
RICE BOWL see: chawan (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.18)
RICE CAKE see: mochi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.87)
RICE, COOKED see: gohan (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.36)
RICE COOKER see: denki-gama (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.22)
RICE COOKING POT see: kama (The Anime Companion 2 p.38)
RICE CRACKERS see: senbei (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.113)
RICE FISH see: medaka (rice fish)
RICE GOD see: Inari (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.48)
RICE TOPPING see: furikake (rice topping)
RICE TUB see ohitsu
RICE WITH RED BEANS see: sekihan (The Anime Companion 2 p.81)
RICKSHAW see: jinrikisha (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.54)
RIFLES see: teppō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.135)
- rikishi 力士
-
The term used for a man who does professional sumo (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.127), the literal meaning is "strong man". Sometimes the term sumōtori is used.
Anime:
In episode 13 of the Rurouni Kenshin TV series the character Senryouyama is a rikishi.
Manga:
In Kaze Hikaru (v.2 p.162) we see a drunken Serizawa Kamo kill a rikishi in Ōsaka (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.102) who stood up to him on the street.
Sources:
Buckingham, Dorothea N. Essential Guide to Sumo p. 151, 182
- rikon todoke (Notification of a Divorce) 離婚届
-
A legal form announcing the dissolution of a marriage. All one needs to end a marriage is to submit a rikon todoke to the local government office. If the parties agree and both fill out the form the divorce is approved. However in cases where there is a conflict over divisions of property and other matters a court may be called in to make a judgement. In some cases only one of the parties may submit the form and the other files for non-acceptance.
Anime:
Yokko leaves divorce papers on the table for Oji in Black Heaven (ep.13)
Manga:
We see Mrs Harumi fill stamp her seal (hanko; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.40) on a rikon todoke in Junk: Record of the Last Hero (v.4 p.32)
Sources:
Naobumi Abe & Ted Takahashi. The 100% Complete Illustrated Guide to Japanese Systems p.52-53
RIKUJŌ JIEITAI see: Jieitai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.53)
RIN-BYŌ-TŌ-SHA-KAI-JIN-RETSU-ZAI-ZEN see: kuji (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.75)
RING, SPIKED see kakute (horned hand)
RINKAKU (DRAGON EDGE OR CORNER) see: SASUMATA (SPEAR FORK)
RIOT POLICE see: Kidōtai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68)
RIVER TO THE OTHERWORLD see: Sanzu no kawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.78)
RIVER STYX see: Sanzu no kawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.78)
ROBE, WHITE FOR CORPSE see: katabira (unlined kimono)
- Rōben 良弁
-
689-773 A Buddhist priest (bōzu) of the Kegon sect. He was born in Sagami province and studied Hossō sect teachings under Gien. Emperor Shōmu established the temple Kinshōji for Rōben who became the second head of the Kegon sect. He helped raise the funds to build the Great Buddha at Tōdaiji and is regarded as that temple's founder.
Manga:
Rōben saves Gao's life and they travel together towards Hiraizumi in Phoenix (v.4 Karma p.78-)
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1271
ROGA-BŌ (WOLF FANG POLE) see: SODEGARAMI (SLEEVE ENTANGLER)
- Rokumeikan (Deer Cry Pavilion) 鹿鳴館
-
Designed by Josiah Condor the Rokumeikan was an expensive and extravagant two story stucco and brick building built between 1881 and 1883. It was located in Hibiya (The Anime Companion 2 p.27) just south of the present location of the Imperial hotel (Teikoku Hoteru, The Anime Companion 2 p.98). It was used for gatherings between Japanese and Westerners. Foreign Minister Inoue Kaoru hoped that such gatherings between foreign worthies and distinguished Japanese, including wives and daughters, would help raise support among Westerners for the revision of the unequal treaties. Not only were major events such as balls and charity fundraisers held in the building it also included smaller rooms for reading, music and billiards. As the attempts to revise the treaties with the West failed the building was renamed the Peer's Hall (Zazoku Kaikan) in 1890 and later became the offices of an insurance company. In 1941 the building was demolished.
Manga:
In Lady Snowblood (v.1) the 5th story, "Rokumeikan Murder Panorama", has it's climax at the Rokumeikan.
Sources:
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo p.118
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1274
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p. 43-44
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.31-32
ROKUONJI see: Kinkakuji (Temple of the Golden Pavilion) (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.69)
- rokurokubi (long necked woman) ろくろ首
-
A type of bakemono (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.8) which during the day looks like a normal woman. However at nighttime her neck stretches out as she hunts for her prey. One tradition has it that rokurokubi suck the ki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.67) out of men.
Anime:
In Pom Poko a rokurokubi is seen during the parade sequence.
Manga:
In Lady Snowblood (v.3 p.27) we see a sideshow in Asakusa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.5) with a "long-necked monster".
Sources:
Screech, Tim. "Japanese Ghosts", Mangajin No. 40 p.15
ROLLED SUSHI see: kanpyōmaki, makizushi
ROLLING MAT see: makisu
- rōnin 浪人 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106)
- Sources:
Pictorial Encyclopedia of Japanese Life and Events p.104
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1275
Living Japanese Style p.160
RŌNIN, FORTY SEVEN RŌNIN INCIDENT see: Akō Jiken (Akō incident)
ROOF TILE PRINT see: kawaraban
ROOF TILE WITH DEMON FACE see: onigawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.69)
ROOF TILES see: kawara (The Anime Companion 2 p.43)
ROOSTER FESTIVAL see: tori no ichi (The Anime Companion 2 p.106)
ROPE, ON OR AROUND SOMETHING see: shimenawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.118)
- Roppongi 六本木 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106)
- Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1276
A Look Into Tokyo p.128-
- rorikon ("lolita complex") ロリコン (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.107)
- Sources:
Schodt, Frederik. Dreamland Japan p.54-
ROSARY see: juzu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.57)
ROSE OF VERSAILLES see: Berusaiyu no Bara (The Anime Companion 2 p.9)
RŌSHI CORPS see: Rōshigumi
RŌSHI OF AKŌ see: Akō Jiken (Akō incident)
- Rōshigumi 浪士組
-
In 1863 officials of the Tokugawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.137) shōgunate organized a special group of rōnin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106) in Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18). This group was called the Rōshigumi, a word composed of rōshi and gumi, which can be translated as "group of corps". Rōshi is a word composed of the same rō as in rōnin and shi, a word designating samurai, this is a more polite word than rōnin. Even condemned criminals were allowed to join if they were considered qualified. The purpose of the Rōshigumi was to provide additional security for the trip to Kyoto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77) of the shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123), Tokugawa Iemochi. Once there Rōshigumi officer Kiyokawa Hachirō and a large faction supporting his views expressed objectionable pro imperial views, for this they were recalled to Edo. However a small group remained in Kyoto and was reorganized as the Shinsengumi (The Anime Companion 2 p.86) under the joint command of Serizawa Kamo and Kondō Isami (The Anime Companion 2 p.49)
Anime:
The Mibu Roshigumi translated as "Mibi rōnin" are mentioned in Peacemaker (ep 3)
Sources:
Hillsborough, Romulus. Shinsengumi: The Shōgun's Last Samurai Corps p.13-15
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1383
- rōsoku (candle) 蝋燭 FORMAL 蠟燭 (The Anime Companion 2 p.74)
- Sources:
Dunn, Charles J. Everyday Life in Traditional Japan p. 158: illustration - 82
Morse, Edward. Japanese Homes and Their Surroundings p.219
ROTTE see: Lotte Co, Ltd (The Anime Companion 2 p.54)
ROUND BELL ON ROPE AT SHRINE see: suzu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.129)
ROW HOUSES see: nagaya (The Anime Companion 2 p.59)
RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR see: Nichiro Sensō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.93)
RYŌBEN see: Rōben
- Ryōgokubashi 両国橋 OLD FORM 兩國橋 (The Anime Companion 2 p.74)
- Sources:
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo p.120
Enbutsu Sumiko. Old Tokyo p.147
Naito Akira. Edo, The City That Became Tokyo p.114
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.219-220, 333
Exhibiting Animation p.5
- ryokan (Japanese inn) 旅館 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.107)
- Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.608, 610-11
A Look Into Japan p.160-5
RYŌMA see: Sakamoto Ryōma (The Anime Companion 2 p.76)
- Ryōunkaku (Asakusa Twelve Stories) 凌雲閣 or 浅草十二階 OLD FORM 淺草十二階 (The Anime Companion 2 p.75)
- Sources:
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo p.27
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories 141
- ryū (dragon) 竜 FORMAL 龍 (The Anime Companion 2 p.75)
- Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.417
- ryū (martial arts style) 流 (the book includes a formal kanji in error) (The Anime Companion 2 p.75)
- Sources:
Frederic, Louis. Dictionary of the Martial Arts p.187
RYUGU-JOI see: Meguro Gajōen
- Ryūkyū Shotō (Ryūkyū Islands) 琉球諸島
-
A chain of islands ranging in a Southwesterly direction from Kyūshū (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.78) for 1200 kilometers (746 miles). They are referred to as the Nansei Islands in older Japanese literature. The climate is subtropical and often hit by taifū (typhoons) (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.130). Up to the 15th century the islands were divided into separate domains. In 1429 Shō Hashi, the second king of the first Shō dynasty, unified the islands under his rule. Being off the coast of China starting in the 14th century the Ryūkyū kings sent tribute and accepted diplomats from China who would declare each new king the legitimate ruler. In 1609 Satsuma han (The Anime Companion 2 p.80) conquered the islands when they took the capital of Naha. This produced an interesting situation in which the islands were under the control of a Japanese han (The Anime Companion 2 p.26) while still in a vassal tributary relationship with China. When diplomats from China arrived all sign of the Japanese would be removed, the Satsuma officials would be in hiding. Satsuma han had been ordered to rule over the islands by the shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123), even if the islands were were not officially part of Japan. In 1874 the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81) government declared it's authority over the islands and in 1875 ordered the king to end the tributary relationship with China. In 1879 Shō Tai, the king of the Ryūkyū islands, resigned under great diplomatic pressure from the Japanese government and moved to Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104). The Ryūkyū Islands were then renamed Okinawa. Shō Tai was made a member of the Japanese nobility and granted the junior third rank while his son was given junior fifth rank. His last years were in fact in exile from the kingdom he had ruled for 31 years.
Anime and Manga:
Usui in Rurouni Kenshin is from the Ryūkyū islands (ep.49 v.14 p.52)
Anime:
The Ryūkyū area is mentioned by Saeki in the Rurouni Kenshin TV series (ep. 90)
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1140, 1285
Keene, Donald. Emperor of Japan p.302-307
Ravina, Mark. The Last Samurai p.15
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Created: October 31, 1998
Updated: September 14, 2008
