What does baka mean in japanese

But there are still other details that were not clear. To understand, we need to look more closely at the origin of the word baka.

There are several theories about the origin of this word, let's see some things and you can decide for yourself. Some believe it all started when a eunuch named Choko planned a rebellion against the 2nd Qin Dynasty Kogai Emperor in China.

He took a deer and introduced it to the Emperor saying he brought a rare horse. Some agreed out of fear of him, those who disagreed were killed. It is believed that the monks began to switch the reading of arrears to baka. Others say that the word came from the expression bankrupt family that in the Zen scripture is pronounced baka. As you have noticed, the word baka has several different uses. Sometimes the tone of your voice defines the way you are insulting and offending the person.

You can simply speak randomly and harmlessly or even call the person strongly dumb. Note: Some regions in the prefecture may use different expressions. The Japanese dialects are not perfectly divided by the prefectural boundary. Which one is your favorite? Tofugu Japanese current View All Japanese. View All Japan. How To Use Baka The meaning of baka is so varied as you've seen , it's no wonder that it's usage is equally complex.

Positive Meaning Baka is often used to mock someone, but it can also be used in a good-natured way. To rail at someone who made a mistake or did something stupid. To regret that you or someone else did something stupid.

You must be pretty dumb. It is extremely offensive to use this word with someone you do not know. This includes bosses, supervisors, teachers, your father in law, etc. However, the usage actually varies by location a bit. Are we missing any details? Let us know! As with many other Japanese words, anime and manga are what really introduced the West to baka. By the s, anime fans were peppering baka into their online writing. It may be used casually between friends, but at work it might be inappropriate.

Also depending on where you are in Japan, it may be considered more or less offensive. Baka is also used to describe people who are obsessive about one topic in particular. For example, there is a manga series called Inubaka : Crazy for Dogs. Similarly, in English, we might call someone a dancing-fool or boy-crazy. In that case, people may even call themselves baka. This is not meant to be a formal definition of baka like most terms we define on Dictionary.