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KNT have different names to their characters, some of their origins one can find in the web. For example, one can easily find the meaning of the names of Yattarou :speedy:, Sukashii :guido: and Pururun :polly:. However things was not so clear to some other characters, Mietoru was a mistery to me until I saw a picture scanned by Puutaro-kun (http://www.edoropolis.org/forums/index.php?topic=543.msg5785#msg5785).

(http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/774/mietel7ny.gif)
You can read the word "mieru mieru..." (I can see... I can see).
So, the meaning of the names of the Otasuke Membaa is:
 :catton: Rikinoshin: "rikishi" is the sumo fighter, so his name resembles this tradicional Japanese sport;
 :batcat: Mietoru: can be translated as '"it can be seen", it may refers to the privileged sight he get when is flying;
 :spritz: Nekkii: watching the KNT 35 episode, I get a clue that it refers to "Nesshii", the Loch Ness Monster or Nessie (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness_Monster);
 :meowsma: Gotton: from "gatten", an ancient word that means "I accept", "OK" or "I'll do".

Wow, that's so cool! I never thought about those before. (Except for, Rikinoshin. I did suspect his name derived from rikishi. I'm kind of a Sumo fan :D)

So you know the tipical pose of the rikishi before each fight. You can see Rikinoshin doing such pose in some episodes (for example, in the "tenka muteki no daishouri" scene). Interesting learn that you are Sumo fan. When I go to my parent' s home, I watch sumo in NHK channel.

A post from Princess Vi (http://www.edoropolis.org/forums/index.php?topic=609.msg5790#msg5790) gave me another clue, this time about :lucille:. In this post it's said that the Japanese (KNT) name of the Lucinda (a NY clone of the :lucille:) is "Honey" (probably pronounced in Japanese as "hanii"). I always have thought that Omitsu came from O (preffix denoting polite expression) and mitsu (honey; actually, hachimitsu is honey). Now I'm almost sure I was right.

That's true, (I figured that out a few years ago ^_^).  A lot of the KNT NY counterparts just have the English name of the character they resemble.  Abigail's KNT name is "Ball", and Otama is O+Tama, "Tama" being the word for "ball".  Otama or just Tama is a fairly common cat name in Japan, probably because a sleeping kitten wraps its self up like a ball.

Omitsu also has the Japanese kana "mi" on her apron.  Sometimes the boys call her "Mi-chan".  It's also the same as the kanji "mitsu" (3).

is "Omitsu" a common name among anime and games with a setting similar to that of KNT? i've only seen that name in some of the "Ganbare Goemon!" games.

Yeah Omitsu is a character from Goemon, and is also Goemon's main sqeeze, kinda funny as how  :lucille: is also Yattaro's main love interest in the show.

In KNT 02 (http://www.edoropolis.org/forums/index.php?topic=403.0) one can see a giant robot controlled by :lucille:'s brother (Matsukichi), named 'Edomae 5-gou', or Edo style #5. This episode concerns about sushi, a Japanese famous food. There are many regional variation of sushi in Japan, hence the name of the robot refers to a style adopted in Tokyo (formerly Edo). One says Tokyo style sushi is more salty, and Osaka style more sweet (the key point to make sushi is to equilibrate the salt, sugar and vinager in the rice).

Regarding Rikinoshin and sumo wrestling-- After watching several episodes of KNT I've noticed that he says "dosukoi!" often, which is a traditional sumo exclamation. I've long been familiar with this phrase because of the character E. Honda from the "Street Fighter" video games, who uses it frequently. :D

I have some ideas on the meanings behind a few of the names of the Yami no Yon Nin Shu ("Rude Noise" in SPC).

 :ronnie: is known as "Uokkaa" (ウォッカア). This is fairly reminiscient of the Japanese rendering of the English word "water", "uootaa" (ウォーター), which is fitting seeing as he is the aquatic-themed member of the group.

 :cannonball: is called "Bonkaa" (ボンカア). This brings to mind the Japanese rendering of the English word "bomber", which is "bonbaa" (ボンバー). Again fitting, since Bonkaa has the fire/cannon theme going on.

 :mojorojo: "Rekkaa" (レッカア). I'm not sure on him yet. "Rekkaa" (レッカー) is a rendering of the word "wrecker", used to refer to what is also known as a tow truck, and "rekka" (烈火) is a Japanese worrd meaning "raging fire". However, I think these are probably just coincidences.

 :badmax: "Zankaa" (ザンカア). I didn't have any ideas on him until after I read his entry at the Teyandee Daijiten (http://www.pluto.dti.ne.jp/~zumi-fox/teyande/dic/dic.htm) site, which described him as "zangyakuhidou" (残虐非道) meaning "inhumane", or "atrocious". JWPce's dictionary lists several terms similar in meaning that also start with "zan", such as "zankoku" (残酷) (fans of Evangelion will be familiar with that one), and "zannin" (残忍). Could these be the basis for his name?

In addition, "kaa" is the Japanese onomatopoeia for the sound of a crow's call.

Finally, their giant crow robot which appeared in a few different episodes, as well as Tatsuya Souma's manga, is called "Makkrou" (マックロウ). I'm fairly certain this is a pun on "macro" (large) and "crow".

"Makkurou" means "totally black".

About the name of the four, your theory makes sense, but I'm not sure if it's correct.

Huh, I remember now that "kuro" means "black", but it slipped my mind to look for any related terms for Makkurou. Thanks.

One other that I forgot to mention earlier... the mecha-birds that carry in the Nyanki's extra armor, then attach to their backs to serve as flights pack of sorts are called "Toritsukkun" (トリツックン). Not only does "tori" (鳥) mean "bird", but "toritsuku" (取り付く) means "to stick or adhere to".

I just noticed something that I thought would be worth adding to this topic. In episode 2, during the scene in which the professor with the fan explains that Koon no Kami has a higher rank than Wanko no Kami, he actually says "Inari no Kami" ("Inari" is the name of a Japanese deity that is often associated with foxes). I had read that this was an early name for Koon no Kami, but didn't know that it managed to slip into the final show. This line must have been overlooked during the revising stage. Other characters who got name changes during development include Yattarou (was "Bagumaru") and Pururun (was "Puririn").

Bagumaru, Karamaru, Bakumaru. What does "maru" stand for?

It literally means "circle" or "round", but it's used as an ending for many Japanese names. Other ones you'll often see are "-tarou" ("Yattarou") and "-ko" ("Usako", Usahime's actual name.)

um... okay.  ?:|

Well, at least I know it's a standard suffix for all Japanese names, and not just for cartoon characters. I guess my next question is: why? Why would you put a suffix that means "circle/round" at the end of your name?

Does Bad Bird look round to you?  :badbird:

It's better not taking the meaning of names too literally. For example, my uncle was named Zenshichi (善七) in honor of his grandfathers Zenzaburou (善三朗) and Shichirou (七郎). So his name was made by joining parts (kanji) of two differents names. That's usual, most of words (including names) in Japanese was made by joining two or more kanjis.

Maru (丸) isn't a common end part (suffix?) of names in modern Japan. Anyway I remember the famous story of fight between Ushiwakamaru (infant name of Yoshitsune Minamoto (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamoto_no_Yoshitsune)) and Benkei.

I see. Names are chosen for us and some are passed down through generations. It all varies depending on what culture you come from. When these names originated, they were full of meaning for the individuals who had earned them. But now, in modern times, these names and their symbolism are meaningless in regard to the characteristics of the people who have inherited them.

Furthermore, the symbolism behind a circle or round object is meaningless to a North American like me. But I understand it must symbolize something for Japanese culture. Just look at the Japanese flag.

Thanks for your wisdom, Daisensei.

EN:Speedy  :O
JP:Yattaro  ;)

Wow, I would have never had figured that out myself.

Seriously, do you just post for the sake of posting, young Padawan.

And...you're mentioning this WHY?

i was wondering if what Ruby's name in knt was if it was ever mentioned.

It's "Okinu".

does it mean something?

Okinu probably is from kinu (絹) that means "silk". Perhaps a referece for her profession, she is a seamstress.