Anime Companion Supplement - K Ka - Kai - Kak - Kam - Kan - Kar - Kas - Kat - Ke - Ki - Kis - Ko - Kok - Kon - Kos - Ku - Ky This series of pages is a supplement to two of my books The Anime Companion and The Anime Companion 2. For easy browsing go to the: Topical / Subject Index See the regular entry pages for cross references between variant terms, differing spellings, English to Japanese terms and names: # - A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - Y - Z - Side Bars Special Supplement: Rurouni Kenshin OVAs Each Supplement page consists of: 1. A list of entries in the books with page numbers. 2. New entries for items not found in the books. 3. Japanese characters for entries 4. Secondary sources used to find information for each entry. 5. Additional information for some entries. 6. Links to select Internet resources related to the entries. You can also search my entire site: Custom Search

For more information about this supplement see The Anime Companion Supplement main page. Additions are announced in the Anime Companion Supplement News page and in my Blog.

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

kabayaki (charcoal broiled fish) かばやき or 蒲焼

Fish split open, de-boned, skewered and grilled. A rich sauce is used for basting with this dish. The most popular kind of kabayaki is unagikabayaki made with eel (unagi; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.144), sometimes as unagi donburi (The Anime Companion 2 p.110). Kabayaki are served from roadside stands (yatai; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.147) or in restaurants. The famous kabayaki of Fukagawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.21) used a strong salty sauce.
Anime:
In Samurai Champloo (ep.11) Jin gets a part time job that involves cutting, but not the kind he had in mind as it involves eels and grilling.
Sources:
Naito Akira. Edo: The City That Became Tokyo p.160-161
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.66
Illustrated Eating in Japan p.40
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.163

kabu (turnip) 蕪

Turnip, also called kabura. Brassica campestris, var. glabra. One of the older crops grown in Japan. At one time these were called suzuna. Generally a fall and winter crop it can also be planted in the spring and harvested in the summer. The kabu comes in several regional varieties varying in size and color, for example the akakabu is red and similar in appearance to a beet. It is mainly the root that is eaten, however some varieties are mainly grown for the greens, called nozawana. Kabu is cooked in several ways, often boiled, and is used to make several kinds of pickles (see: tsukemono, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.140).
Anime:
At the market we see a kabu cut in half in episode 2 of Ghost Slayers Ayashi.
In the fourth portion of Samurai X Trust and Betrayal turnip and satoimo (taro) are the two root crops in the basket of plants Kenshin is harvesting.
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.66.
Sanmi Sasaki. Chado The Way of Tea A Japanese Tea Master's Almanac p.317, 572.

kabuki 歌舞伎 (The Anime Companion 2 p.35)

Source:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.702

KABUKI FEMALE IMPERSONATOR see: onnagata

kabuki mono かぶき者 (The Anime Companion 2 p.35)

Source:
Leiter, Samuel. New Kabuki Encyclopedia p.245

KABUKI PLAY WITH GANG OF FIVE see: Aoto-zōshi hana no nishiki

Kabukichō 歌舞伎町 (The Anime Companion 2 p.35)

Source:
Look Into Tokyo p.149
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p. 250-51

Kabukiza 歌舞伎座 (The Anime Companion 2 p.36)

Source:
Leiter, Samuel. New Kabuki Encyclopedia p.246

KABURA see: kabu (turnip)

KABUTO STOCK EXCHANGE see: Tōkyō Shōken torihikijo (The Anime Companion 2 p.105)

Kabutochō 兜町

A neighborhood of Chūō-ku in Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104), also known as Nihonbashi-kabuto-chō. Today this is mainly a commercial district with many securities companies and the Tōkyō Stock Exchange (see: Tōkyō Shōken Torihikisho; The Anime Companion 2 p.105). The area gets it's name from a small Shintō shrine (see: jinja; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.54) named Kabuto-jinja. The shrine commemorates the giving of a helmet (kabuto) to the dragon (see: ryū; The Anime Companion 2 p.75) in the local river by a warrior (see: bushi; The Anime Companion 2 p.11) in the 11th century. One of the famous early 20th century residents in this area was Shibusawa Eiichi who lived in a Venetian gothic style mansion on the banks of the Nihombashi river.
Anime:
The Kabuto area is where the bank job takes place in the first episode of Bubblegum Crash.
Sources:
Enbutsu Sumiko. Old Tōkyō: Walks in the City of the Shōgun p.51
Hidenobu Jinnai. Tokyo A Spatial Anthropology p.115-116
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo p.77

KACHIDOKI BRIDGE see: Kachidokibashi

Kachidokibashi 勝鬨橋

A double drawbridge near the mouth of the Sumidagawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.93) in Chūō-ku connecting Tsukiji, near the Tsukiji Fish Market (Tsukiji Shijō; The Anime Companion 2 p.109), and Kachidoki. The construction on this bridge was completed in 1940. The name of the bridge commemorates a victorious sea battle during the Russo Japanese War (Nichiro Sensō; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.93), kachidoki means a shout of victory.
Anime:
The Kachidoki Bridge is in several scenes, including a raising, in You're Under Arrest!: The Motion Picture.
Manga:
Goto is instructed to go to Kachidoki Bridge in Old Boy (v.3 p.34, 36-) where someone other than the caller meets him.
Sources:
Bestor, Theodore C. Tsukiji p.60
Takahashi Morio. Pocket Romanized Japanese-English Dictionary p.410
Tokyo City Atlas 66 D1
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.109
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.222

kadomatsu (pine gate) 門松 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.58)

Sources:
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.34
Festivals of Japan p.16
Japanese Family and Culture p.75
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.708
A Look Into Japan p.81

kaede to momoji (maple tree) 楓 (or 槭) and 紅葉 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.58)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.922

kagema (a type of male prostitute) 陰間

A type of male prostitute which existed in the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) and mainly worked in kagemajaya. Kagema were young, or at least appeared to be, still wearing the forelocks of a youth who has not yet had a boy’s coming of age ceremony (see: genpuku, The Anime Companion 2 p.22) in some cases long after the usual age for cutting them had passed. While some kagema were apprentice kabuki (The Anime Companion 2 p.35) actors who were not yet allowed on stage, the majority were not connected with kabuki. The clothing of kagema was often a mixture of masculine and feminine or a fully transgendered feminine outfit. While the clients of the kagema were almost all male, some were women who had a taste for young men; the taking of female customers was considered something done later in the career of a kagema. At times authorities would take action against male prostitution, often in relation to scandals involving female customers of high rank or female prostitution in the same business. This particular type of male prostitution seems to have died out in the early Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81).
Manga:
While walking at night Saitō Hajime rescues a young woman from being accosted two men only to realize, after he is passionately kissed, that the "young woman" is a kagema. Kaze Hikaru (v.5 p.12-17).
Sources:
McLelland, Mark J. Male Homosexuality in Modern Japan p.23, 148.
Pflugfelder, Gregory M. Cartographies of Desire p.34, 36n, 38, 119-120, 122, 155-157.

kagemajaya (kagema tea house) 陰間茶屋

A type of tea house where kagema provided services to their customers. These operated outside the licensed quarters of regulated prostitution and were never fully legal operations. These were usually found in theater districts or near major Buddhist temples (see: jiin, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.53) or Shintō shrines (see: jinja, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.54). The clientele were mainly men however it was not unusual for women to also patronize these businesses. In the major cities of Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18), Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77) and Ōsaka (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.102) and on the major roadways between them repression of such enterprises was occasional. In other daimyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.15) domains (see: han, The Anime Companion 2 p.26) however they sometimes were banned or highly restricted. Periodic repression of kagemajaya in major cities such as Edo tended to take place as a result of male-female sex in them rather than male-male. The height of such businesses in Edo seems to have been in the 17th century, declining afterwards perhaps due to a decline in such interests among the samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) who were becoming less warlike and misogynist. Many of Edo's kagemajaya were closed by government order in the 1840s and by the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81) the remaining areas had switched to entertaining with geisha (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.33) rather than young men, those preferring young men having moved on to other kinds of venues.
Manga:
Yukiya works at a kagemajaya called Hashidaya in Kyōto's Miyagawa-cho. Kaze Hikaru (v.5 p.17)
Sources:
Pflugfelder, Gregory M. Cartographies of Desire p.93, 120-122, 134-136, 155.

kagami-mochi (New Year rice cake ornament) 鏡餅

A New Year ornament consisting pair of round rice cakes, the smaller on top of the larger and placed in location of honor such as in the tokonoma (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.137) or on the Shintō altar (see: kamidana; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60). Often these have additional objects attached such as a type of sour orange called a daidai on top or a shimekazari. This custom dates back to at least the Engi Era (The Anime Companion 2 p.20), originally it was done on many kinds of festive occasions; today it is only a New Year custom. When it is broken up it is done my hand, as knives are never used to cut the kagami-mochi.
Anime:
In Kami Chu! (ep.14) a kagami-mochi with a daidai on top and other items below is seen on a sanbō (offering stand).
Manga:
During New Years Near plays with figurines and kagami-mochi in Death Note (v.11 p.176-178).
In Vagabond (v.26 ch.230) Juzo remembers how he broke up the kagami mochi ate some and took some home planning to enjoy it in soup after he and his companions kill Miyamoto Musashi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.86).
In Sanctuary (v.7 p.106) Hojo makes an announcement at a gathering a kagami-mochi with a lobster and boughs is behind him in the tokonoma.
Sources:
Illustrated Eating in Japan p.62
Illustrated Japanese Family & Culture p.74
Illustrated Look Into Japan p. 81
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.607

kaginawa (hook rope) 鈎縄

A hook rope combination. This weapon was used by police to capture and restrain rather than kill. The hooks could be single or more, the rope would be long enough to be of use in securely tying a prisoner. In a fight the hook could be attached to the flesh or clothing of a person and the rope used to hinder their movements and to tie them.
Manga:
In Color of Rage (p.218) the kaginawa used to capture George and King have three hooks.
In Samurai Executioner (v.3 p.226) the jōmawari Sakane Kasajirō uses a kaginawa.
Sources:
Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan p.113-114

Kagiya 鍵屋

A major manufacturer of fireworks (hanabi The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.39). The founder of the company enjoyed making fireworks as a child and founded the company in 1659 in the Nihonbashi area of Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18). Their major competitor was Tamaya and each year the companies would try to out do each other in the making of beautiful displays.
Manga:
Spectators shout out Tamaya! Kagiya! at the Ryōgoku River Festival fireworks show on the Sumidagawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.93) in Samurai Executioner (v.6 p.188)
Sources:
Hanabi: The Fireworks of Japan p.69
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.376
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.117

kago (sedan chair) 駕籠 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.58)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.710

kagome kagome 籠目籠目 or かごめかごめ

A Children's game where one child closes their eyes, squats and others circle around while chanting a song. When they stop chanting the child who is 'it' guesses who is behind them. If correct that person becomes it.
Anime:
Yukari watches the game being played in Doomed Megalopolis (ep.1)
In City Hunter 3 (ep.8 ) we don't see the game, rather we hear the tune at a street crossing while Ryo is trailing Kaori.
It is also seen in Silent Möbius (ep.7), Urusei Yatsura (TV ep.78 story 101) and in The Legend of the Dog Warriors The Hakkenden (ep. 5)
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.710

KAGOSHIMA HAN see: Satsuma han (The Anime Companion 2 p.80)

kagura 神楽 FORMAL incorrect in the book as 神樂. I cannot reproduce the correct form here. (The Anime Companion 2 p.36)

Sources:
Averbuch, Irit. The Gods Come Dancing p.9-11
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shintō p.81-82
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.711
Must See In Nikko p.64, 181
Outlook on Japan p.27)

kagura suzu (suzu wand) 神楽鈴

A type of wand with several suzu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.129) attached to rings of declining size as they go up the wand. This is used in performances of kagura (The Anime Companion 2 p.36) and other rituals at Shintō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.121) shrines.
Anime:
We see a kagura suzu with broad goshiki ribbons attached to it in Kami Chu! (ep.1)
Okuni (see: Izumo no Okuni (The Anime Companion 2 p.33) has kagura suzu in episode 20 of Samurai Deeper Kyo.
Sources:
Illustrated A Look Into Japan p.23

KAHAKU see: onigawara (The Anime Companion 2 p.69)

KAHAN NO RETSU see: rōjū (elder)

kai-awase (shell-matching game) 貝合せ (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.58)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia 712

kaidan dansu 階段箪笥 FORMAL 階段簞笥 (The Anime Companion 2 p.36)

Sources:
Bornoff, Nicholas and Michael Freeman. Things Japanese p.12-13

Kaientai 海援隊

In 1864 Sakamoto Ryōma (The Anime Companion 2 p.76) and about 20 other rōnin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106), with financial backing from Satsuma han (The Anime Companion 2 p.80), formed a shipping business called the Shachū (Company) in Nagasaki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.90). They purchased guns and other items from Western merchants and used the small fleet of ships they had to transport them to the anti-shōgunate forces of Satsuma han and Chōshū han (The Anime Companion 2 p.13). In 1867 Ryōma reestablished links with Tosa han (The Anime Companion 2 p.106) and obtained a pardon for having become a rōnin along with han (The Anime Companion 2 p.26) patronage for his operation which was renamed the Kaientai, the Naval Auxiliary Force. One interesting story is that a ship of Kii han collided with the Iroha Maru, one of the ships the Kaientai was using. Ryōma sued employing international law for the first time in Japan and obtained a large settlement. Not bad for a rebel taking on one of the most powerful pro-shōgunate han in Japan. Also in 1867 the company business matters were placed in the hands of Iwasaki Yatarō who proceeded to turn the loosely run rebel organization into a proper, if often illegal, business. After Ryōma's death in 1868 and during the dramatic events that followed in the rest of Japan the company was disbanded.
Anime:
In Peacemaker (ep.24) Tetsu has a dream that Ryoma asks him to join the Kaientai.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.712
Jansen, Marius B. Sakamoto Ryōma and the Meiji Restoration p.216, 267, 272-276

kaihōgyō 回峯行 or 回峰行 (The Anime Companion 2 p.36)

Source:
Stevens, John. The Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei

KAIJŌ JIEITAI see: Jieitai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.53)

kaijū (giant monster) 怪獣 OLD FORM 怪獸 (The Anime Companion 2 p.37)

Sources:
Galbraith IV, Stuart. Monsters are Attacking Tokyo p.8

KAIKI MANGA (SHOCKING MANGA) see: kyōfu manga (terror manga)

kaimyō 戒名 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.58)

Sources:
Discover Japan v.1 p.184

KAI-ŌI see: kai-awase (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.58)

kaiseki ryōri 懐石料理

One of the traditional styles of Japanese dining. The modern style developed in the 19th century during the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25). The features of kaiseki ryōri come from earlier formal styles such as honzen ryōri and cha-kaiseki ryōri. Kaiseki ryōri itself is a relaxed style of dining and sake (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.109) is served during the meal which consists of a series of courses. The courses begin with appetisers and the meal often includes sashimi (The Anime Companion 2 p.79), suimono (clear soup), yakimono (grilled foods), mushimono (steamed food), aemono (dressed salad type food) ending with miso soup (see: misoshiru, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.85), pickles (see: tsukemono, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.140), rice and tea (see: cha, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.16). Such elaborate meals are found at ryōtei (traditional restaurants) and some higher class Japanese inns (see: ryokan, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.107).
Anime:
"Kaiseki ryouri" in mentioned in the opening notes and by a very hungry Kaori in the first episode of City Hunter 3.
Manga:
A ryōtei and the making of kaiseki ryōri in the kitchen play a role in the first story of Oishinbo A la Carte: Japanese Cuisine.
Sources:
Illustrated A Look Into Japan p.154
Illustrated Japanese Inn & Travel p.171
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.714

kaishakunin 介錯人 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.501
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.659

kaiten sushi (revolving sushi bar) 回転寿司

Revolving sushi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.128) bars are a type of sushi restaurant which started in the 1950s. In kaiten sushi pairs of specific types of sushi placed on small plates on a conveyor belt. You simply choose the one you want, the plates are different colors with a specific price for each color. When you are ready to pay the staff add up the value of your plates. You can also order specific sushi to be made. The first of this type of restaurant was Genroku-zushi in Higashi-Ōsaka.
Manga:
In Genshiken (v.6 p.42) Madarame runs into Kasukabe and they drop by a kaiten sushi place to eat. Kasukabe orders ōtoro (very fatty tuna meat), which is so expensive only one piece is on the plate.
Sources:
Ashburne, John & Abe Yoshi, World Food Japan p.147
Tokyo Walking Around p.42-43
Isobune Sushi in my old neighborhood in Oakland California.

KAKEJIKU see: kakemono (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

kakekomidera (refuge temple) 駆込寺

Refuge temples also called enkiridera, divorce temples. These existed in Japan from the 13 century until the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81). Kakekomidera were Buddhist convents that would take in women who were trying to escape their husbands. After three years, later reduced to two years, of service in such a temple a woman was allowed to petition for divorce even if the husband objected. The most famous of such temples was Tōkeiji in Kamakura (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59), another was Mantokuji. In the late Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) only Tōkeiji and Mantokuji were allowed to function as kakekomidera.
Anime:
Enkiridera is the term he uses when Jin helps Shino escape to a divorce temple in Samurai Champloo (ep.11)
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.716
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.562

kakemono (hanging scroll) 掛け物 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.716
Outlook on Japan p.44
Condon, John and Keisuke Kurata. In Search of What's Japanese About Japan p.26

kaki (persimmon) 柿 (The Anime Companion 2 p.37)

Source:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1198

kakigōri-ki (shaved ice) [kakigōri かき氷](The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

Actually there is an error here a kakigōri-ki is the machine used to make kakigōri, shaved ice.
Sources:
Eating in Japan p.139
Pictorial Encyclopedia of Japanese Life and Events p.52

kaku andon (four-legged standing lantern) 角行灯 OLD FORM 角行燈 (The Anime Companion 2 p.38)

Source:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.879

KAKU SEIRŌ see: seirō (The Anime Companion 2 p.81)

KAKUGO see: renju (five-in-a-row)

KAKURE KIRISHITAN see: Kirisutokyō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.69)

kakurenbo (hide and seek) かくれんぼ

The Japanese version of the children's game Hide and Seek. The one who is 'it,' called the oni (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.101) and selected from the players by jan-ken (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.52), has to find the ones who are hiding. The first one the oni finds becomes the new oni for the next round.
Anime:
Hide and seek (kakurenbo) is mentioned by a man trying to kill Mugen in Samurai Champloo (ep.26)
The ultimate example is Kakurenbo: Hide & Seek where the oni is all too real.
Sources:
Illustrated Japanese Family & Culture p.66

KAKUSHI see kakute

kakushibuki (hidden weapon) 隠し武器

Hidden weapons, sometimes the term hibuki is used. Specifically weapons small enough to be concealed within clothing or in common objects one would carry or have around them. Weapons classed as kakushibuki include shuriken (The Anime Companion 2 p.89), suntetsu (The Anime Companion 2 p.93), konpei, and shikomibuki.
Anime:
In Ranma 1/2 Anything-Goes Martial Arts (ep.8) Shampoo warnsRanma that Mouse is a master of hidden weapons, listen to the original Japanese and you will hear the word kakushibuki used.
Sources:
Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan p.57, 136, 155, 186.
Cunningham, Don. Samurai Weapons: Tools of the Warrior p.45-73

kakute (horned hand) 角手

The kakute is a small weapon, a finger ring with a few spikes or teeth coming out of one part. It is usually worn spikes inward and allows the user to get a grip on an opponent, it is also used to apply a painful grip on pressure points. Wearing it with spikes outward is unusual. It is called by several names depending on the ryū (The Anime Companion 2 p.75) and different types have different names depending on the number of teeth they have. It is also generally called kakushi, horned finger, however kakushi can also refer to any small hidden weapon.
Manga:
In Path of the Assassin (v.1 p.96, 100) a nokizaru named Dakki uses a kakute on Hattori Hanzō while questioning him.
Sources:
Frederic, Louis. Dictionary of the Martial Arts p.92
Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan p.110-113

Kakuzenbo Hoin In'ei 院覚禅房胤栄

1512 - 1607. Commonly known as Hōzōin In'ei. He was from the Nakamikado clan and became a Buddhist priest (bōzu) at Hōzōin temple, however his love of martial arts resulted in his being kicked out after which he wandered the country visiting martial artists as he traveled. One of the fighters was Daizen Taibu Shigetada who he studied spear fighting under. He also studied under Onishiki Shunken. When he fought Kamiizumi Nobutsuna he lost and ended up becoming a student of the famous swordsman. In time he was allowed to return to the temple. In'ei developed the Hōzōin-ryū spear fighting techniques for the kamayari. He also arraigned for Yagyū Sekishūsai Muneyoshi, a relative of his, to meet Kamiizumi Nobutsuna. Late in his life he decided that priest and monks should have nothing to do with martial arts and had all weapons removed from the temple as well as forbidding the teaching of fighting techniques.
Manga:
In Vagabond (v.4 ch. 32) Jōtarō mentions Hōzōin In'ei, later (ch.37) Miyamoto Musashi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.86) and Jōtarō meet him thinking he is just another old monk. In a later volume (v.7 ch.65) the meeting between Kamiizumi Nobutsuna and Yagyū Sekishūsai Muneyoshi arraigned by Hōzōin In’ei is seen.
Sources:
Knutsen, Roald & Patricia. Japanese Spears p.82-
Turnbull, Stephen. The Samurai Sourcebook p.90
Wilson, William Scott. The Lone Samurai p.44, 87

Kakuzenbo Inshun 覚禅房胤舜

Sometimes just referred to as Inshun. A student of, and the successor of, Kakuzenbo Hoin In'ei who had mastered the Hōzōin-ryū spear techniques of his teacher, according to some rumors In'ei was his father. Late in his life In'ei had come to the decision that priests (bōzu) should not practice martial arts and forbade Inshun to teach others. However a few years after In'ei's death Inshun was abbot of the Hozoin temple and again teaching spear techniques as well as changing the structure of the ranks. He also studied with a Nichiren priest of Ozoin temple, a priest who was also a student of In'ei's.
Anime:
Inshun shows up in Ninja Resurrection (ep.2)
Manga:
In volumefour of Vagabond Inshun enters the story, later he and Miyamoto Musashi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.86) fight, in actually the Hozoin spear technique user that Musashi fought was the priest at Ozoin temple.
Sources:
Knutsen, Roald & Patricia. Japanese Spears p.82-
Wilson, William Scott. The Lone Samurai p.45

kama (cooking pot) かま or 釜 (The Anime Companion 2 p.38)

Source:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.69

kama meshi かまめし or 釜飯 (The Anime Companion 2 p.38)

Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.70
Nagasawa Kimiko & Camy Condon. Eating Cheap in Japan p.16-17
Ashburne, John & Abe Yoshi World Food Japan p.179

kamado (stove) かまど or 竈 (The Anime Companion 2 p.39)

Source:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.70
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p. 29

kamaitachi (weasel slash) 鎌鼬 or 窮奇

A type of splitting of the skin. This was traditionally held to be caused by weasels using supernatural powers to create a whirlwind which then caused the skin to split.
Anime:
In Doomed Megalopolis (ep.1) during the attack at the train station when Hirai says "weasel slash" in the subtitles listen carefully and you will hear the word kamaitachi.
In El Hazard (ep.6) the subtitles translate what Ifurita says as "A weasel's slash formed by an air vacuum" listen and again you will hear the word kamaitachi.
Sources:
Reider, Noriko T. "The Appeal of Kaidan Tales of the Supernatural." Asian Folklore Studies 59, no. 2 (2000): p.273
Foster, Michael Dylan. Morphologies of Mystery: Yōkai and Discources of the Supernatural in Japan 1666-1999 p.60

Kamakura 鎌倉 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.719
Web site:
Kamakura Green Net

Kamakura Period 鎌倉時代 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.720-724
Must-See in Kyōto p.179
Must-See in Nikko p.181

KAMAKURA SHOGUNATE see: Kamakura period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

kamayari 鎌槍

A type of spear with one or more sickle (kama = sickle), blades extending at a right angle from the shaft at the point where the spearhead meets the shaft. There are several types of kamayari depending if there are one or two blades, if the blade is straight or curved, if curved the direction the blade curves, if two blades are they the same length or not and if they curve in the same or different directions. Fighting techniques include various thrusts and slashes with the different blades.
Anime:
This weapon is seen used in Raven Tengu Kabuto and Samurai Deeper Kyo (ep.3)
Manga:
Marubashi Chōya, a spear instructor, has a kamayari hung on his wall in Samurai Executioner (v.5 p.237)
In Vagabond (v.7 ch.62) Miyamoto Musashi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.86) fights Kakuzenbo Inshun who uses a kamayari
Sources:
Knutsen, Roald & Patricia. Japanese Spears: Polearms and Their Use in Old Japan p.61-62

kami 神 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.727
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shintō p.84

kami fūsen (paper ball) 紙風船

An inflated paper ball, also called kami temari. These are made by taking strips of thin paper cut so they are wider in the middle and taper towards each end. They are ten pasted together in such a way that when air is blown into a hole at one end they inflate, a small valve in the form of a paper flap inside the hole helps keep them inflated. Usually the paper is of several colors and brightly colored. The earliest records of these balls indicate they were developed in the 1890s.
Anime:
We see these, anachronistically in the 1870s, in the Rurouni Kenshin TV series first in episode 28 and later in episode 89 where Misao blows one up and gives it to Aoshi.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p. 1187
And direct observation of the structure of a kami fūsen I bought at Mikado in San Francisco's Japantown.

KAMI OF DEATH see: shinigami

KAMI OF POVERTY see: bimbōgami

KAMI OF SMALLPOX see: Hōsō no kami (smallpox kami)

KAMI OF THE MOUNTAIN see: yama no kami (god of the mountain)

KAMI POSSESSION see: kamigakari

KAMI TEMARI see: kami fūsen

KAMI VEHICLE see: shintai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.121)

KAMIARIZUKI see: kaminazuki (month without gods)

KAMACHI NORIKO see: Matsuda Seiko

kamidana (Shintō altar) 神棚 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1390
Basic Terms of Shintō (1958) p.28
Living Japanese Style p.20
Japanese Family and Culture p.114
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shintō p.85

kamigakari (possession by a kami) 神憑り

Usually translated as possession by a kami (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59) or kami possession, the term literally means kami descending. This process can be gradual or sudden with the kami speaking or acting through an individual or even a group such as the bearers of a portable shrine (mikoshi, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.82) in a matsuri (festival). Some of the New religions (shinkō shūkyō, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.120) began with or involve kamigakari.
Anime:
Starting in episode 2 of Kami Chu! Yashima possesses Mitsue on occasion so he can speak to those who cannot see or hear him.
Sources:
Blacker, Carmen. The Catalpa Bow p.131, 133, 136, 172-173
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shintō p.85-86
Nelson, John K. Enduring Identities p.173

KAMIIZUMI HIDETSUNA see: Kamiizumi Nobutsuna

KAMIIZUMI ISE NO KAMI see: Kamiizumi Nobutsuna

Kamiizumi Nobutsuna 上泉信綱

1508 or 1520 - 77?, the dates are unsure. Also known as Kamiizumi Ise no Kami. A famous swordsman who was the instructor for both Yagyū Sekishūsai Muneyoshi and Kakuzenbo Hoin In'ei. His teachings included the view that learning swordsmanship had spiritual and psychological sides. Part of this was the views of the "death-dealing sword" and the "life-giving sword". He also is credited with developing the shinai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.119). Originally named Kamiizumi Hidetsuna, the son of Kamiizumi Hidetsugu of Ogo castle in Kōzuke. In 1566 his fighting for the Uesugi clan during the siege of Minowa against the Takeda clan earned him the respect of his opponents. Takeda Shingen granted permission for him to change his name to Nobutsuna, using the kanji (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61) for Nobu, this kanji was part of Harunobu, Shingen's given name. Shingen also asked him to change sides which he refused to do. Nobutsuna then went on a famous musha-shugyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.58) with two other accomplished swordsmen his nephew Hikita Bungorō and Jingo Muneharu. One story of his experiences includes rescuing a child hostage by disguising himself as a priest and luring the hungry cornered thief close enough with nigirimeshi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.93) to pin him to the ground. Kurosawa Akira used this tale as the basis for a scene in his movie The Seven Samurai. He also was invited to demonstrate his skills for the Emperor Ogimachi, an unheard of honor for any swordsman, the Emperor also granted him noble rank
Manga:
In Chapter 65 of Vagabond (v.7) the meeting between Kamiizumi Nobutsuna and Yagyū Sekishūsai Muneyoshi is seen.
Sources:
Turnbull, Stephen. The Lone Samurai and the Martial Arts p.45, 50, 50, 73-4
Turnbull, Stephen. The Samurai Sourcebook p.47, 90, 218
Wilson, William Scott, The Lone Samurai p.44, 87

kamikakushi (spirited away) 神隠し

Hiding by the spirits, sometimes translated as spirited away. In traditional Japan when someone mysteriously vanished it was at times assumed to be a kidnaping by spirits such as tengu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.134) or foxes (kitsune, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71) who had taken the person to the spirit realm. Entire communities would comb the area looking for the missing person often ringing bells and beating drums. Folk tradition has it that the victim would return in a period of time ranging from a few days to several years.
Anime:
The most famous anime with this motif is Spirited Away, or in the original Japanese title: Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (The Spiriting Away of Sen and Chihiro)
Otogi Zoshi (ep.16 ) includes a tale of a girl and boy who crossed into another realm, the boy making it back without his older sister.
Manga:
In Samurai Executioner (v.1 p.182-) a series of disappearance of young girls turns out to be not kamikakushi but the work of a pedophiliac serial killer.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p. 727

KAMIKAZE PILOTS see: Kamikaze Tokubetsu Kōgekitai (The Anime Companion 2 p.39)

KAMIKAZE SPECIAL ATTACK FORCE see: Kamikaze Tokubetsu Kōgekitai (The Anime Companion 2 p.39)

KAMIKAZE PARTY UNIFORM see: tokkōfuku (kamikaze party uniform)

Kamikaze Tokubetsu Kōgekitai (Kamikaze Special Attack Force) 神風特別攻撃隊 (The Anime Companion 2 p.39)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.728

kaminazuki (month without gods) 神無月

Also known as kannazuki. The month without kami (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59). In the modern calendar this begins on October 11, after the traditional time for the harvest. During this time those kami who can hear the invitation, some are deaf and cannot, gather at Izumo (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.52). In Izumo this period is known as the month of kami, kamiarizuki.
Anime:
In episode 12 of Kami Chu! Yurie transfers to a school in Izumo during kannazuki.
Sources:
Bocking, Brian, A Popular Dictionary of Shintō p. 86

Kaminarimon 雷門 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60)

Sources:
A Look Into Tokyo p.18

kaminari-okoshi (thunder brittle) 雷おこし

A sweet candy made from a mixture of sugar syrup and one or more of puffed rice, sesame, millet, beans or wheat. This candy is brittle and hard and is sold by the box or individually wrapped, often in a twist of paper. It is a specialty of Asakusa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.5) that originated in the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25).
Anime:
Jigoro snacks on kaminari-okoshi in Yawara! (ep.29).
A kaminari-okoshi shop seen in Sakura Wars: The Movie at the Nakamise Shopping Arcade during the new year temple visit (see: hatsumōde, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.42), the setting is in the Taisho period (see: Taishō jidai, The Anime Companion 2 p.95) and the shops are red brick.
Manga:
On page 261 of Oishinbo A la Carte: Ramen & Gyoza is an explanation of an untranslated pun involving kaminari-okoshi and mura (village) okoshi (revival) from page 129.
Sources:
Illustrated A Look Into Tokyo p.32
Illustrated Japanese Inn & Travel p. 131
Tokyo Walking Around p.5

KAMINARISAMA (THUNDER KAMI) SEE: Raijin (god of thunder) (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.105)

kami-shibai (paper shows) 紙芝居 (The Anime Companion 2 p.39)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.513
Tuttle, Charles E. Incredible Japan p.97

KAMMIKISSA see: kanmikissa

KAMON see: mon (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.89)

kampō (Chinese Medicine) 漢方

Chinese medicine, this is sometimes Romanized as kanpō. Chinese medicine first entered Japan in the 6th and 7th centuries by Japanese scholars who had returned from studying in China. Kampō uses kusuri (drugs)) usually made from a mixture of herbs, sometimes with minerals and animal parts. The techniques changed little until the 15th century when they were adapted for a Japanese context. Kampō is still practiced in Japan today alongside Western Medicine.
Anime:
Ryoko, being the "proper" young lady she is, makes a kampō herbal tea for Shutaro in the manner of the traditional tea ceremony (see: cha-no-yu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.17) in Urusei Yatsura (disc 27 ep.103 story 128 "Scramble! Rescue Lum!").
Manga:
Ayame lectures Dewanosuke on the inadequacies of kanpō in Blade of the Immortal (v.17 Ch."On the Perfection of Anatomy Part 1").
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.943

KAMPYŌMAKI see: kanpyōmaki

kamuro (young female pages or attendants) 禿

Originally kamuro were pages at the Imperial Court. The term was adopted in the pleasure quarters to refer to child attendants of courtesans. A new kamuro commonly began this work at the age of seven to nine, sometimes younger. At first the girls were trained in etiquette, local ways of speaking, how to run errands and later music, calligraphy as well as a few other arts. If especially talented they would have further training. Intelligent girls were assigned to serve higher ranking courtesans. Given that they were raised in a limited environment they rarely knew anything of the outside world. Kamuro would remain virgins until their mizuage when they themselves would become courtesans, their rank at this stage was dependent on the skills they had learned as a kamuro.
Anime:
In episode 13 of Peacemaker we find out that Saya and Ohana are kamuro and in attendance to the tayū Akesato.
Sources:
de Becker, J. E. The Nightless City: Or the History of the Yoshiwara Yūkwaku p.69
Seigle, Cecilia Segawa. Yoshiwara: The Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan p.81-86

kana (syllabary) 仮名 OLD FORM 假名 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.730

Kanadehon Chūshingura (Treasury of Loyal Retainers) 仮名手本忠臣蔵

A famousplay, originally for the puppet theater (bunraku; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.15), in eleven acts by Takeda Izumo II, Miyoshi Shōraku and Namiki Sōsuke and first performed in 1748. This play tells the story of the Akō Jiken (Akō incident) and was soon adapted for performances on the kabuki (The Anime Companion 2 p.35) stage. This was not the first play based on the famous vendetta but it is considered the greatest and has been adapted into film several times. The play is often performed in December when the vengeance was carried out. Due to prohibitions on depicting contemporary events on stage during the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) the play is set in the past in Kamakura (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59) rather than Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18)
Manga:
That the uniforms of the Shinsengumi (The Anime Companion 2 p.86) were modeled on those of the rōnin in Kanadehon Chūshingura is mentioned in Kaze Hikaru (v.5 p.76)
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.731
Leiter, Samuel. New Kabuki Encyclopedia p.271-274

Kanagawa Ken 神奈川県 OLD FORM 神奈川縣 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.732
Web site:
Kanagawa Prefecture (official site)

KANAGAWA TREATY see: Nichibei Washin Jōyaku (The Anime Companion 2 p.62)

KANAMURA MITSUHIRO see: Rikidozan

Kanaya 金谷 (The Anime Companion 2 p.40)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.732

Kanda 神田

In 1878, during the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81), Kanda was one of the original 15 ku (wards) of Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104). In 1947 Kanda was merged with Kōjimachi to form the present day Chiyoda-ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.13). When Tōkyō was still called Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) Kanda was a significant commercial and densely populated residential district from the early days of the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25). During the Edo Period the Kandagawa river channel was dug through the district at that time resulting in Kanda being divided into two parts, the Soto Kanda to the North and Uchi Kanda to the South of the river. Another division was townspeople on the lower elevations and samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) dwellings on the high places of Kanda hill, a location left over after a much larger Kanda hill had been leveled to create land fill on Edo Bay (Tōkyō Wan The Anime Companion 2 p.105). After the Meireki fire most of the temples of this district, there were 69 built in the early 17th century alone, were moved further away from the city center. In 1857 the first center for vaccination in Japan was established here by Itō Genboku and other scholars of Western medicine. Today this part of Tōkyō has several long established private Universities and Colleges, for example: Meiji University, Chūō University, Nihon University, Hōsei University and Senshū University in the section known as Surugadai. It also has something like 60% of the publishers in Japan , as well as printers and the famous Jimbōchō neighborhood with it's bookstores. It is also the location of the Kanda Jinja shrine, Yushima Seidō (Shōheikō), Nikolai Cathedral, also Bakin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.8) lived there for most of his life, and the Shakaitō, rickshaw puller's association was based there.
Anime:
Nenene meets Mr. Lee in Kanda in R.O.D The TV (ep.3)
In Otogi Zoshi (ep.14) Kanda is mentioned in a conversation between Hikaru and Sadamitsu.
Manga:
In Lady Snowblood (v.4 p.82) one of Yuki's targets lives in the Matsunaga-cho part of Kanda-ku
Sources:
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo p.78
Cunningham , Don. Taiho-Jutsu p.5
Enbutsu Sumiko. Old Tōkyō: Walks in the City of the Shōgun p.79
Naito Akira. Edo: The City That Became Tokyo p.108, 178, 181
Seidensticker, Edward. Low City, High City p.8, 236
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.23, 65-74

KANDA BOOKSHOPS SEE Jimbōchō

KANDA JIMBŌCHŌ SEE Jimbōchō

Kanda Jinja 神田神社

Also called Kanda Myōjin and located in Chiyoda ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.13), Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104), this Shintō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.121) shrine (jinja; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.54) is dedicated to two kami (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59): Ōnamuchi no Mikoto and Sukunahikona no Mikoto. Originally founded around 730 in the village of Shibasaki, where present-day Ōtemachi is, before the area was called Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18). The shrine was relocated in 1616 to the present location on Yushima hill to make room for the expansion of Edo castle (Edojō; The Anime Companion 2 p.18). The shrine buildings were destroyed in the Kanto earthquake (Kantō Daisinsai; The Anime Companion 2 p.41) in 1923 and the present fire resistant buildings date from the 1930s. It is also associated with Taira no Masakado (The Anime Companion 2 p.95) who was enshrined there until 1874 when his spirit was moved to a sub-shrine before the Meiji emperor visited Kanda Jinja, in May of 1984 Masakado's spirit was returned to the main shrine.
Anime:
Kanda shrine is in Doomed Megalopolis (ep.4)
Katsumi's parents going to Kanda Myojin Shrine and it's connection with a skull is in episode 69 of Silent Möbius.
Sources:
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo p.78
Enbutsu Sumiko. Old Tōkyō: Walks in the City of the Shōgun p. 73
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.734
Seidensticker, Edward. Low City, High City p.134-135
Tokyo City Atlas 21 F2
Tokyo Metropolitan Atlas 13 I-6
Turnbull, Stephen. The Samurai and the Sacred p.187
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.41, 295-296

KANDA MYŌJIN see: Kanda Jinja

KANDA SEIKO see: Matsuda Seiko

KANDA SHRINE see: Kanda Jinja

KANE see: ohaguro (blackening teeth)

kane no kireme ga en no kireme (the end of the money is the end of the relationship) 金の切れ目が縁の切れ目

A wise proverbial saying associated with the mizushōbai (water trade) and especially the fūzoku (sex industry) portion of it. Basically it means that as long as you have money the relationship with those in the industry is good.
Anime:
In City Hunter 2 (ep.31) "The end of money is the end of the relationship” is said by Ryo as he watches the hostesses (see: hosutesu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.47) who accompanied him out walk back into a club.
Sources:
Sinclair, Joan. Pink Box: Inside Japan’s Sex Clubs p.187

Kaneiji 寛永寺 OLD FORM 寬永寺 (The Anime Companion 2 p.40)

Sources:
Enbutsu Sumiko. Old Tokyo 1993 p.83, 90
Look Into Tokyo p.42
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.49, 76, 153, 160-161

kanji (Chinese character) 漢字 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.155, 736-7, 843, 1155

kanji (organizer) 幹事 (The Anime Companion 2 p.40)

Sources:
Eating in Japan p.68

kanjiki (snowshoes) 橇 or かんじき (The Anime Companion 2 p.40)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.737

KANJIZAI see: Kannon

kanjō bugyō (commissioner of finance) 勘定奉行

The commissioners (bugyō) of finance for the shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123), this Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) office was usually staffed by four high ranking hatamoto (The Anime Companion 2 p.27). In 1722, under Tokugawa Yoshimune (The Anime Companion 2 p.103), the responsibilities of office were split with two bugyō, one becoming kattekata with fiscal duities such as tax collection and the other, the kujikata, dealing with police and judicial matters including for the Kantō Chihō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61). They reported to a member of the rōjū who held the title of kattegakari rojū. Each commissioner had a staff of daikan (The Anime Companion 2 p.15) and gundai who served in the various Tokugawa family (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.137) realms. Early in the Edo Period the office was called the kanjō gashira.
Manga:
In Satsuma Gishiden (v.1 p.140) a letter is conveyed concerning the kanjō bugyō Isshiki Suō no Kami giving instructions to Yamazawa Kozaemon.
That the kanjō bugyō handled highway crimes on roads other than the major byways is mentioned in Lone Wolf and Cub (v.13 p.93).
Sources:
Deal, William E. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan p.97, 98
Goedertier, Joseph M. A Dictionary of Japanese History p.123
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.737
Nakai, Kate Wildman. Shogunal Politics p.11, 120, 156
Totman, Conrad. Politics in the Tokugawa Bakufu 1600-1843 p.68, 198-199, 304n45
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.289

Kankōmaru 観光丸

In 1854 the Dutch sent a steamship, the Soembing, to Nagasaki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.90). The bakufu (The Anime Companion 2 p.8) had wanted to purchase a warship, however the Crimean War meant that no such ships were available so the Soembing was sent instead. The ship was commanded by a Lieutenant G. Fabius who was ordered by the Dutch government to instruct the Japanese in the basics of steam ships. This he did for three months teaching over 200 students. In 1855, as a gift to the Japanese, the ship returned to Nagasaki with a detachment of sailors to continue training the Japanese. At this time the ship was renamed the Kankōmaru and became the first training ship for what was to become the Japanese Navy. In 1857 a Japanese crew under the command of Katsu Kaishū (The Anime Companion 2 p.42) sailed the ship to Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) where a fresh detachment of Dutch instructors continued further training until March 1859.
Anime:
Sakamoto Ryōma (The Anime Companion 2 p.76) points out the Kankōmaru and Kokuryūmaru as well as the nearby navy training center to Ichimura Tetsunosuke and Tatsunosuke in Peacemaker (ep 9)
Sources:
Jansen, Marius B. Sakamoto Ryōma and the Meiji Restoration p63,64

kanmikissa 甘味喫茶

A type of Japanese cafe which serves traditional sweets and tea (see: cha (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.16). Kanmikissa are popular with women and couples, however men rarely go into them alone. Often they also have items for take out.
Manga:
Hazumu gets a part time job in a Kanmikissa in Kashimashi (v.4 p.77) to earn a little extra cash.
Sources:
Illustrated Living Japanese Style p.57

KANNAZUKI see: kaminazuki (month without gods)

Kannon 観音

Kannon is a major bodhisattva (see: bosatsu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.13) in Buddhism (see: Bukkyō, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.15) and one of the most venerated in Japan. In older English language works you will see Kannon transliterated as Kwannon, and Kannon is also known as Kanzeon or Kanjizai in Japan. The Sanskrit name is: Avalokiteshvara, the Chinese: Guanyin or Kuan-yin. The Sanskrit name translates as "One who observes the sound of the world". The veneration of Kannon spread with the diffusion of the Myōhōrengekyō (Lotus Sūtra) by Buddhist missionaries and priests (bōzu). In Buddhist tradition Kannon took a vow to save all beings and dispel sufferings. Kannon is often referred to in English as the Goddess of Mercy, however Kannon is male. In China the gender shifted to female in the popular devotion of the bodhisattva, probably due to the gentle nature of the images and the association of Guanyin with providing children. Pure Land Buddhism associates Kannon with Amida Buddha as a protector in this life and leading the faithful to the Pure Land. In iconography Kannon usually has a crown with an image of Amida in it. The most commonly seen representation of Kannon is that of Shōkannon Bosatsu. In China and Japan there are traditionally 33 forms of Kannon each with a different name and attributes, there are also other names for some other forms not in the 33 and specific famous images either paintings or carvings. The 33 forms are known in Japanese as: 1. Yōryū Kannon (Yaku-ō Kannon), 2. Ryūzu Kannon, 3. Jikyō Kannon, 4. Enkō Kannon, 5. Yūge Kannon, 6. Byakue Kannon, 7. Renga Kannon, 8. Takimi Kannon, 9. Seyaku Kannon, 10. Gyoran Kannon, 11. Toku-ō Kannon, 12. Suigetsu Kannon, 13. Ichiyō Kannon, 14. Shōkyō Kannon (Seitsu Kannon), 15. Itoku Kannon, 16. Enmei (or Enmyō) Kannon, 17. Shūhū Kannon, 18. Iwato Kannon, 19. Nōjyō (or Nōshō) Kannon, 20. Anoku Kannon, 21. Amadai Kannon, 22. Hae (or Hiyoe) Kannon, 23. Ruri Kannon, 24. Tarason Kannon (Tarani Bosatsu), 25. Kōri Kannon, 26. Rokuji Kannon, 27. Fuhi Kannon, 28. Merōfu Kannon, 29. Gasshō Kannon, 30. Ichinyo Kannon, 31. Funi Kannon, 32. Jiren Kannon, 33. Shasui Kannon.
Anime:
In episode three of Doomed Megalopolis the fortune teller at the shrine mentions fortune teller "goddess of Mercy", in episode four Keiko choses Kannon at the end listen and you will hear "Kannon bosatsu" said by Kato.
During the final fight in Spirit Warrior: A Harvest of Cherry Blossoms Kujaku calls on "Kannon bosatsu".
Manga:
Kannon is also mentioned in Nextworld (v.1 p.99) and Lone Wolf and Cub (v.1 p.240).
Sources:
Frederic, Louis. Buddhism: Flammarion Iconographic Guides p.153-180.
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.738.
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. A Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.318.

KANNON, ELEVEN-HEADED KANNON see: Jūichimen Kannon Bosatsu (Eleven Faced Kannon)

KANNON THOUSAND-ARMED see: Senju Kannon (Thousand-Armed Kannon)

KANPŌ see: kampō (Chinese Medicine)

kanpyōmaki かんぴょうまき or　干瓢巻き

A type of makizushi with kanpyō, dried gourd strips, which have been simmered in a mixture of water, shōyu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.124) and sugar, then cooled. Sometimes they are soaked in water first then simmered in a stronger mixture which may include mirin. The mixture makes the light colored kanpyō turn brown, before being used as the ingredient along with sushi rice in the filling.
Anime:
Kyoko brings some uncut kanpyōmaki to Soichiro's grave in Maison Ikkoku (ep.52)
Sources:
Fukuda Minori & Kit Shan Li. Sushi: A pocket Guide p.58
Omae Kinjiro and Tachibana Yuzuru. The Book of Sushi p.96
Tsuda Nobuko. Sushi Made Easy p.13

kanten 寒天 or かんてん (The Anime Companion 2 p.41)

Sources:
Eating in Japan p.139, 151
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.72)

KANTEN NOODLES see: tokoroten (gelidium jelly)

Kantō Chihō (Kantō region) 関東地方 OLD FORM 關東地方 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.744

Kantō Daisinsai (Tōkyō Earthquake of 1923) 関東大震災 OLD FORM 關東大震災 (The Anime Companion 2 p.41)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1595
Kurosawa Akira. Something Like an Autobiography p.47ff

KANTŌ QUAKE see: Kantō Daisinsai (The Anime Companion 2 p.41)

KANTŌ REGION see: Kantō chihō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61)

kanzashi (hair ornament) 簪

Hair ornaments commonly about 7 inches long with two prongs, some had a small scoop on the end for cleaning the ear. These became popular in the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25), especially in the 18th and 19th century with the development of new hairstyles for women. These are made from a variety of materials including metal, wood, bamboo, tortoiseshell, glass and ivory. Ornamentation of a kanzashi can be with lacquer, metal, ceramic, enamel, cloth, coral etc. It is believed that kanzashi evolved from an earlier ornament called the kazashi from the 12th - 16th centuries. One common type is the tsumami kanzashi (flowery hair ornament). Kanzashi are often worn with decorative combs (kushi, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77). Metal kanzashi could also function as weapons for self defense by women and were at times made heavy enough to be used so. Well made kanzashi are also often handed down to daughters by their mothers.
Anime:
In Salaryman Kintaro (ep.12) there is a flashback scene where we see a younger Misuzu dressed in a kimono (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68) with a traditional hairstyle and kanzashi.
Manga:
Manji uses a metal kanzashi like a shuriken (The Anime Companion 2 p.89) in Blade of the Immortal (v.20 ch."Demon Lair Part 3").
In Gin Tama (v.2 p.96, 98) the heroes, if they can be called that, are hired to find a girl, from 50 years earlier, who wore a bira kanzashi and worked at a dango (The Anime Companion 2 p.15) shop.
Sources:
Hearn, Lafcadio. Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan p.420
Illustrated A Look Into Japan p.47
Illustrated Must-See in Kyoto p.123
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.744
Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan p.203
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. A Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.148

kanzashi dama (hairpin bead) 簪玉

Any round bead used on a kanzashi. These could be made of coral, glass, semi precious stone, ceramic, enamel (shippo) etc. Such beads became popular in the later 19th century and gradually replaced the more elaborate ornaments of earlier times.
Anime:
Fuu wears two kanzashi with three kanzashi dama in Samurai Champloo.
Sakura is seen with a hairpin in the first Sakura Wars OVA that has a kanzashi dama on it.
In New Cutey Honey (ep.6) much of the action takes place in a theme park and we see a woman with an enamel or ceramic kanzashi dama.
Manga:
In Ōoku (v.1 p.32) we see O-Nobu wearing a kanzashi dama as she eats with her family.
Sources:
Hashimoto Sumiko. Japanese Accessories p.88
Bowes, James Lord. Notes on Shippo: a sequel to Japanese enamels p.31

KANZEON see: Kannon

kappa 河童 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61)

Sources:
A Look Into Japan p.104
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.89
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.745

KAPPA ROLL see: kappamaki

kappamaki かっぱまき or 河童巻き

In English this is commonly called a kappa roll, a type of makizushi with sliced lightly pickled cucumber, (kyūri The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.78) in the middle, or at times whole Japanese cucumber which is much thinner than the Western kind. The name comes from a tradition that kappa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61) like cucumbers, as a result of this the sushi-shop word for cucumber is kappa.
Manga:
Konatsu is given an uncut kappamaki laced with a drug in Ranma 1/2 (v.33 p.142)
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.72-73, 88
Fukuda Minori & Kit Shan Li. Sushi: A pocket Guide p.56
Suetsugu, Bobby. Samurai Sushi p.134

kappōgi (cooking apron) かっぽう着 or 割烹着 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.41

kappuru kissa (couples cafe) カップル喫茶

A type of sex club that only allows entrance to couples. Sexual activity is encouraged and there is no privacy as peeping and even mingling is also encouraged.
Manga:
Hikaru and Makotoi go into the Mezzo Piano kappuru kissa, translated as a "couples tea house", as part of their hunt for a killer in IWGP: Ikebukuro West Gate Park (v.1 p.139-)
Sources:
Sinclair, Joan Pink Box: Inside Japan’s Sex Clubs p.164, 186, 187

kapuseru hoteru (capsule hotel) カプセル ホテル

Capsule hotels are the ultimate in minimal hotel service. The clients for capsule hotels is mainly traveling businessmen on a strict budget, workers who have missed the last train or those who wish to economize. For these reasons they are almost always located near train stations. Each consists of aisles of small rooms, roughly 2x1x1 meters (6x3x3 feet), stacked one on top of the other. Each room is floored with a mattress and includes a TV set, radio, light and clock. A ladder built into the wall is used to climb into rooms that are off the floor. Lockers and shower facilities are provided, some even have saunas and restaurants. A few capsule hotels have rooms reserved for women or only accept women. It is also possible to rent rooms by the hour for napping. Food, drink and smoking are not allowed in the rooms.
Anime:
In the opening animation sequence for the first season of the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex TV series the Major wakes in a capsule hotel after the dream with the doll.
George, who has limited funds, stays in a capsule hotel in Sendai in Kaze no Yojimbo (ep.5)
Sources:
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia p. 60
Japanese Inn and Travel p. 30)

KARA see: okara (The Anime Companion 2 p.67)

kara-age (deep frying) からあげ or 空揚げ

A technique for deep frying food, often the ingredients are dusted with seasoned flour. This method is usually used for fish and chicken, sometimes it is used for vegetables.
Anime:
Kara-age is translated as fried vegetables, in both Urusei Yatsura (ep.99) and MahoRomatic (ep.2)
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.73

Kara-kasa (umbrella yōkai) 唐傘

A yōkai that takes the form of a paper umbrella (see: kasa; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62) with a leg, usually hairy wearing a wooden sandal (see: geta; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.34), instead of a handle; a single eye (occasionally two) and mouth with a long tongue, sometimes it has two arms. This popular yōkai is rather harmless preferring to playfully scare people rather than do serious damage. It is classed as a type of tsukumogami (spirit of a made object).
Anime:
A one eyed Kara-kasa with a very long tongue is seen during the parade sequence in Pom Poko.
Manga:
A one eyed Kara-kasa, carrying his own umbrella is seen in Dr Slump (v.10 p.172).
Sources:
Yoda Hiroko and Matt Alt. Yokai Attack! The Japanese Monster Survival Guide p.106-109.

KARAKASA see also: kasa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62)

karakuri jitte カラクリ實手

A type of jitte (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.55) in which a crosspiece is mounted on a pin so it can be folded up for easier carrying when not in use. When unfolded it resembled the business end of a kamayari with a spearlike pointed blade and two side blades or a bar forming a cross shape. Almost all designs when opened used a separate metal stopper (tomegane) fitted into a slot to securely hold the parts in place. The parts and tomegane would all be wrapped in a cord when not in use to keep them together. There were several designs and some were small enough to be used as kakushibuki (hidden weapon). The karakuri jitte is also sometimes called a yarijitte or marohoshi.
Manga:
Kazuo Koike has two types of karakuri jitte, both times called marohoshi, appear in two of his stores. These are seen in Lone Wolf and Cub (v.13 p.98-125) when Ogami Ito fights a policeman named Mameshō and in Path of the Assassin (v.4 p.89-97) Yamamoto Kansuke uses one.
Sources:
Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan p.36-38, 42-44
Cunningham, Don. Samurai Weapons p.128-129

karaoke カラオケ (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62)

Sources:
Illustrated Living Japanese Style p.84-
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.746-7
Japanese Family and Culture p.140-
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japanese Etiquette Today p.74

karashi (mustard) からし or 芥子 (The Anime Companion 2 p.41)

Sources:
Ashburne, John & Abe Yoshi World Food Japan p.253, 262
Hosking, Richard. Dictionary of Japanese Food p.73

karasu (crow) 烏 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.142
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.258

karasumi (botargo) 鱲子 or 唐墨

Bora (grey mullet) roe pickled with salt and dried. The kasasumi from Nagasaki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.90) is considered the best. After peeling the outside skin this is eaten as is or lightly grilled, usually thinly sliced from the end or roughly torn off. Sometimes it is eaten between slices of fish sashimi (The Anime Companion 2 p.79). It is popular with sake (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.109) drinkers due to its unique flavor. The name comes from the shape resembling a Chinese (Kara) ink (sumi, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.127)) stick.
Anime:
In Urusei Yatsura (ep.99 story 122 "Sure Death! The Fast Food Wars") Lum orders karasumi, translated as "peppered cod roe" in the subtitles.
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.73) Sanmi Sasaki. Chado The Way of Tea: A Japanese Tea Master's Almanac p.571

karē (curry) カレー (The Anime Companion 2 p.41)

Sources:
Items found in San Francisco Bay Area Japanese markets.
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.74

karē raisu (curry rice) カレーライス (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62)

Sources:
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.31
Eating in Japan p.76

karesansui (sand garden) 枯山水

A sand garden, literally the term means "dry mountain stream". Such gardens contain large stones, relatively few plants and have sand as well as gravel raked and formed to create impressions of streams and the sea. This style of garden became formalized in the Muromachi Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.90) especially in Zen Buddhist (The Anime Companion 2 p.122) temples and monasteries. Chinese ink paintings of mountains and dry riverbeds are considered a major influence on the development of the design elements of such gardens. Famous gardens include that of Ryōanji and the abbot's quarters at Daisen'in in Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77).
Anime:
Such a sand garden is part of the larger garden at Jojo's home in Jojo's Bizarre Adventure (ep.1) and one is also seen in the first episode of Doomed Megalopolis.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.441-443
Illustrated A Look Into Japan p.15

karintō かりんとう

A snack made from a mixture of wheat flour, eggs and sugar. The mixture is made into strips and fried, then white or brown sugar is sprinkled on them.
Manga:
In Doing Time (p.43) Hanawa recounts his time in detention awaiting trial and snacking on karintō in his cell.
Sources:
Illustrated Eating in Japan p.135

karisuma tenin (charisma clerk) カリスマ店員

Charisma clerk. A phenomenon that began in the 1990s of women clerks who were able to establish a strong rapport with their young female clients by offering friendly casual advice on purchases. These clerks were highly successful, racking up large amounts of sales. One of the more famous, Morimoto Yoco, once sold over a million yen's worth of goods in one hour. The term charisma clerk was coined by the press to describe this phenomenon. These women, and the stores they worked at, were often highlighted in magazine articles. Several of the most famous charisma clerks worked in the various boutiques of the 109 building in Shibuya (The Anime Companion 2 p.82). Some went on to careers in the fashion design industry as consultants or even producing their own fashion lines.
Manga:
In Gals (v.4 p.9) Ran is interviewed on a live New Year TV broadcast from Shibuya. When asked about her plans for the future she indicates that after graduating high school she wants to become a charisma clerk at Maru 9.
Sources:
Ashcraft, Brian and Ueda Shoko. Japanese Schoolgirl Confidential p.97

KARITEI see: Kishibojin

KARITEIMO see: Kishibojin

karō (house elder) 家老

Literally "house elders" or "domain elders." The term dates from the Muromachi Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.90). During the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) they were the highest ranking officials under a daimyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.15) chosen from chief retainers. They could number from two to four and handled general administration of a han (The Anime Companion 2 p.26). Sometimes karō are referred to as toshiyori, shukurō or otona.
Manga:
In Kameyama han Ogami Itto is greated by the karō Minowa Mondonoshō in Lone Wolf and Cub (v.15 p.71).
In Numata han a conspiracy to kill the karō Yoshida Shuzen unfolds in Lone Wolf and Cub (v26 p.15).
In Samurai Executioner (v.3 p.106) a plot to take over Nagaoka han involving a Muramasa sword by tricking a karō is discovered.
In Satsuma Gishiden (v.1 p.140) an urgent letter from the Edo karo arrives in Satsuma han (The Anime Companion 2 p.80).
Sources:
Goedertier, Joseph M. A Dictionary of Japanese History p.127
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.748
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.289

KARUTA HAJIME see: uta karuta (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.144)

kasa (umbrella) 傘 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62)

Sources:
Discover Japan v.1 p.30
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1652

KASHI see: wagashi (traditional confections)

KASHIBONYA see: kashihonya (book rental shops)

kashihonya (book rental shops) 貸本屋

Rental libraries, shops that rent books, including manga (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.80). This type of business began in the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) and was common into the 1960s. Many famous manga artists of the 1950s and 60s wrote for publishers supplying this market. It was this market that helped expand the market for manga to include more works for teens and adults, most notably in the gekiga genre. While fewer shops exist today this type of business has not died out, I have even seen manga, in Japanese, for rent in a video store in Japantown in San Jose California.
Manga:
Tezuka in the introduction to a story in Astro Boy (v.9 p.112) mentions 'manga pay libraries' in relation to gekiga.
Sources:
Gravett, Paul. Manga: Sixty Years of Japanese Comics p40
Lent, John A. "Japanese Comics" in Handbook of Japanese Popular Culture p.226

kashira 頭 (The Anime Companion 2 p.42)

Sources:
Yumoto, John M. The Samurai Sword. p.84
Warner, Gordon and Donn F. Draeger Japanese Swordsmanship: Technique and Practice p.105

kashiwade 柏手 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.63)

Sources:
Basic Terms of Shintō (1958) p.30
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.97
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shintō p.90

kashiwa mochi かしわもち or 柏餅 OLD FORM 柏餠 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.63)

Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.74
Eating in Japan p.131

kashiya (confectionary) 菓子屋

A confectionary. This can be either a store specializing in wagashi (traditional confections)or modern confections. Traditional confectionaries, which still exist today, became popular in the Genroku jidai in Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18), Ōsaka (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.102) and Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77). They are sometimes also found outside of Japan, for example Nippon-ya in San Francisco's Japantown neighborhood.
Anime:
In Millennium Actress, during the argument between her mother and the movie producer, we find that Chiyoko's family business in Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104) is a kashiya, translated in the subtitles as "sweetshop".
In episode seven of Peacemaker Okita Sōji (The Anime Companion 2 p.68) and Hijikata Toshizō (The Anime Companion 2 p.28) go to a kashiya to buy wagashi.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.221

Kasshi-yawa ("Tales Begun on the Night of the Rat") 甲子夜話

In the early 19th century Matsura Seizan, daimyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.15) of Hirado, wrote a book called the Kasshi-yawa, "Tales Begun on the Night of the Rat" in which he included several yōkai stories including a series that became famous as the "Seven Wonders of Honjo". The seven wonder stories includes a tale known as oiteke-bori of voices from a moat, Tanuki Bayashi a story of mysterious music suspected to have been caused by tanuki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.133), Okuri Chōchin about a mysterious lantern that vanishes if you get close, Ashiarai Yashiki (Foot-Washing Mansion) with a giant dirty foot, and other tales. Kasshi-yawa is sometimes transliterated as Kashi Yawa or Koshi-yawa.
Anime:
The Seven wonders of Honjo are mentioned in episode nine of Ghost Slayers Ayashi and some are specifically mentioned, these are The Callback Moat, the Raccoon Dog Festival Music, and the Foot-Washing Mansion.
Sources:
Nozaki, Kiyoshi. Kitsuné: Japan's Fox of Mystery, Romance, and Humor p.135
Seigle, Cecilia Segawa. Yoshiwara: The Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan p. 247n61
Sumida’s Folktales & Legends
Yoda Hiroko and Matt Alt. Yokai Attack! p.126-128.

kasō (cremation) 火葬 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.63)

Sources:
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.30
Japanese Family and Culture p.109
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.254

kasō (geomancy) 家相 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.64)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.79
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.750

KASUGA, LADY see: Kasuga no Tsubone

Kasuga no Tsubone 春日局

1579-1643. The daughter of Saitō Toshimitsu, her father was a vassal of Akechi Mitsuhide. Her actual name was Fuku and she was the wife of Inaba Masanari by whom she had four children. She was selected to be the nurse for Tokugawa Takechiyo, who would later be called Tokugawa Iemitsu (The Anime Companion 2 p.102), and took the position after she was divorced from her husband. Fuku is considered to have played a major role in assisting Iemitsu to become shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123) in 1623, by alerting Tokugawa Ieyasu (The Anime Companion 2 p.102) that the eldest son was going to be passed over for his younger brother Tokugawa Kunimatsu. Some accounts say she was assisted in this by Yagyū Munenori. After Iemitsu became shōgun she was given a court rank and the name of Kasuga no Tsubone by the Emperor and allowed an audience with him. She later took control of the Ōoku (Great Interior) and greatly reformed it's structure. She died in Yushima at Rinshōin temple where she prayed for Iemitsu to recover from an illness.
Manga:
Kasuga is mentioned in the first volume of Ōoku (p.134, 197) and plays a major role in the second volume.
In chapter 52 of Yagyu Ninja Scrolls: Revenge of the Hori Clan (v.7) Takuan Sōhō (The Anime Companion 2 p.96) mentions both Lady Kasuga and Matsudaira Izunokami.
In chapter 24 of Basilisk (v.4) Ofuku, who is identified as "Takechiyo Tokugawa's godmother", enters the story.
Sources:
Deal, William E. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan p.34
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.751
Sugawara Makoto. Lives of Master Swordsmen p.128
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.200

kata (form or sequence) 形 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.64)

Sources:
Frederic, Louis. Dictionary of the Martial Arts p.104
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Behind the Japanese Bow
Condon, John and Keisuke Kurata. In Search of What's Japanese About Japan p.109-

katabira (unlined kimono) 帷子

A simple unlined kimono. Plain white katabira are used to dress a corpse. These were made in a simple kimono (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68) pattern with no lining. On occasion you may see a katabira with kanji (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61) written on them, this writing is text from Buddhist sūtras and this type of katabira is called a kyōkatabira.
Manga:
In Lone Wolf and Cub (v.15 p.297) we see a strange ceremony with a man dressed in katabira with a hitaikakushi on his forehead.
In Kaze Hikaru (v.3 p.41) Kamiya wears a deep red katabira as part of a strategy.
Sources:
Dalby, Liza. Kimono: Fashioning Culture p.318
Screech, Tim. "Japanese Ghosts", Mangajin No. 40 p.15

KATAKANA see: kana (syllabary) (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60)

KATAMI GUSA YOTSUYA KAIDAN see: Tōkaidō Yotsuya Kaidan (Ghost Story of Tōkaidō Yotsuya)

KATAMINO see: mino (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.84)

katashiro (shape substitution) 形代

Objects used as a substitute for ritual purification in Shintō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.121) and Ommyōdō. The Chinese characters (see: kanji, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61) used for this term can translated as "shape substitution". Impurities, evil influences or kegare (ritual pollution) 穢れ are transferred to the object which is then floated down a river or burned. Sometimes katashiro have a name written on them, at other times they are rubbed on the body to remove impurities, when used in this way these are also called nademono. If the object used is in a human shape they are often called hitogata (human shaped dolls). Other forms and objects are used such as horse shaped dolls, miniature ovens, wood blades and various pottery items. Today there are even some katashiro in modern shapes such as that of automobiles.
Anime and Manga:
Hitogata are used as katashiro to substitute for persons who are in danger from a curse in Ghost Hunt (v.3 p.109, 150, and ep.8) .
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.752
Nelson, John K. Enduring Identities p.70, 203, 232
Tubielewicz, Jolanta. Superstitions, Magic and Mantic Practices in the Heian Period p.88, 128

Katō Kiyomasa 加藤清正 (The Anime Companion 2 p.42)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.754
Turnbull, Stephen. The Samurai Sourcebook p.51

KATORI SHINTŌ-RYŪ see: Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū

katorisenkō 蚊取線香

Coils of insect repellant incense. The repellant used in making these coils is from the pyrethrum chrysanthemum. Pyrethrum was introduced to Japan in 1885 by Americans, the Japanese developed the coiled pattern for the incense. The most common form of incense burner for katorisenkō is in a squat pig shaped design. you will see the burner far more often in anime and manga than you will see the coils themselves. The odor of katorisenkō is associated with summer in the minds of many Japanese. You can even find them for sale outside Japan, I have seen them in hardware stores in California.
Anime:
In Chobits (ep.14) we see katorisenkō inside a pig shaped incense burner
Manga:
Two of the manga we see katorisenkō in include: Dr. Slump (v.12 p.177) and Shadow Star: Shadows of the Past p.128
Sources:
Kiritani, Elizabeth. Vanishing Japan p.140

KATSU AWA see: Katsu Kaishu (The Anime Companion 2 p.42)

Katsu Kaishū 勝海舟 OLD FORM incorrect in the book as 勝海舟. I cannot reproduce the correct form here. (The Anime Companion 2 p.42)

Sources:
Jansen, Marius B. Sakamoto Ryōma and the Meiji Restoration p.406
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.755

KATSU RINTARŌ see: Katsu Kaishu (The Anime Companion 2 p.42)

KATSU YASUYOSHI see: Katsu Kaishu (The Anime Companion 2 p.42)

katsudon (pork cutlet donburi) カツどん or カツ丼 (The Anime Companion 2 p.42)

Sources:
Nagasawa Kimiko & Camy Condon. Eating Cheap in Japan p. 16-17
Eating in Japan p.165
Hosking, Richard. Dictionary of Japanese Food p.75

katsuobushi (dried bonito) かつおぶし or 鰹節 (The Anime Companion 2 p.43)

Sources:
Eating in Japan p.152
Hosking, Richard. Dictionary of Japanese Food p.76, 200
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.756

katsuobushibako (box for shaving bonito) 鰹節箱

A special type of box for making shavings of katsuobushi (The Anime Companion 2 p.43). The structure is simple, a box that can hold a wood plane upside down. The katsuobushi is moved across the plane and the shavings are collected in the box, which usually has a drawer for easy access to them.
Anime:
We get a good view of a katsuobushibako in episode 36 of City Hunter 2 where we see it being used to prepare the ingredients for the dashi (The Anime Companion 2 p.15) to be used in a soba (The Anime Companion 2 p.90) dish.
Manga:
Shiro inspects the katsuobushibako in a ryōtei (traditional restaurant) and finds it in poor shape in Oishinbo A la Carte: Japanese Cuisine (p.21).
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.76

KATSURA KOGORŌ see: Kido Takayoshi (The Anime Companion 2 p.46)

Katsuragawa Geango 葛川夏安居 (The Anime Companion 2 p.43)

Sources:
Stevens, John. The Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei p.83

Katsushika-ku 葛飾区

One of the 23 ku of Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104). Bordered on the East and West by the Edogawa and Arakawa rivers to the South and South East is Edogawa-ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) to the West and South West is Sumida-ku, to the West and North West Adachi-ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.3), also to the North is Saitama Ken and to the East is Chiba Ken (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.18):. Katsushika-ku is mainly a residential area with some industrial development. Included in Katsushika-ku are Mizumoto Park in the North and Kyōei-zan Daikyōji. The Shibamata area of Katsushika-ku is famous as the home neighborhood of the hero of the Tora-san movie series (see: Otoko wa Tsurai Yo) and the location of the Tora-san Memorial Museum. The name Katsushika shows up in older texts such as the Man'yōshū (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.80) and then referred to a much larger area than just the present ku.
Anime:
In You’re Under Arrest (ep.2) the patrners reach the Kosuge off ramp in Katsushika-ku after a troublesome drive.
Sources:
Bilingual Atlas of Tokyo p.73, 74, 79, 80, 85, 86
Illustrated A Look Into Tokyo p.66
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.760
Tokyo City Atlas p.44, 51, 52, 60
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p. 271
Web Site:
トップページ｜葛飾区 Official Katsushika-ku website

Kawabata Yasunari 川端康成 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.64)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.760)

KAWANISHI NAVY TYPE 2 FLYING-BOAT (H8K) see: Emily (aircraft) (The Anime Companion 2 p.19)

KAWANISHI NAVY TRANSPORT FLYING-BOAT (H8K2-L) see: Emily (aircraft) (The Anime Companion 2 p.19)

kawara (roof tiles) 瓦 (The Anime Companion 2 p.43)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1275

kawaraban 瓦版

News sheets from the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25). The name means "roof-tile print", the early one's were printed with engraved kawara (The Anime Companion 2 p.43), later the tiles were replaced with wood blocks. The earliest known example is from 1615 in Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77) announcing the victory of Tokugawa Ieyasu (The Anime Companion 2 p.102) over Toyotomi Hideyori at the Ōsaka no Jin (Battle of Ōsaka Castle). During the Edo Period they were popular and sold on the street. Kawaraban could be quickly produced if a sudden news story became an opportunity to sell papers, much like an extra edition of a paper in the West. A common way to attract customers was to read a portion out loud, what came to be called "to sell by reading" or yomiuri. The kawaraban faded away in the early Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81) as Western style newspapers came into existence. It is interesting to note that one of the largest present day newspapers is named the Yomiuri Shimbun.
Manga:
In Blade of the Immortal: Beasts (pt.3) Shinriji mentions reading in a kawaraban about a samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) who killed a hundred cops.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.764
Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.711-12

Kawasaki 川崎市

A city in Kanagawa Ken (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60) located on the Tamagawa river between Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104) and Yokohama (The Anime Companion 2 p.117). Kawasaki was a post station town (shukuba machi (The Anime Companion 2 p.89) on the Tōkaidō (The Anime Companion 2 p.101) during the Edo Period (Edo Jidai The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) and the temple town for Kawasaki Daishi. During the Taisho Period (Taishō jidai; The Anime Companion 2 p.95) land reclaimed from Tōkyō Bay (Tōkyō Wan; The Anime Companion 2 p.105) was developed for industry. During the years after W.W.II this area was further developed into a significant manufacturing center with one of the largest sea ports in Japan. Kawasaki is also known for the Yomiuri Land amusement park and for an extensive fūzoku (sex industry) especially it's soaplands (sōpurando; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.125). The popular matto sābisu (mat service) is said to have originated here in the Horinouchi area.
Anime:
In City Hunter 2 (ep.19) Kinzou Takamori lives in the Kawasaki area.
In My Fair Masseuse Moko-chan commutes to her job in a soapland in Kawasaki.
The industrial parts of Kawasaki are mentioned or seen in Patlabor TV (ep.43), Patlabor 1, and Bubblegum Crisis (Ep. 2)
Sources:
Constantine, Peter, Japan's Sex Trade p.35
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia p. 281
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Sex and the Japanese p.149
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.765
Road Atlas Japan p.195 E-6
Tokyo City Atlas p.76, 80, 81
Tokyo Metropolitan Atlas p.109 J-2
Web Site:
Welcome to Kawasaki City

kaya (mosquito netting) 蚊帳

Mosquito netting. These are usually made of linen and in the shape of a four sided box-like tent suspended from the corners of a room. These can be so large as to almost fill a room providing protection for several sleepers. Kaya would be set up in the evening and folded up in the morning. Smaller versions with a bamboo frame exist for protecting babies, these could be simply placed over a child that had fallen asleep on the floor. The use of such nets goes back to ancient Japan and by the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) was common even among the poor.
Anime:
We see kaya set up at night in several anime, these include: Grave of the Fireflies, Season of the Sun, Botchan (pt.1), My Neighbor Totoro and the Sakura Wars TV series (ep.11).
Sources:
Kiritani, Elizabeth. Vanishing Japan p.142
Deal, William E. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan p.344
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. A Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.150
Morse, Edward S. Japanese Homes and Their Surroundings p. 214

kayari (smoke to repel insects) 蚊遣り

The use of smoke as an insect repellant. This term goes back to at least the 10th century where it is found in the Wamyō ruiji shō. Several ingredients were used for this such as the leave of the kaya (Japanese nutmeg tree), sulfur mixed with sawdust, yomogi (mugwort) was used my farmers and in the late 19th century ground jochūgiku (pyrethrum) came into use, this last plant is still used to make katorisenkō.
Manga:
On page 19 of volume 7 of Kaze Hikaru we see faint smoke rising a square box on the engawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.27) next to Okita Sōji (The Anime Companion 2 p.68). In volume 9 (p.188) the author explains that this was for kayari.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p. 766

kayu (rice porridge) かゆ or 粥 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.65)

Sources:
Eating in Japan p.63, p.85
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.77

KAZAMA KOTARŌ, see Fuma Kotarō

KAZARI KUMADE see: kumade (The Anime Companion 2 p.51)

kazunoko (herring roe) 数の子 or 鯑

Herring roe preserved by drying or salting. If it is salt preserved it is soaked in water to remove some of the salt. A traditional way to prepare it for serving is to soak it overnight in sake (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.109) and soy sauce (shōyu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.124) with a dash of vinegar. The mass of eggs is a symbol of procreativity. It is one of the food traditionally served at the New Year. In the tea ceremony (cha-no-yu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.17) it is one of the traditional foods for serving in January and a good accompaniment to sake.
Manga:
Red herring and herring roe symbolic of parents & children are served at a specil family meal in Hakkenden (ep.9).
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.77 Illustrated Eating in Japan p.61 Sanmi Sasaki. Chado The Way of Tea: A Japanese Tea Master's Almanac p.39

KEEPER OF THE CASTLE see:
jōdai (keeper of a castle)
rusui (caretaker, keeper)

kegare (ritual pollution) 穢れ

Ritual, that is religious, pollution, impurity or defilement. In traditional Japanese culture this can come from several sources. Kegare is the source of unhappiness, evil and interferes with religious ceremonies. While related to the Western concept of sin it is not the same. Evil acts can be defiling however, many defiling things are not related to one's own actions. An early text, the Engi Shiki, lists several types of items related to kegare, included are: unsanitary items, human blood, anything related to death of humans or animals, natural disasters, actions that disturb human society including sexual acts such as incest or bestiality. For kegare involving blood, menstruation and childbirth were two that heavily involved women. There are even special cases of avoiding kegare for those active in ritual activities such as abstaining from eating meat, or from contact with fire. Kegare can be removed by a period of retreat from social or religious activities or by any of several types of ritual activities such as misogi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.85), harae or monoimi.
Anime:
Sen in Spirited Away uses blood to terrify some of the frog men when she is in a hurry.
Blood is used by demons to neutralize the protecting scent that Fujiwara no Akiko is wearing in Shonen Onmyouji (ep 8).
Monoimi after returning from battle is observed by one of the participants in Otogi Zoshi (ep.4).
Manga:
Naozumi says blood is defilement when explaining why he would prefer to not use firearms in Shadow Star (v.2 ch."The Star Chamber Club")
Sources:
Basic Terms of Shinto (revised edition) p,29
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto p.93
Engi-Shiki Proceedures of the Engi Era v.1 p. 116-118
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p. 767

kei (bell) 磬 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.65)

Sources:
Inagaki, Hisao. A Dictionary of Japanese Buddhist Terms p.172

KEIAN INCIDENT see: Keian Jiken

Keian Jiken 慶安事件

During the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25), in the 4th year of Keian (1651) a group of rōnin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106) attempted an uprising against the bakufu (The Anime Companion 2 p.8). The plan was led by the teacher of military strategy Yui Shōsetsu and is also called the Yui Shōsetsu disturbance. The ascession of Tokugawa Ietsuna, who was 10 at the time, to shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123) was considered a good time for such a plot. The plan was to burn the city of Sumpu. destroy the shōgun's arsenal, kill the chief ministers and set fire to Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18). Before it could be carried out Marubashi Chūya, one of the major participants, made an error that led to the discovery of the plot, 33 plotters in Edo were captured and executed along with their families. Yui Shōsetsu committed suicide in Sumpu leaving behind a letter that his actions were a criticism of bad government.
Manga:
In Samurai Executioner (v.5 p.233) the plot is mentioned and the police raid that captured Marubashi Chūya is dramatized.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.768, 927

KEIO PLAZA HOTEL see: Keiō Puraza Hoteru (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.65)

Keiō Puraza Hoteru (Keio Plaza Hotel) 京王プラザホテル (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.65)

Sources:
A Look Into Tokyo p.148, 152
Web Site:
Keio Plaza Inter-Continental Tokyo

keisaku or kyōsaku (Zen stick) 警策 (The Anime Companion 2 p.44)

Sources:
Look Into Japan p.66
Nishimura Eshin. Unsui p.55
Suzuki Daisetz Teitaro. The Training of the Zen Buddhist Monk p.111

Keishichō (Tōkyō Metropolitan Police Department) 警視庁 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.65)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1598
A Look Into Tokyo p.96
Web site:
Metropolitan Police Department Homepage

Keizai Kikaku Chō (Economic Planning Agency) 経済企画庁 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.66)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.310
Web Site:
METI Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry

kekkai (spiritual barrier) 結界

A Buddhist (Bukkyō; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.15) term for the binding or enclosing of an area to protect it from evil. This can be to set aside a space for a ritual or for the making of a temple (jiin; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.53) or other religious item. It can also be for setting aside an area where only certain persons are allowed to enter. These areas could be large as in the case of monasteries or even entire sacred mountains such as Mt. Kōya (Kōya-san; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.75) where at one time women were not allowed to enter. In Esoteric Buddhism (mikkyō; The Anime Companion 2 p.56) the term is used for magic boundaries and circles. The Sanskrit term for kekkai is sītā-bandha.
Anime and Manga:
In Silent Möbius Nami often will set up a kekkai to block the Lucifer Hawk.
Anime:
Kekkai show up in several episodes of Shonen Onmyouji.
Manga:
Housou, aka "monk-san", says a kekkai may be useful in the third chapter of the "Doll House" story in Ghost Hunt (v.2 p.80), later in fourth chapter (p.115) they set up such a barrier.
In Path of the Assassin (v.5 p.40 etc) there are several cases where the term is used to describe hidden ninja bodyguards.
Sources:
Inagaki Hisao. A Dictionary of Japanese Buddhist Terms p.173
Japanese-English Buddhist Dictionary p.169-170

kekkaku (tuberculosis) 結核 (The Anime Companion 2 p.44)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.286
Lock, Margaret M. East Asian Medicine in Urban Japan p,90

KELP see: konbu (The Anime Companion 2 p.48)

kemari (Japanese football) 蹴鞠 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.66)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.516
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.770

KEMPŌ see: kenpō (The Anime Companion 2 p.44)

ken (prefecture) 県 OLD FORM 縣 (The Anime Companion 2 p.44)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1224
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia p. 403

For a list of all the ken see: GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURE/LOCATION - KEN (PREFECTURES) in the subject index.

kendama (cup and ball toy) 拳玉 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.66)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1618

kendō ("way of the sword") 剣道 OLD FORM 劍道 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.66)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.772
A Look Into Tokyo p.93
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.62
Parker, L. Craig. The Japanese Police System Today p.69

ken'etsu (censorship) 検閲 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.66)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.170

kenjutsu (swordsmanship) 剣術 OLD FORM 劍術 (The Anime Companion 2 p.45)

Sources:
Draeger, Donn F. Classical Bujutsu p.66-68
Warner, Gordon and Donn F. Draeger Japanese Swordsmanship: Technique and Practice p.14

kenpō (way of the fist) 拳法 (The Anime Companion 2 p.44)

Sources:
Martial Arts & Sports in Japan p.170
Frederic, Louis. Dictionary of the Martial Arts p.110
Guttmann and Thompson. Japanese Sports a History p. 61

kenrikin (key money) 権利金

Key money, sometimes called reikin (fee money) or shakin (honorarium). A fee, usually nonrefundable, paid to landlords by tenants. While there is no legal requirement to pay such a fee it is hard to avoid if the landlords insists. For commercial rents it is often tied to the desirability of the location and for residences may actually be an advance on the rent or part of an agreement to allow transfer of the lease to another tenant.
Anime:
Maiko lucks out and gets an apartment in the building next to Ryo's without having to pay key money in City Hunter 2 (ep.56)
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.775
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.62

keppan (blood seal) 血判

A blood seal. A special way of sealing a document with a fingerprint in blood from the person sealing the document, such a seal would accompany a signature. Originating as far back as the 14th century the keppan was used for special contracts and ceremonial documents. In the Warring States Period (Sengoku jidai; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.113) it became popular with samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) for such documents as oaths of loyalty and death poems. During the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) it was adopted by other classes and came to also be used to seal pledges between lovers. Often the blood was drawn from a finger, prostitutes, who were known for doing such pledges for more than one client, would sometimes use a toothpick to make the gums bleed rather than poking their fingers. Even today some martial arts ryū (The Anime Companion 2 p.75) will require written vows sealed with a keppan.
Manga:
In Lone Wolf and Cub (v.3 p.167) the document accusing Ōgami is "signed in blood". Later in, volume 26 (p.17-18), we see conspirators sign and seal a "blood pledge".
Sources:
Frederic, Louis. Daily Life in Japan at the Time of the Samurai p.45
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.775
Seigle, Cecilia Segawa. Yoshiwara: The Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan p.191
Skoss, Diane, ed. Koryu Bujutsu: Classical Warrior Traditions of Japan p.164

ketsueki-gata (blood type) 血液型 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.67)

Sources:
Saphir, Ann. "Ketsueki-gata: Japan's Answer to 'What's Your Sign?'"Mangajin No 41 December 1994 pp.14-19, 50, 87.

KEY MONEY see: kenrikin (key money)

keyaki (zelkova) 欅 (The Anime Companion 2 p.45)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1771-1772
Short, Kevin. Nature in Tokyo p.167

kezuribushi (shaved dried bonito) けずりぶし or 削り節 (The Anime Companion 2 p.45)

Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.78
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.756
Outlook on Japan p.141

ki (spirit, life force) 気 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.67)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.775
Frederic, Louis. Dictionary of the Martial Arts p.122

ki-ai (shout) 気合 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68)

Sources:
Frederic, Louis. Dictionary of the Martial Arts p.124

kibidango きびだんご or 黍団子 OLD FORM 黍團子 (The Anime Companion 2 p.45)

Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.78
Japanese Inn & Travel p. 137

Kichijōji 吉祥寺

Today Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104) has two Kichijōji. A famous temple located in present day Bunkyō-ku and a portion of Musashino-Shi. The temple, founded by Ōta Dōkan, had been moved from its original location to Surugadai in order to make room for the construction of Edo castle (Edojō; The Anime Companion 2 p.18). After the Long-Sleeves fire of 1657 destroyed a portion of central Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) the temple was relocated to it's present location and the merchants who had lived in the area of the temple were relocated to the outskirts of the city. The name Kichijōji came with the merchants and this name has also been used to speak of this area, in what is today Musashino-Shi, ever since.
Anime and Manga:
Much of GTO takes place in the area known as Kichijōji in Musashino-Shi.
Anime:
Kuno is sent to the GP branch in Kichijoji in Otaku no Video (pt.2 3rd animation sequence)
Sources:
Tokyo City Atlas 50 B6
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.67
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then: An Explorer's Guide p.337

KICKING A GETA TO PREDICT THE WEATHER see: geta-uranai

KIDO KŌIN see: Kido Takayoshi (The Anime Companion 2 p.46)

Kido Takayoshi 木戸孝允 OLD FORM 木戶孝允 (The Anime Companion 2 p.46)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.776

kidōtai (riot police) 機動隊 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68)

Sources:
Condon, Jack and Camy Condon. The Simple Pleasures of Japan p.37

KID'S PLATE see: okosama-ranchi (The Anime Companion 2 p.68)

KIGAN see: Inori (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.49)

kigo (seasonal word) 季語

Words used in haiku and renga poetry that indicate the season. In the traditional aesthetics of the two poetic forms knowing the connotations of these words is considered crucial in fully appreciating the poem. It was in the Muromachi Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.90) that kigo became important in renga and as haiku later developed in the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) there were even glossaries of kigo printed helping establish a vocabulary of seasonal terms. Examples include many kinds of items and activities such as cherry blossoms (see: sakura, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) for spring or cicada (see: semi, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.112) for the heat of summer. Even in modern times new kigo are developed, such as Christmas (see: Kurisumasu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76) to indicate winter.
Manga:
On the last page of Blade of the Immortal: On the Perfection of Anatomy (v.17) Yamada Asaemon composes a poem and then wonders if "otter" can be the kigo.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.777

Kiheitai (irregular militia) 奇兵隊 (The Anime Companion 2 p.46)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.777

kiku (chrysanthemum) 菊 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.393
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.200

KILLING STONE see: sesshōseki

KIM CHE see: kimuchi (kim chi)

KIM SHIN-NAK see: Rikidozan

KIMMON INCIDENT see: Hamaguri Gomon no Hen (The Anime Companion 2 p.26)

KIMMON NO HEN see: Hamaguri Gomon no Hen (The Anime Companion 2 p.26)

kimodameshi (soul examination, test of nerve) 肝試し

Soul examination, a kind of game intended to be a test of nerve. A traditional form of this would involve placing flags in a cemetery or other place rumored to be haunted. Then ghost stories would be told, after each story a frightened participant would have to retrieve a flag.
Anime:
In GTO (ep. 41) when asked about the class event he has planned Onizuka says that it's Summer which means kimodameshi. Summer is the traditional time to tell spooky stories in Japan.
Sources:
Stevenson, John. Yoshitoshi’s Strange Tales p.12

kimono 着物 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.780-783
Living Japanese Style p.17

kimuchi (kim chi) キムチ

A spicy hot Korean pickle made with red pepper and often hakusai (Chinese cabbage), cucumber (kyūri; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.78) or other vegetables. The cucumber variety can be labor intensive as it involves stuffing short lengths of cucumber with finely shredded carrot ( ; The Anime Companion 2 p.63) and vegetables. If you are seeing a scene where yakiniku is being eaten look for a small serving of kimuchi.
Manga:
Kimchi is part of a lunch in Doing Time (p.46)
Sources:
Illustrated Eating in Japan p.50
Kimchi bought in local Korean markets.

KIN see: kei (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.65)

kinako (soybean flour) きなこ or 黄粉

A flour made from roasted and dried soybeans. One of the uses is as an ingredient in a topping for mochi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.87) and wagashi (traditional confections).
Manga:
Kinako served with abekawamochi is seen in Doing Time (p.120)
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.78
Illustrated Eating in Japan p.148

KINDERGARTEN see: shūgakuzen kyōiku (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.124)

kingyo (goldfish) 金魚 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.152
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.465

kingyo-sukui (goldfish dipping) 金魚すくい (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68)

Sources:
A Look Into Japan p.94
Japanese Family and Culture p.87
Must-See in Nikko p.103

Kinkakuji (Temple of the Golden Pavilion) 金閣寺 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.69)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.784
Must-See in Kyōto p.100
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.63
Who's Who of Japan p.60

KINKO see: namako

KINPACHI SENSEI see: San-nen B-gumi Kinpachi Sensei

kinpira-gobō きんぴらごぼう or 金平牛蒡 (The Anime Companion 2 p.46)

Sources:
Eating in Japan p. 171
Nagasawa Kimiko & Camy Condon. Eating Cheap in Japan p. 48, 49
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.79
Ashburne, John and Abe Yoshi. World Food Japan p.207 (includes recipe)

KINSU see: kei (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.65)

kintama (golden balls) 金玉

The literal meaning of this term is "golden balls" and is a popular everyday euphemism for the male testicles. In ancient times the Chinese characters (see: kanji, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61) used for this word were different, instead of kin and the tama for ball what was used was the kanji for ki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.67) and tama as in soul or spirit.
Anime:
In Pom Poko there is a delightful scene where several tanuki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.133) dressed as preschoolers sing a song about their kintama.
Sources:
Constantine, Peter. Japanese Street Slang p.95-96
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Sex and the Japanese p.108
Sinclair, Joan. Pink Box: Inside Japan’s Sex Clubs p.187

Kintarō 金太郎 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.69)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.788

KINTOKI see: Kintarō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.69)

KIRA KŌZUKENOSUKE see: Kira Yoshinaka

KIRA YOSHIHISA see: Kira Yoshinaka

Kira Yoshinaka 吉良義央

1641 - 1703. A hatamoto (The Anime Companion 2 p.27) who for 40 years who was responsible for protocol for the Tokugawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.137) bakufu (The Anime Companion 2 p.8). He was a member of one of the kōke families which traditionally provided such officials. On the 14th day of the 3rd month of 1701 he was attacked while speaking to Kajikawa Yoriteru in the Corridor of the Pines of Edo Castle (see: Edojō, The Anime Companion 2 p.18) by Asano Naganori, the daimyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.15) of Akō, possibly for not properly instructing Lord Asano in the protocols for the visit of imperial envoys. Lord Asano's han (The Anime Companion 2 p.26) was confiscated and he was ordered to commit seppuku (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.115) for having drawn his sword. Lord Kira was not even reprimanded however he was eventually removed from his post and moved to his villa in Honjo, in present day Sumida-ku, east of the Sumidagawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.93). This attack was what eventually led the famous Akō Jiken (Akō incident) on the 14th day of the 12th month of 1703 when Kira Yoshinaka was killed. He is also known as Kira Kōzukenosuke and Kira Yoshihisa.
Manga:
In Ōoku (v.5 p.163-) Lord Asano's hot headed refusal to provide funds requested by Kira for the preparation of the reception leads to tension and tragedy.
Sources:
Bodart-Bailey, Beatrice M. The Dog Shogun p.164, 167-172
Illustrated Who’s Who of Japan p.104-105
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.789
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.173
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.246, 399, 400

KIRAZU see: okara (The Anime Companion 2 p.67)

KIRIN BREWERIES LTD. see: bīru (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.10)

kirisute gomen (permission to kill) 切捨御免

Permission to kill. During the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) had the legal right to kill commoners who had been highly offensive. This was especially the case where the honor of a samurai was at stake. After such a killing it had to be reported to the authorities who would determine if the killing had been justified or excessive. If the killing was judged excessive the samurai would be punished.
Manga:
In Lone Wolf and Cub (vol. v.14 p.96) we learn that the official message carriers known as o-shichiri were granted a limited form of kirisute gomen which they could use against those hindering their duties.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.790

Kirisutokyō (Christianity) キリスト教 OLD FORM キリスト敎 or as 基督教 OLD FORM 基督敎 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.69)

Sources:
Outlook on Japan p.137-8
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.198, 718

kiritanpo きりたんぽ or 切りたんぽ

A specialty of Akita Ken made from rice cooked a little hard and made into a paste which is then formed around sticks of cedar (see: sugi The Anime Companion 2 p.92) and grilled over a fire. Originally the cooking would have been in the sunken hearth (see: irori, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.50). This is used in a soup of vegetables in chicken stock or other one pot meals (see: nabemono, The Anime Companion 2 p.59). The tanpo part of the name comes from tampo-yari, a practice spear, similar to a large version of the sticks used in the process.
Anime:
Yuba, ganmodoki, tokoroten, kiritanpo, kinchaku are all mentioned by Orihime as she discusses the mitarashi dango she is eating in Sakura Wars: The Movie
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.80
Illustrated Japanese Inn & Travel p.67, 128

KISEME see: semeseme

kiseru (tobacco pipe) 煙管 or きせる (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.70)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.285
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1564

kisha kurabu (press clubs) 記者クラブ

Organizations of journalists who cover specific government offices and the police. The term is also applied to the rooms used by such groups. Membership in such groups is required for access to press briefings giving the group the power to decide if a story gets covered ot not. This type of organization dates back to the late 19th century with the founding of the Gikai Deiri Kishadan (Diet Journalist Club).
Manga:
A very unintimidated reporter asks Captain Gomi if he has been banned from the fire department press club in Firefighter Daigo of Fire Company M (v. 3 p.183)
Sources:
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia p. 404
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1225

Kishibojin 鬼子母神

Sometimes known as Kishimojin, Kariteimo and Karitei, from Hārītī her original Sanskrit name. Kishibojin was originally a demonic woman with hundreds of children, one account says 500 another 1,000. She abducted and ate the children of other women. To stop her from doing this the Buddha took and hid her youngest child, after learning the grief as mother suffers from the loss of a child she repented, converted to Buddhism (see: Bukkyō; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.15) and vowed to only eat pomegranates (see: zakuro The Anime Companion 2 p.121) . She is venerated as a protector of children, deity of childbirth and of fertility. Childless women and women with many children often visit her temples. She is also considered a protector of the Myōhōrengekyō (Lotus Sūtra) and for that reason her depiction is found in Nichirenshū (Nichiren sect) temples. Images of her often have her holding a pomegranate in one hand and a child in the other.
Anime:
In Sword for Truth the Kishibojin Goddess is Oren's nickname and she has a large tattoo (see: irezumi; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.50) of Kishibojin, before her conversion about to eat, covering her back
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.791
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.401
Matsunami Kodo. Essentials of Buddhist Images p.111
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.344-45

KISHIBOJIN CHARM see: susuki-mimizuku (owl charm)

KISHIMOJIN see: Kishibojin

KISO KAIDŌ see: Nakasendō (The Anime Companion 2 p.60)

KISOJI see: Nakasendō (The Anime Companion 2 p.60)

KISS see: kisu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71)

kissaten (coffeehouse) 喫茶店 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.70)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.211
Outlook on Japan p.66
Condon, Jack and Camy Condon. The Simple Pleasures of Japan p.27, 55
Condon, John and Keisuke Kurata. In Search of What's Japanese About Japan p.104

KISSHŌTEN see: Shichifuku-jin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.117)

kisu (fish) きすor 鱚

Two related species, sillago sihama and sillago japonica. Also known as sand borer and whiting. A sea fish found in shallow sandy areas and bays as far North as Southern Hokkaido (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.46). This fish is said to be tastiest in the summer. While cooked in several ways including tenpura (The Anime Companion 2 p.99) roasting kisu with salt is a common technique for preparing it. It is also used in sushi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.128) and sashimi (The Anime Companion 2 p.79)
Anime:
Belldandy mishears when Keiichi says kiss to himself and thinks he is referring to the kisu fish. Ah! My Goddess TV series (ep.5)
Sources:
Ashburne, John & Abe Yoshi. World Food Japan p.263
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.80)
Kamohara Toshiji. Fishes of Japan in Color p.77-78

kisu (kiss) キス (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71)

Sources:
Bornoff, Nicholas. Pink Samurai p.64

Kita-ku 北区

Located East of Itabashi-ku, North of both Toshima-ku and Bunkyō-ku, West of both Arakawa-ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.6) and Adachi-ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.3) separated on the North from Saitama Ken by the Arakawa and Sumidagawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.93) rivers. Kita-ku is noted for manufacturing, mainly textiles, metal, chemicals and printing. It also has housing complexes. This ku was formed in the 1930s by merging two older ones, the Eastern was mainly residential and the Western industrial.
Manga:
Hikaru attends the Kita Ward 3rd Annual Winter Middle School Go Tournament in Hikaru no Go (v.2 p.37).
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.796
Seidensticker, Edward. Tokyo Rising p.170
Tokyo City Atlas p.41, 49, 50
Tokyo Metropolitan Atlas p.40-41
Web Site:
Official site English section

kitamakura (pillow to the North) 北枕

There is an ancient custom in Japan of placing a corpse with the head to the north for funeral services. This custom is still followed today so when you see a body laid out for services you know the head is always to the North. Because of this custom it is considered very unlucky to sleep with your head in this direction.
Anime:
In Peacemaker (ep 19) we see a body laid out for viewing and without being told so we know the head is to the north.
Sources:
Illustrated Japanese Family & Culture p.107
Illustrated Living Japanese Style p.136
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman. Japan from A to Z p.83

KITCHEN ROBE see: kappogi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.62)

KITES see: tako-age (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.132)

KITŌ see: inori (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.49)

kitsune (fox) 狐 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.406, 598
A Look Into Japan p.105
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.45

kitsune soba 狐そば or 狐蕎麦

A dish consisting of soba (The Anime Companion 2 p.90) noodles served in a stock (see: dashi, The Anime Companion 2 p.15) of fish broth and soy sauce (see: shōyu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.124) with abura-age and other ingredients such as negi (The Anime Companion 2 p.61) laid on top. The kitsune part of the name comes from the legend that abura-age are popular with foxes (see: kitsune, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71).
Manga:
In Yokai Doctor (v.1 p.106, 204) Kuro wonders why if there is kitsune udon and kitsune soba why there is no kitsune rāmen (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.105).
Sources:
Nagasawa Kimiko & Camy Condon. Eating Cheap in Japan p.30, 31, 42 (item).

kitsune udon 狐うどん or 狐饂飩

A popular dish consisting of udon (The Anime Companion 2 p.110) served in a stock (see: dashi, The Anime Companion 2 p.15) of fish broth and soy sauce (see: shōyu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.124) with abura-age and other ingredients such as negi (The Anime Companion 2 p.61) laid on top. The kitsune part of the name comes from the legendary popularity of abura-age with foxes (see: kitsune, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71).
Anime:
Watanuki has kitsune udon at the school cafeteria in xxxHOLIC (ep23).
Jigoro wolfs down kitsune udon during an interview in Yawara! (ep.9).
In the Urusei Yatsura TV series (disc. 15, ep. 55 story 78) looking at the dine and dash pattern of Miyamoto Musashi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.86) the first thing that shows up is the fox noodles ("kitsune udon") of Ōsaka (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.102).
Manga:
In Yokai Doctor (v.1 p.106, 204) Kuro wonders why if there is kitsune udon and kitsune soba why there is no kitsune rāmen (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.105).
In Oishinbo A la Carte: Izakaya: Pub Food (p.144) Shirō proposes several noodle dishes that would be good to finish off drinking at an izakaya (The Anime Companion 2 p.33) such as kitsune udon, sōmen (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.46), curry (see: karē, (The Anime Companion 2 p.41) udon and rāmen.
Sources:
Nagasawa Kimiko & Camy Condon. Eating Cheap in Japan p.30, 31, 42 (item).
Illustrated Eating in Japan p.91.
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. A Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.97.

kitsunede (fox hands) 狐手

A kata (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.64) used in kabuki (The Anime Companion 2 p.35) by actors playing foxes (see: kitsune The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71) which consists of posing the hands like paws. When doing this the hands are held in a dangling position.
Anime:
In the kitsune no yomeiri in Pom Poko we see the foxes in the procession pause with their hands in a kitsunede position.
Sources:
Leiter, Samuel. New Kabuki Encyclopedia p.332

kitsune no yomeiri (fox giving the bride, fox wedding procession) 狐の嫁入り

Literally "fox (kitsune) giving the bride", this term is often translated as "the fox wedding procession." Foxes usually mate for life so the idea of foxes, who are credited with supernatural abilities having very human like marriage customs is not that unusual. There are even accounts of people mistaking the procession for an actual human one, even of ferrymen tricked into taking foxes disguised temporarily in human form across a river. The term is also used when it rains on a sunny day. At night kitsunebi are associated with such processions.
Anime:
Such a procession is seen in Pom Poko with lanterns (chōchin The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.19) on high poles carried by those accompanying the bride and later one of the drunks talking about kitsune at the yatai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.147) uses the term kitsune no yomeiri.
Sources:
Casal, U.A. "The Goblin Fox and Badger and Other Witch Animals of Japan" in Asian Folklore Studies v.18 (1959) p.30
Nozaki, Kiyoshi. Kitsuné: Japan's Fox of Mystery, Romance, and Humor p.191-198
Smyers, Karen A. Fox and the Jewel p.233. n33

kitsune nyōbō (fox wife) 狐女房

A fox (kitsune) wife. There are several tales of foxes transforming themselves into women out of gratitude for a kindness shown to them by a man and becoming his wife until they are later found out to be foxes and have to leave, often leaving children behind. Kuzunoha, the mother of Abe no Seimei, is said to have been such a fox.
Manga:
In Here is Greenwood (v.5 p.46) students speculate as to the role a character plays in a bunkasai (cultural festival) production, one mistakenly thinks it is the Fox Wife.
Sources:
Bathgate, Michael Robert. The Shapeshifter Fox p.44-46

kitsunebi (fox-fire) 狐火

According to tradition there were several sources for mysterious fires at night. Such fires could be kitsunebi created by foxes (kitsune) with their magical powers. At times the fire is described as originating in the fox's breath, from a horse hoof or bone held in the mouth, from a gem possessed by the fox or using the tail. Often they are described as lines of fires, as in the kitsune no yomeiri or used by foxes to lure a traveler away from the road. It is said that such fires could be seen each year near the Ōji Inari (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.48) Shrine, presently in Tōkyō's Asukayama Park, under a hackberry tree where the foxes of the Kantō region (Kantō Chihō; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61) gathered to change their clothes on New Year's Eve before paying respects at the shrine. This scene was depicted by several artists including Hiroshige in the last print in his One Hundred Famous Views of Edo series.
Manga:
Shippō uses fox fire as a shield in Inu-Yashu (v.4 p. 112).
Sources:
Casal, U.A. "The Goblin Fox and Badger and Other Witch Animals of Japan" in Asian Folklore Studies v.18 (1959) p.10-11
Hiroshige One Hundred Famous Views of Edo pl.118
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.797
Nozaki, Kiyoshi. Kitsuné: Japan's Fox of Mystery, Romance, and Humor p.181-189
Smyers, Karen A. Fox and the Jewel p.138-140
Stevenson, John. Yoshitoshi's Strange Tales p.30
Waley, Paul. Tokyo: City of Stories p.132

kitsune-tsuki (fox possession) 狐憑き

Possession by the spirit of a fox. A belief that the spirits of some foxes could possess people is found throughout Japan. Symptoms could include erratic behavior, making sounds like a fox, facial features becoming fox like, a greedy appetite for tidbits, a fear of dogs and people. While all of this is happening the person is capable of realizing that they are possessed and can request assistance. An exorcist would threaten and negotiate with the fox spirit to get it to leave. Exorcists known for dealing with kitsune-tsuki are often associated with Nichirenshū and Shingonshū Buddhism. Some temples such as Honmyōji (Nichirenshū) in Kumamoto and Shinshōji (Shingonshū) in Narita were famous as places to be treated for kitsune-tsuki.
Anime:
Fox spirit possession is diagnosed by Himiko in the Vampire Princess Miyu OVA (ep. 1).
Manga:
Fox possession diagnosed by the psychic in Domu: A Child's Dream.
In Astro Boy (v.18 p.105) Tamao reports a strange thing he has seen and a local suggested he was possessed by a fox.
Sources:
Casal, U.A. "The Goblin Fox and Badger and Other Witch Animals of Japan" in Asian Folklore Studies v.18 (1959) p.31-33
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese 3rd ed. p.444

Kiyokawa Hachirō 清河八郎

? - 1863. Born in Shōnai Han, located in Northen Japan, Kiyokawa came from a wealthy family of sake brewers. He became a student at the Chiba dōjō in Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) where he earned the right to teach Hokushin Ittō Ryū (The Anime Companion 2 p.28) kenjutsu (The Anime Companion 2 p.45). Kiyokawa also ran a private school where he taught Confucian philosophy (Jukyō; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.56). An outspoken critic of the bakufu (The Anime Companion 2 p.8) he sought to gather opponents of the regime. he was one of the early organizers of the Rōshigumi. When the Roshigumi reached Mibu village in Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77) Kiyokawa called everyone together and attempted to convert the corps into a pro-imperial organization and had the members sign a letter to the court. Officials of the bakufu were disturbed by this event, however Kiyokawa proposed the corps return to Edo to fight the foreigners and the officials agreed as they saw an opportunity to control the corps away from Kyōto. Upon returning to Edo Kiyokawa organized about 500 men to attack and destroy the foreign settlement in Yokohama (The Anime Companion 2 p.117). The government heard of the plot and ordered the assassination of Kiyokawa which was carried out while he was on his way home from a drinking party.
Manga:
Kiyokawa's attempt to turn the Rōshigumi into a pro-Imperial unit and the rejection of this by Kondō Isami (The Anime Companion 2 p.49) and Serizawa Kamo is seen in Kaze Hikaru (v.3 p.92)
Sources:
Hillsborough, Romulus. Shinsengumi: The Shōgun's Last Samurai Corps p.14-19

KIYOMIZU TEMPLE see: Kiyomizudera (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71)

Kiyomizudera 清水寺 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71)

Sources:
Must-See in Kyōto p.50
Today's Japan p.93
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.798

KNIFE FOR CUTTING NOODLES SEE: soba-giri bōchō

KNIFE FOR FILLETING EELS see: unagisaki (eel knife)

Kōan no eki (Kōan War) 弘安の役 (The Anime Companion 2 p.47)

Sources:
Frederic, Louis Japan Encyclopedia p.535-536
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1000
Turnbull, Stephen The Samurai Sourcebook p.265-266

KŌAN WAR see: Kōan no eki (The Anime Companion 2 p.47)

kōban (police box) 交番 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71)

Sources:
A Look Into Japan p.121
Today's Japan p.77
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.800
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.714

Kobayashi Issa 小林一茶 (The Anime Companion 2 p.47)

Sources:
Miner, Earl, et al The Princeton Companion to Classical Japanese Literature p. 185
Who's Who of Japan p. 124
Naito Akira. Edo: The City That Became Tokyo p. 178
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p. 634

Kōbe 神戸 [市] the OLD FORM is correct in the book. I cannot reproduce the correct form here. (The Anime Companion 2 p.47)

Sources:
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia p.287
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.802
Web site:
City of Kobe (official site)

KŌBŌ DAISHI see: Kūkai (Kōbō-Daishi)

KOBUCHA see: konbucha (konbu tea aka seaweed tea)

KOBUN see: oyabun - kobun (parent role - child role)

KOBURISODE see: furisode

kobushin 小普請

Tokugawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.137) samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110), mainly hatamoto (The Anime Companion 2 p.27) or gokenin who had no official post. This was often due to illness, being elderly, incompetence, or just being surplus. Their income was lower than those with official positions, less than 3,000 koku (The Anime Companion 2 p.47). Originally the term referred to those with non-combat duties such as castle repair, in fact the name means "minor construction". In Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) they were divided into groups under the command of yoriai and supervised by the rusui of Edo Castle (see: (Edojō, The Anime Companion 2 p.18). In 1719 the rōjū took over this supervision.
Manga:
In Samurai Executioner (v.4 p.39) Yamada Asaemon meets a group of kobushin and visits with them, even pounding (mochi-tsuki) and eating mochi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.87) with them.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.803
Totman, Conrad. Politics in the Tokugawa Bakufu 1600-1843 p.132, 143-144

Kobushin-gumi 小普請組

In 1790 Matsudaira Sadanobu instituted the organization of the kobushin into two groups. The kobushin-gumi was for non-hatamoto (The Anime Companion 2 p.27) vassals of the shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123), which numbered at that time at about 3,800 men. This process aided the administration of these samurai with little to do.
Manga:
In Samurai Executioner (v.3 p.150) a second son of a poor gokenin and member of the kobushin-gumi demonstrates his swordsmanship.
Sources:
Totman, Conrad. Politics in the Tokugawa Bakufu 1600-1843 p.143

KŌCHI HAN see: Tosa han (The Anime Companion 2 p.106)

Kōchi Ken 高知県 OLD FORM 高知縣 (The Anime Companion 2 p.47)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.803
Web Sites:
Kochi Prefecture (official site)

KŌCHI PREFECTURE see: Kōchi Ken (The Anime Companion 2 p.47)

Kōda Rohan 幸田 露伴

1867-1947 Actual name Kōda Shigeyuki born in Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) near the end of the bakumatsu (The Anime Companion 2 p.8). His family were retainers of the Tokugawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.137) shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123) handling ceremonies and appointments. The family chose to stay in Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104) thereby losing their position and income when Tokugawa Yoshinobu (The Anime Companion 2 p.104) resigned as shōgun and left. After graduating from government sponsored training in telegraphy Shigeyuki moved to Hokkaidō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.46) where he worked from 1884 to 1887 when he returned to Tōkyō and took the pen name Kōda Rohan. Rohan means "companion of the dew" and is a reference to a poem he wrote describing walking at night to catch the train for his trip to Tōkyō. He then began a career of writing fiction, poetry and scholarly works that eventually won him a position at the Kyōto Imperial University. He was awarded a doctorate in 1911 and in 1937 he was awarded the Order of Culture. He is best known in the West for his fiction works, three of which have been collected into the volume Pagoda, Skull and Samurai.
Anime:
Kōda Rohan is a significant character in Doomed Megalopolis and at the end we find he is the chronicler of the events in the story.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.805
Koda Rohan. Pagoda, Skull and Samurai p.7-19

KŌDA SHIGEYUKI see: Kōda Rohan

kōden (incense money) 香奠

Often translated as incense money, condolence money, or condolence gifts. Commmonly a monetary offering, sometimes it may be another type of item, given at funeral services. The money is placed in a special envelope, referred to as a kōdenbukuro, tied with black and white cords (see: mizuhiki, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.87) with the name of the donor on the front and amount on the back. In modern times the kōden is handed in as you sign at the entrance to where the service is taking place. This money is traditionally used to cover the funeral expenses. In rural areas the offering could be in the form of food to be used in the meal after the funeral.
Anime:
We see Togusa hand over his kōden in Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (ep.4).
Manga:
In 20th Century Boys (v.1 p.103) Maruo says "Gotta get your condolence money's worth" as he and Yoshitsune rapidly stuff their faces with nigirizushi in the post funeral ceremony meal.
Sources:
Illustrated Living Japanese Style p.130-131
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.805
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. A Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.319

Kodomo-no-hi (Children's Day) こどもの日 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.72)

Sources:
Japanese Family and Culture p.84-
Today's Japan p.63
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.187
A Look Into Japan p.86

kogai (hairpin) 笄

Traditional Japanese long hairpins. These evolved in the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) from the kogai (sword "pin-blade") used by samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) which could also function to groom and hold the hair in place for both men and women. Later these became ornamental and the common form you commonly see is that of the kanzashi (hair ornament). These are made from a variety of materials including wood, bamboo, tortoiseshell, glass, ivory and metal.
Anime:
In Salaryman Kintaro (ep.12) there is a flashback scene where we see a younger Misuzu dressed in a kimono (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68) with a traditional hairstyle and kanzashi.
Manga:
We see several styles of hairpins in a cross dressing bar in "lesson 38" of Gin Tama (v.5).
Sources:
Deal, William E. Handbook to life in medieval and early modern Japan p.360
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.808

kogai (sword "pin-blade") 笄

A small narrow dull blade or skewer that was an optional sword accessory carried in a pocket attached to the front of the scabbard (saya; The Anime Companion 2 p.80), usually thrust through a hole in the sword guard (tsuba, The Anime Companion 2 p.107). During the days when armor was used by samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) the kogai was used to help arrange the hair during putting on armor or after taking it off. The handle usually had a small scoop at the end for cleaning the ear so it was more of a toilet article than a weapon. It also had another use in that kogai often had the crest (see: mon, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.89) of the owner on them they may have been used to identify who had taken a head or slain a foe by inserting or attaching it. The kogai became popular starting in the Momoyama Period and continued to be used in the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25).
Manga:
Kamiya is not pleased that such an impractical item as a kogai, clearly seen in the art, is on the daito given to her, er him, by Okita Sōji (The Anime Companion 2 p.68) in Kaze Hikaru (v.3 p.73-74).
Sources:
Cunningham, Don. Secret Weapons of Jujutsu p.17
Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan p.30-32
Ratti, Oscar and Adele Westbrook. Secrets of the Samurai p.260, 285-86
Yumoto, John M. The Samurai Sword: A Handbook p.61, 83

KOGAL see: gyaru (gal)

KOGOMI see: kusasotetsu (The Anime Companion 2 p.52)

KOGYARU see: gyaru (gal)

kō-haku-no-manmaku (red and white curtain) 紅白の幔幕

A curtain of broad alternating red and white (see: aka to shiro, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.4) vertical stripes. These are used for a variety of auspicious events and celebrations.
Anime:
Red and white curtans are seen outside the home during the wedding in Doomed Megalopolis (ep. 3).
In Pom Poko the tanuki (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.133) are in an area enclosed with black and white stripped curtains while mourning the dead construction workers, as they exit to celebrate their successful actions the curtains are replaced with red and white ones.
Sources:
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.183

Kohaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Song Contest) 紅白歌合戦

The annual NHK (see: Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.96) TV show on New Year's Eve. The program was preceeded by a radio show conceived in 1945 to lift the spirits of a defeated nation called Kohaku Uta Shiai, the occupation forces forbade the use of the word Gassen which also has the meaning of a battle. The show was revived as an annual event with a radio broadcast on January 3, 1951 under the name Kohaku Uta Gassen with a live studio audience. When the program began being broadcast on TV (see: terebi, The Anime Companion 2 p.99) a few years later it was moved to it's present time slot of New Year's Eve. Over time the show has become increasingly extravagant and popular to become the most popular single program in Japan. The structure is simple, there are two teams; one the red for women singers, the white for men. Each team takes turns performing and at the end of the program the winners are given awards. The show does not end at midnight, rather it ends about 15 minutes before and is replaced with quiet scenes of traditional Japan and nature and the sound of a temple bell (see: bonshō, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.13) being rung.
Anime:
In Saber Marionette J (ep.13) Otaru participates in a new year song contest with red and white teams.
Manga:
The 1951 "Red and White Song Battle" and Misora Hibari's resulting stardom is mentioned in A Drifting Life (p.119).
Sources:
Schilling, Mark. The Encyclopedia of Japanese Pop Culture p. 94-98
Web Site:
紅白歌合戦 [official web site]
50 years of NHK Television [p.54]

KOHAKU UTA SHIAI see: Kohaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Song Contest)

koi (carp) 鯉 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.72)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.163

koinobori (carp streamer) 鯉幟 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.72)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.811
Festivals of Japan p.167
Japanese Family and Culture p.84
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.25

KOIZUMI YAKUMO see: Hearn, Lafcadio (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.44)

Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters) 古事記

Japan's oldest chronicle said to have been completed in 712 and written entirely with kanji (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.61) as hiragana (see: kana (syllabary) (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60) did not exist at that time. This work was commissioned by Empress Gemmei who ordered Ō no Yasumaro to transcribe two other works, the Teiki and Kyūji, as memorized by Hieda no Are. The book is divided into three sections describing the history of Japan from mythical times to the time of the writing of the work. The oldest copy in existence is a scroll from 1371-72, there are earlier references to the work in poetry and other documents. The Kojiki was not well known and not studied by scholars until the Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) including works by Motoori Norinaga. Two English translations have been done, one by Basil Hall Chamberlain and a later one by Donald L. Philippi.
Manga:
In Satsuma Gishiden (v.1 p.46) an angry samurai states that a rather bloody tradition has been practiced since before the time of Kojiki.
At the end of Samurai Legend Katsu Kaishu (The Anime Companion 2 p.42) discusses the influence of the Kojiki on the creation of a pro Emperor ideology and the overthrow of the Tokugawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.137) shōgun (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.123) with his guests.
Osamu Tezuka depicts the events around the time of the writing of the Kojiki with great humor and drama in Phoenix (v.3 Yamato/Space p.17, 78).
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p. 811-812
Miner, Earl; Odagiri Hiroko and Robert Morrell. The Princeton Companion to Classical Japanese Literature p.185-186

KŌKEN see: kurogo (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Kokkai (Diet) 国会 OLD FORM 國會 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.72)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.282-284
Today's Japan p.166
A Look Into Tokyo p.94-95

KOKKU SAKKINGU see: ferachio (fellatio)

kokkun こっくん

An onomatopoeia used for the sound of a gulp, swallow or head suddenly dropping as in falling asleep. This is sometimes transliterated as gokkun or kokun. In the fūzoku (sex industry) this is the term used for a special service available for a fee where the worker loudly swallows the male customer's ejaculate after performing fellatio without a condom.
Manga:
While in the machiai shitsu (meeting room) at Chiaki's imēji kurabu (image club) Makoto is confused by several terms on a customer request form he is given to fill out, kokkun being one of them. IWGP: Ikebukuro West Gate Park (v.2 p.84)
Sources:
Sinclair, Joan. Pink Box: Inside Japan’s Sex Clubs p.186
Millington, Susan. Nihongo Pera Pera! p.82

kokkuri コックリ or こっくり or 狐狗狸

A form of fortune telling which became popular in the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81). Originally this was the Japanese version of American Spiritist table turning. The practice entered Japan by Japanese apparently observed sailors amusing themselves with table turning. Evidence exists that this was when a damaged American ship spent time in Shimoda (The Anime Companion 2 p.85) in Izu. The practice then spread to much of Japan with different elements introduced by the Japanese. The original Japanese version involved three sticks tied together at the center with a round tray on top to form a small three legged table. Each person would place their hand on top and call upon kokkuri-san. By asking questions and observing which leg lifted you would get an answer. A variant uses a medium and placed the legs on a board with the Japanese syllabary (kana; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60) written on it. The movement of the legs spell out answers. A modern variant is very similar to a ouiji board.
Anime and Manga:
In GTO (ep.8 and v.4 beginning of lesson 25) we see Onizuka and students using a coin on a board very similar to a ouija board to get answers. In the manga they translate it as ouiji board, in the anime it is still kokkuri-san.
Sources:
Foster, Michael Dylan. Strange Games and Enchanted Science: The Mystery of Kokkuri; The Journal of Asian Studies 65, no.2 (May 2006): 251-275
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.815

kōkō yakyū (high school baseball) 高校野球 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.73)

Sources:
Discover Japan v.1 p.178
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.100, 529

koku (volume measurement) 石 (The Anime Companion 2 p.47)

Source:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.816

KŌKŪ JIEITAI see: Jieitai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.53)

Kokumin Eiyo Shō (People's Honor Award) 国民栄誉賞

The People's Honor Award. In 1977 Prime Minister (see: shushō) Fukuda Takeo proposed establishing this award. It is granted to those who have become highly respected by the populace. There is no set schedule for grating the ward and most of the recipients are from sports and entertainment.
Anime:
In Yawara!, starting in episode one and repeated often, Yawara's grandfather states that he aims for her to be awarded the Kokumin Eiyo Shō, translated as the "National Merit Award", for her skills in judo.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1196

Kokuritsu Kagaku Hakubutsukan (National Science Museum) 国立科学博物館 (The Anime Companion 2 p.48)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1062
Web Site:
National Museum of Nature and Science

Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan (National Diet Library) 国立国会図書館

The National Diet Library is located in Nagatachō Chiyoda-ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.13), next to the Diet building in Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104). The Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan dates back to 1948 when it was created by combining the collections of the Imperial Library, the House of Peers Library and House of Representatives Library. While it exists mainly as a research center for the Japanese Diet (see: Kokkai, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.72) it is open to any adult over 20 who wishes to use materials on site. It is also a depository library for all books published in Japan and about Japan.
Anime:
Episode 15 of the R.O.D The TV series takes place mainly in the National Diet Library, most of that in the closed stacks.
The Prime Minister (see: shushō) calls the National Diet Library to request documents on the battleship Yamato (The Anime Companion 2 p.116) for Yurie in episode 9 of Kami Chu!.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1057
Web Site:
National Diet Library

Kōkyo (Imperial Palace in Tōkyō) 皇居

The Imperial Palace in Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104) located in Chiyoda Ku (The Anime Companion 2 p.13) has been the official residence of the Emperor since 1868. The palace is actually the grounds of the former Edojō (Edo castle) (The Anime Companion 2 p.18). The portion of the castle that was the residence burned down in a fire in 1873. A replacement was built in 1888 and it was destroyed in the air raids of 1945. In 1968 the present palace and associated buildings were completed. Along with the residence proper there are buildings for several functions such as for state affairs the Omote Gozasho; for ceremonies the Seiden; for banquets to entertain guests of state the Hōmeiden; and for evening receptions the Chōwaden. Other buildings include the Fukiage Gosho, where the widow of the Shōwa Tennō (Shōwa Emperor) (The Anime Companion 2 p.88) lives and various offices for the Imperial Household Agency. On New Year's Day and the Emperor's birthday the public are allowed to visit portions of the palace grounds.
Anime:
The Imperial Palace and the Nijubashi show up twice in the City Hunter TV series, the first in City Hunter 2 ( ep.10) and again in City Hunter '91 (ep.13)
Sources:
Cybriwsky, Roman. Historical Dictionary of Tokyo p.72
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.594

koma (spinning top) 独楽 OLD FORM 獨樂 (The Anime Companion 2 p.48)

Sources:
Condon, Jack and Camy Condon. The Simple Pleasures of Japan p. 93
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1605

koma-inu 狛犬 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.73)

Sources:
Basic Terms of Shintō (1958) p.34
A Look Into Japan p.20
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.821
Must-See in Kyōto p.133
Must-See in Nikko p.43
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.103

KOMBUCHA see: konbucha (konbu tea aka seaweed tea)

Komiketto (Comiket) コミケット (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.73)

Sources:
Schodt, Frederik. Dreamland Japan p.40
Web Site:
The Official Comic Market Site

KOMOSŌ see: komusō

Kompira 金比羅

Also known as Kubira, Konpira dai-gongen and Zōzusan Konpira dai-gongen. A protector of travelers, sailors, fishermen and shipping companies for safety at sea. The center of his worship is the Inland Sea (see: Seto Naikai, The Anime Companion 2 p.82) with his main shrine located on Shikoku (The Anime Companion 2 p.84). The name apparently comes from Kuvera or Kumbhira, the Sanskrit name of one of the "12 Heavenly Generals" (see: Juni-jinshō The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.57). Kompira was venerated as a Buddhist deity until the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81) after which Konpira has been seen as a kami (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.59). Shintō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.121) scholars differ on Kompira being the same as Prince Ono-nushi no Mikoto, Emperor Shitoku or the hero Kotohira. Japanese images show him as very dark skinned, elderly, holding a peacock feather and at times dressed as a Buddhist monk.
Anime:
In Peacemaker (ep 9) Tasu prays to Tokugawa Ieyasu (The Anime Companion 2 p.102) and "Kumbhira" that nothing happens on the errand he is running with his brother (see: Ichimura Tetsunosuke).
Sources:
Ashkenazi, Michael. Handbook of Japanese Mythology p.211
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto p.104
Frederic, Louis. Buddhism: Flammarion Iconographic Guides p.244-246
Matsunami Kodo. Essentials of Buddhist Images p.141-142
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. A Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.320

komusō 虚無僧

Originally called komosō, or straw hat priests, a type of wandering shakuhachi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.116) playing beggar in the 16th century. Later the name was changed to komusō, or priests of nothingness, in the 17th century when the Fukeshū sect of Zen Buddhism (The Anime Companion 2 p.122) was recognized by the bakufu (The Anime Companion 2 p.8). It is easy to spot komusō in anime, manga and movies by their tengai (basket-like hat), distinctive kesa robe, shakuhachi and a wrapped short sword. The early komusō included many rōnin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.106) who otherwise would have been desperate for survival. Thousands of them wandered Japan throughout Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) Japan. Some komusō worked as spies and of course ninja were reputed in popular literature to disguise themselves as komusō.
Anime:
A large group of komusō strangely enough wearing western shoes cross Nihonbashi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.94) in Samurai Champloo (ep.6)
In Maison Ikkoku (ep.37) Yotsuya-san dresses in the full garb of a komusō with the exception of a paper bag with holes as a substitute for a tengai.
Manga:
In Lone Wolf and Cub (for example: v.1 p.167 and v.10 p.113) we see the garb of a Fukeshū komusō used as a disguise.
Sources:
Cunningham, Don. Secret Weapons of Jujutsu p.20
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia p. 288
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1355
Turnbull, Stephen. Ninja AD 1460 - 1650 p.18, 27
Turnbull, Stephen. Samurai Warriors p.156

KOMUSO-GASA see: tengai (basket-like hat)

kōnai hassha (ejaculation in mouth) 口内発射

Ejaculation in the mouth. In some of the more intimate branches of the fūzoku (sex industry) this is an optional service offered, usually for an extra fee, to ferachio (fellatio). Kokkun can also be part of the service, usually for yet another fee.
Anime:
In F3: Frantic Frustrated and Female (ep.3) one of the characters, who can now be described as a nyū hāfu (The Anime Companion 2 p.64), cums in Mayaka's mouth.
Sources:
Constantine, Peter. Japan's Sex Trade p.142
Sinclair, Joan. Pink Box: Inside Japan’s Sex Clubs p.187

Konaki Jiji (old man who cries like a baby) 児啼爺

A yōkai which usually looks like an old man and who takes the form of a baby to deceive people into picking it up. Once you pick up Konaki Jiji you cannot put him down and he grows heaver until you are crushed to death.
Anime:
After Ran jumps on Mami and hugs her Mami asks Ran if she is the Konaki Jiji in Super Gals! (ep.22).
Sources:
Yoda Hiroko and Matt Alt. Yokai Attack! The Japanese Monster Survival Guide p.58-61

konbini (convenience store) コンビニ

While the first convenience store company in Japan was Seven-Eleven Japan when they opened their first store in 1974 they did not open the first stores, those were experimental stores opened by the Seiyu Stores in 1973 before they founded the FamilyMart chain. Today convenience store chains such as Seven-Eleven Japan, LAWSON, FamilyMart, Cico Mart, am/pm and others can be found throughout Japan. These stores live up to their names providing access to not only fresh food, drinks, smokes and magazines but also to fax machines, copiers, tickets, international ATMs, bill paying services, and many other items often on a 24 hour basis. Often these are referred to by the contraction of konbini (aka combini). By 2009 it was estimated there were roughly 44,000 such stores in Japan.
Anime:
A girl is accosted in front of a konbini in Death Note (v.1 p.37 and ep.1).
In Tokyo Godfathers several people just escape with their lives at a konbini.
In the movie Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer the local store never runs out of food, even though it is deserted along with the rest of the neighborhood.
In Patlabor 2 an emergency detail of mechanics is sent out to stock up on food at a convenience store.
There are convenience stores with a prominent 8 on their logos in Full Metal Panic The Second Raid TSR (ep.11) and Kaze no Yojimbo (ep.6).
Manga:
A convenience store with a prominent 7 on it's sign is in the first story in Ikigami (v.1 p.24).
A "7 Mart" is seen as Saya discusses Hagi with Kai in Blood + (v.1 p.75).
Sources:
Ashburne, John & Abe Yoshi. World Food Japan p.163
FamilyMart Annual Report 2009 p.73
Galbraith, Patrick. The Otaku Encyclopedia p.44
Schreiber, Mark editor. Tokyo Confidential p.x
and Shopping in Tōkyō stores while on trips

konbu (kelp) こんぶ or 昆布 (The Anime Companion 2 p.48)

Sources:
Eating in Japan p.151
Hosking, Richard. Dictionary of Japanese Food p.82, 206.
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.821

konbucha (konbu tea aka seaweed tea) 昆布茶

A type of 'tea' actually an infusion of seaweed, the name is a combination of konbu [kelp] (The Anime Companion 2 p.48) and cha [tea] (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.16). This beverage is made from powdered konbu and is slightly salty; it is commonly described as like a soup. Often it is served with umeboshi (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.143) and shiso (beefsteak plant) added. Konbucha is also transliterated as kombucha and kobucha. It is not to be confused with the fermented tea drink kvass which for some strange reason picked up the name of kombucha in Western Europe and the English speaking world during the last few decades.
Anime:
In episode 40 of Yawara! Fujiko offers kombu tea to Yawara.
Sources:
Ashburne, John & Abe Yoshi. World Food Japan p.80
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.225
Nagasawa Kimiko & Camy Condon. Eating Cheap in Japan p.85
Wong, Crystal. "U.S. 'kombucha': smelly and no kelp" Japan Times. Thursday, July 12, 2007
Yamaguchi Momoo, Kojima Setsuko. A Cultural Dictionary of Japan p.98

Kondō Isami 近藤勇 (The Anime Companion 2 p.49)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.823
Who's Who of Japan p.152

kondōmu (condom) コンドーム (The Anime Companion 2 p.49)

Sources:
Cherry, Kittredge. Womansword p.122-124
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman. Japan From A to Z p.17

kongōshō (vajra) 金剛杵 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.73)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia 134, 135

Kongōyasya 金剛や者

The Japanese name of a bodhisattva (see: bosatsu, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.13) known in India as Vajrayaksha or Vajrapāni, in China as Jingang, and in Tibet as Phyag-na rdo-rje. In Japanese esoteric (see: mikkyō, The Anime Companion 2 p.56)) ritual he is considered a form of Dainichi Nyorai (Vairocana) and identical to Kongōsatta (Vajrasattva). This form can be represented as calm with three eyes seated on a lotus (hasu), holding a five pointed vajra (see: kongōsho, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.73) in his right hand and a vajra bell in his left. This design is considered to be secret in Shingonshū (Shingon sect) and Tendaishū (Tendai sect) of Buddhism and rarely seen. The three commonly seen forms are: Gentle with five eyes and four arms seated on a lotus holding the five pointed vajra in a right hand and a vajra bell in a left, the other arms hold a bow, arrow, sword and wheel. Ferocious with three heads each with five eyes in the central face and six arms holding the same objects while seated or standing in a trampling posture. The second ferocious form has one face with five eyes, is making a mudrā (see: inzō, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.50) of anger (Trailokyavijayarāja mudra) and carrying the same objects. There are many descriptions of the significance of this bodhisattva in different countries. In Japan he is considered part of a group called the Godairiki Bosatsu or Godairiki-son sent by the Buddha to protect rulers who comply with Buddhist law.
Anime and Manga:
In Sanctuary, during the scene in the car after the yakuza (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.146) Tokai has been released from prison we see a large tattoo (see: irezumi, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.50) of the three headed form of Kongōyasya-myōō on his back (v.1 p.206). Later in the manga we see that his wife had an identical tattoo covering her back (v.1 p.286), in these images he is depicted with three eyes rather than five.
Sources:
Frederic, Louis. Buddhism: Flammarion Iconographic Guides p.211-213
Matsunami Kodo. Essentials of Buddhist Images p.88

kon'in (marriage) 婚姻 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.74)

Sources:
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japanese Etiquette Today p.95
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.68
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.924

kōnin todoke (Notice of Marriage) 婚姻届

A legalform for registering a marriage. All two single adults need to be legally married is to submit a kōnin todoke to the local government office. They do not even have to deliver the form during office hours as it can simply be dropped off when the office is closed. A marriage ceremony is not needed, in fact even with a ceremony the marriage is not legal until the form has been submitted.
Anime:
In Maison Ikkoku (ep.24) we see a kōnin todoke in Godai's fantasy.
In Please Teacher (ep.3) we see Hyosuke apply his seal (hanko; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.40) to a kōnin todoke, a moment in which is life is transformed and the plot moves forward as he marries his teacher.
Sources:
Naobumi Abe & Ted Takahashi. The 100% Complete Illustrated Guide to Japanese Systems p.50-51

Konishi Yukinaga 小西行長 (The Anime Companion 2 p.49)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.824
Turnbull, Stephen. The Samurai Sourcebook p.51

Konjaku monogatari 今昔物語

A collection of over 1000 tales from the late Heian Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.44). Legend had it that these had been collected by a nobleman, Minamoto no Takakuni, from tales told him by a traveler. However the tales mention events that took place after Takakuni's death so that view has been discounted. While most of the tales seem to be of an oral nature some are based on Japanese written texts and other on Chinese literary works. many of the tales have strong Buddhist (Bukkyō The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.15) themes. Sixty two of the tales are available in an English translation by Marian Ury under the title of Tales of Times Now Past.
Manga:
In Ogre Slayer (v. 1, first page of chapter 2) there is a quote from the Konjaku Tales.
In Twilight of the Dark Master (p.36) Shizuka mentions that she studied the Konjaku stories in college.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.824
Miner, Earl; Odagiri Hiroko and Robert Morrell The Princeton Companion to Classical Japanese Literature p.188

konnyaku (devil's tongue root) こんにゃく or 蒟蒻 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.74)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.825

konpei (a type of chain weapon) 錕平

A type of chain weapon with a weight only at one end. The other end had a ring or a kakute and the chain went through a handle consisting of a pipe with a guard . The as the chain slid through the handle the larger ring at the end opposite from the weight kept the chain from falling out when fully extended. The ring could be held in the other hand from the handle to control the length of the chain. The konpei was commonly concealed and used in a surprise attack. Police sometimes used this weapon to capture criminals.
Anime:
Ishimatsu uses a konpei in Samurai Champloo (ep.3) in a fight against Mugen and at other times.
Sources:
Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan p.136-38

konpeitō 金平糖 (The Anime Companion 2 p.50)

Sources:
Eating in Japan p.133

KONPIRA see: Kompira

KONPIRA DAI-GONGEN see: Kompira

KOREAN BBQ RESTAURANTS see: yakiniku-ya (The Anime Companion 2 p.114)

KOREAN DOGS see: koma-inu (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.73)

KOREAN PEPPER see: kōrēgūsu (Korean pepper)

KOREANS IN JAPAN see: zainichi kankokujin to chōsenjin (Koreans in Japan)

kōrēgūsu (Korean pepper) 高麗胡椒 or コーレーグース

A mixture of whole small red chili peppers soaking in awamori (a distilled alcoholic beverage from Okinawa (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.99) and vinegar. Kōrēgūsu is used in Okinawa to add spice to soups.
Anime:
We see small red peppers in a bottle of kōrēgūsu poured on Okinawa soba in Blood + (ep.7).
Sources:
A bottle bought at Akabanaa, an Okinawan goods shop in San Francisco's Japantown.

KORETŌ HYŪGA NO KAMI see: Akechi Mitsuhide

korokke (croquette) コロッケ (The Anime Companion 2 p.50)

Sources:
Ashburne, John & Abe Yoshi World Food Japan p.163
Rombauer, Irma S. & Marion Rombauer Becker. Joy of Cooking p.118

Kōseishō (Ministry of Health and Welfare) 厚生省 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.74)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.969
Today's Japan p.173
Web Site:
Ministry of Health and Welfare web pages

koseki (household register) 戸籍

Often translated as family register. These are official records of the members of an individual household each containing information regarding birth, gender, marriage, relationship to the other members etc. Koseki are the legal proof of the status of the members of the household. Such registers go back to the 6th century and were made part of the documentation needed under the Ritsuryō system in the 7th century. The use of koseki declined in the Heian Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.44) and had almost ceased when the bakufu (The Anime Companion 2 p.8) revived the practice in the early Edo Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.25) and have remained part of legal records to this day.
Anime:
In City Hunter 2 (ep.55) Kimiko, who lives with her maternal grandfather, found her family's koseki did not list a father.
Manga:
In Marionette Generation (v.5 p.75) Kinoko has been interested in Izumi for some time, however their parents are getting married so they will be step siblings. Kinoko solves this by having the koseki changed so she is now the adopted daughter of her aunt. In Japan, as in almost all of the world, cousins can marry.
Something happens to Hazumi in Kashimashi (v.1 p.42) that results in the government deliberating a significant change in the Osaragi "family register".
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.570

koshi (palanquin) 輿 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.74)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.832

KOSHIAN see an

koshimaki (hip wrapping) 腰巻

Koshimaki refers to more than one type of clothing article. One is a style of removing the top of an outer kimono (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.68) and fastening it around the waist in hot weather. The other is a an undergarment worn by women with kimono rather than Western underwear which disturbs the clean lines of the garment. These are simply a length of thin cloth roughly a yard wide and two yards long that is wrapped around the waist.
Anime:
When Jigoro calls Yawara's new mini skirt a koshimaki in Yawara! (ep.37) he is refering to the undergarment.
Sources:
Brinkley, Frank. Brinkley's Japanese-English Dictionary p.755
Dalby, Liza. Geisha p.105
Dalby, Liza. Kimono p.37, 126, 273, 341, 357
Pate, Alen Scott. Ningyō: The Art of the Japanese Doll p.179

KOSHIMINO see: nino (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.84)

KOSHI-YAWA see: Kasshi-yawa ("Tales Begun on the Night of the Rat")

kōsoku dōro (expressway) 高速道路 (The Anime Companion 2 p.50)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.353-354
Road Atlas Japan p.4-13, 16-19
Web Sites:
Nihon Doro Kodan (Japan Highway Public Corporation)

kosupure (costume play) コスプレ (The Anime Companion 2 p.50)

Sources:
Cosplay is actually quite well explained in Otaku no Video
Richie, Donald. The Image Factory p,137-149

kotatsu 炬燵 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.74)

Sources:
A Look Into Japan p.163
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.833

koto 琴 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.75)

Sources:
Discover Japan v.1 p.144
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.834

KOTOJIBŌ see: sasumata (spear fork)

Kōtō-ku 江東区 OLD FORM 江東區 (The Anime Companion 2 p.50)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.835
Tokyo City Atlas [2nd ed.] p.59, 60, 67
Tokyo Metropolitan Atlas p.18-19
Seidensticker, Edward. Tokyo Rising p.312-313
Web Sites:
Kōtō (official site)

kotodama (spirit in words) 言霊

The Shintō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.121) term for the spiritual power that resides in words. This plays a role in the words chosen in Shintō rituals as beautiful ones were beneficial and some words would have a bad influence. The earliest Japanese texts make reference to this belief. The concept also influences poetry and taboo words (imikotoba) in some circumstances.
Anime and Manga:
In Inu Yasha (ep.2, v.1 ch.3) Kagome is told to use a "word", kotodama in the original Japanese, to subjugate Inu Yasha, but what a powerful word it is.
Sources:
Basic Terms of Shinto p.42-43.
Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto p.107-108.

KŌTSÛ KŌSHA NO JIKOKU-HYŌ see: jikoku-hyō (timetable)

kotsuzumi 小鼓

A type of tsuzumi (hand drum), usually made from sakura (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) or keyaki (The Anime Companion 2 p.45) wood, the skin is made from horsehide. The inside is specially carved to produce the best sound. A kotsuzumi is played by holding it by the cords on the right shoulder with the left hand and on the shoulder. By squeezing the cords the tone can be altered as part of a performance. The cords, which are a little loose, are readjusted between and occasionally during performances.
Anime:
Kotsuzumi and the larger ōtsuzumi are seen in several anime with dancing involved such as the first episode of Gasaraki.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1636
Malm, William P. Traditional Japanese Music and Musical Instruments p.137-139
Wade, Bonnie C. Music in Japan p.109-110

kouta (little song) 小唄 or 小歌

Short songs, sometimes referred to as Edo kouta and hamaya uta (quick song). These are short songs, many less than a minute, longer songs last up to 4 minutes. Kouta are accompanied by shamisen (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.116) music with the strings plucked by fingernails rather than the usual plectrum, this allows for a faster style of picking. The singing is in a simple style and after the song is completed the shamisen music continues for a short time. Short songs called kouta were first collected in 1518 in a work called the Kanginshū, before the shamisen entered Japan. After the shamisen became popular a folk tradition of kouta developed and such music found it's way into kabuki (The Anime Companion 2 p.35) where it was eventually replaced by the longer nagauta style of singing. Kouta as we know it today originated in early 19th century Edo (The Anime Companion 2 p.18) and is closely related to the earlier hauta style found in Fukagawa (The Anime Companion 2 p.21). Originally kouta were mainly sung by geisha (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.33), and this is the case again today. In the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81) lineages of professional singers appeared and many significant writers of the period became interested in kouta.
Manga:
At the beginning of part 2 of Blade of the Immortal: Dark Shadows when Habaki speaks of the decline in skill of the samurai (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.110) he mentions that many prefer frivolity such as kouta.
Sources:
Dalby, Liza. Little Songs of the Geisha: Traditional Japanese Ko-Uta p.9-18
Deal, William E. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan p.270
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.835 Leiter, Samuel. New Kabuki Encyclopedia p.359

Kōya-san (Mt. Kōya) 高野山 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.75)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.835
Web site:
Koyasan Shingon Temples

KUAN-YIN see: Kannon

KUBIKIRI ASAEMON see: Yamada Asaemon

KUBIRA see: Kompira

kuchi-sake-onna (slit-mouthed woman) 口裂け女 or 口さけ女

The slit mouthed woman is an urban legend which began in 1978 and rapidly spread throughout Japan. The common version of the story is that an attractive woman wearing a surgical mask (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.127) would lurk and accost a child on the way home. She would ask the child if she was beautiful and then remove her mask to expose a grotesque mouth stretching from ear to ear.
Anime:
In Pom Poko when the panicked policemen tries to tell his coworker what he saw he is asked if it was a woman with a "mouth like a shark"s, what is said is kuchi-sake-onna.
Sources:
Foster, Michael Dylan. "The Question of the Slit-Mouthed Woman: Contemporary Legend, the Beauty Industry, and Women’s Weekly Magazines in Japan." SIGNS (Spring 2007) p.699-726

KUDO see: kamado (The Anime Companion 2 p.39)

KUGISHO NAVY SPECIAL ATTACKER OHKA see: Ōka (The Anime Companion 2 p.67)

kuji (nine magic syllables) 九字 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.75)

Sources:
Blacker, Carmen. The Catalpa Bow p.244
Waterhouse, David. "Notes on the kuji" In: Religion in Japan, ed by F. Kornicki and I. J. McMullen. p.1- 38

Kūkai (Kōbō-Daishi) 空海

774-835 Kūkai, who was also known as Kōbō-Daishi 弘法大師, was a Heian Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.44) Buddhist priest (bōzu) who became the founder of Shingonshū (The Shingon sect of Buddhism.). He was from an aristocratic family and born in Byōbugaura in the province of Sanuki, present day Zentsūji in Kanagawa Ken (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60). He dropped out of the national college and explained his action with an essay denouncing Confucianism (see: Jukyō; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.56) and Taoism while affirming Buddhism (see: Bukkyō: (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.15). He wandered as a itinerant hermit until 804 when he traveled to China to study Esoteric Buddhism (mikkyō; The Anime Companion 2 p.56) under the patriarch Keika (Hui-guo, Hui-kuo), in 806 he returned to Japan with documents certifying him as a master in the esoteric teachings. In 819 he established a Shingon center for training and meditation on Mt. Kōya (see: Kōya-san; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.75) and in 823 Emperor Saga granted him Tōji, a Buddhist temple in southern Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77) which became the headquarters of Shingon. Kūkai is known for many practices other than religious ones. These include skill in calligraphy, sculpting, engineering and lexicography. The later in the compiling of one of the oldest dictionaries of Japanese. He also traveled extensively in his later life, this along with his earlier travels as resulted in many legends of his visits in much of Japan.
Anime:
Kūkai's tomb is seen in Spirit Warrior (ep.1).
In Doomed Megalopolis (ep.2) we hear that "Kohbo-Daishi Kukai" in a dream was told by Nanda the Dragon king to found Ryujin village in Wakayama ken.
Sources:
Illustrated Who’s Who of Japan p.30
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.839

kumade (bamboo rake) 熊手 or くまで (The Anime Companion 2 p.51)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.435
Pictorial Encyclopedia of Japanese Life and Events p.84
Look Into Tokyo p.84
Bush, Lewis Japanalia: A Concise Encyclopedia p.374

KUMBHIRA see: Kompira

Kume Masao 久米正雄 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.841

Kunikida Doppo 国木田独歩

1871-1908 Real name Kunikida Tetsuo. An important writer known for his poetry and fiction. While he was a writer in the romantic school he greatly influenced the naturalists due to his use of that style in his works. He was born in Chōshi (The Anime Companion 2 p.13) in Chiba Ken (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.18) but raised in Yamaguchi ken (The Anime Companion 2 p.115). At the age of 19 he enrolled in Tōkyō Semmon Gakkō, today known as Waseda Daigaku (Waseda University) (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.144). At the age of 21 he became a Christian (see: Kirisutokyō (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.69). He married in November 1895, however his wife abandoned him after five months. The impact of her leaving had a effect on the rest of his writing. One of his works is Azamukazaru no ki (An Honest Diary) which deals with the pain of the separation. He was a successful author until he died of TB (see: kekkaku The Anime Companion 2 p.44) in 1908
Manga:
Mustachio (in the Japanese original Higeoyaji "moustached old man") quotes from Kunikida Doppo's 1901 work Musashino in Astro Boy (v.16 p.10)
Kunikida Tesuo (Kunikida Doppo) is one of the customers drinking beer in the Masamune Hall early on in The Times of Botchan (v.1 p. 29
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p. 842
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then: An Explorer's Guide p.447

kurage (jellyfish) 水母 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.156
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.678

Kurama Tengu 鞍馬天狗 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Sources:
Who's Who of Japan p.152

Kuramayama (Mt. Kurama) 鞍馬山 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.844
Must-See in Kyōto p.124

Kurisumasu (Christmas) クリスマス (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Sources:
Japanese Family and Culture p.96
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.200
Vardaman, James M. and Michiko Sakaki Vardaman Japan From A to Z p.27
Today's Japan p.66

kuroame (hard black sugar candy) 黒飴

A black, or very dark brown, hard candy made mainly of coarse and black sugar with some starch.
Anime:
In Peacemaker (ep. 8) Ichimura Tetsunosuke is asked by Kondō Isami (The Anime Companion 2 p.49) to buy some kuroame, translated as "brown sugar candy" when he goes to a local festival.
Sources:
The label on a bag I purchased at the Nippon-Ya store in San Francisco's Japantown.

kuromame (black soybeans) くろまめ or 黒豆

Black soybeans. These require soaking as they are sold in the dry form. Kuromame are served in a sweet syrup and is a traditional part of New Year's food (osechi-ryōri; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.102) as they symbolize health.
Anime:
Lime picks up black beans in the New Year's food in Saber Marionette J (ep. 14)
Yurie says they don't taste good in Kami Chu! (ep.14) so that is part of her New Year's meal that she doesn't eat.
Sources:
Hosking, Richard. A Dictionary of Japanese Food p.86
Illustrated Eating in Japan p.61

kurogo (stagehand) 黒子 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.706

kuroyaki (charred plants & animals) 黒焼

Plants and animals that have been charred black and used for a variety of purposes. The practice of making medicine this way entered Japan from China and is often held to date back to around the Kansei Period, 1789-1800 when it became quite popular. However there are references to internal and external use of kuroyaki in 14th century medical texts such as the Ton'ishō by Kajiwara Shōzen and in works on treating wounds such as the Kinsō ryōjishō (On Healing Incised Wounds) and the Kihō (Demon Formulas). Some shops still exist today that sell kuroyaki medicine. Perhaps the most famous kuroyaki is made from a charred newt, sometimes mistranslated as gekko or lizard, this is called imori no kuroyaki (charred newt). Kuroyaki is usually sold in a powdered form.
Anime:
In Spirited Away Kamaji gives Lin a "roasted newt", literally a imori no kuroyaki, when he asks her to help Chihiro get a job at the bath house. Later one of the supervisors yells "kuroyaki!" when he sees it.
Sources:
Goble, Andrew Edmund. "War and Injury; The Emergence of Wound Medicine in Medieval Japan". Monumenta Nipponica. v.60. no.3. Autumn 2005 pp. 297-338
Joya Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.70

kuruwa kotoba 廓言葉

The dialect of the Yoshiwara, also called arinsu kotoba and Yoshiwara kotoba. In the Yoshiwara the high ranking courtesans, especially tayū and oiran, were expected to speak in a refined manner. This, as well as the need to have a standard manner of speech for all the women who came to the quarter from various parts of Japan, produced a way of speaking that was elegant and unique to the Yoshiwara. Such dialects also made it easy to identify any woman who escaped the brothels. Some of the patterns of speech, phrases and words may have come from the Shimabara brothel area of Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77) which had it's own dialect. This is one type of prostitute dialect which are collectively known as yūrigō, yūrikotoba and sato-kotoba. This type of speech died out in the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81).
Anime:
In Ghost Slayers Ayashi (ep.13) courtesan speech is heard, and referred to, in the conversation about congratulations being given.
Sources:
de Becker, J. E. The Nightless City p.176-180
Downer, Lesley. Women of the Pleasure Quarters p.42
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.281
Kern, Adam L. Manga From the Floating World p.493
Miner, Earl; Odagiri Hiroko and Robert Morrell. Princeton Companion to Classical Japanese Literature p.296, 304
Seigle, Cecilia Segawa. Yoshiwara p.9, 36, 126, 273

kusa-dango (green dango) くさだんご or 草だんご

Green dango (The Anime Companion 2 p.15), the coloring comes from mixing yomogi (mugwort) with the flour used to make the dango. Tsubu-an, a type of sweet red bean paste (see:an), is usually poured over kusa-dango.
Anime:
Kusa-dango are in episode 13 of the Rurouni Kenshin TV series.
Sources:
Eating in Japan p.138

kusarifundō (weighted chain) 鎖分銅 (The Anime Companion 2 p.52)

Sources:
Campbell, Sid. Exotic Weapons of the Ninja p. 137f
Ratti, Oscar and Adele Westbrook. Secrets of the Samurai p. 316-7

kusarigama (chain and sickle) 鎖鎌 (The Anime Companion 2 p.52)

Sources:
Martial Arts & Sports in Japan p.18
Frederic, Louis. Dictionary of the Martial Arts p.139

kusari-katabira (chain-mail vest) 鎖帷子 (The Anime Companion 2 p.51)

Source:
Turnbull, Stephen. The Samurai Sourcebook p.114
Cunningham, Don. Taiho-Jutsu p. 46

kusasotetsu (ostrich fern) くさそてつ or 草蘇鉄 (The Anime Companion 2 p.52)

Sources:
Hosking, Richard. Dictionary of Japanese Food p.218

kushami (sneeze) くしゃみ or 嚔 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.76)

Sources:
Joya, Mock. Mock Joya's Things Japanese p.461

kushi (comb) 櫛 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.214
Must-See in Kyōto p.123

kushi-dango (skewered dango) 串団子 OLD FORM 串團子 (The Anime Companion 2 p.52)

Source:
Eating in Japan p.131

KUSU see: kusunoki (camphor tree)

kusunoki (camphor tree) 楠

Namomum camphora. Also called kusu in Japan. The camphor tree is found in Kyūshū (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.78), Shikoku (The Anime Companion 2 p.84) and warmer areas in Honshū (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.47). This evergreen can grow very large and some trees are known to be over 1,000 years old. The leaves are glossy , in the Spring small white flowers grow and when the small round fruit is ripe it turns black. The wood is used for ships, musical instruments, furniture and carvings. Camphor and camphor oil are also produced from the tree. We had a tree growing in our yard when I was a child, if you crush a leaf the smell of camphor is usually quite strong.
Anime:
Perhaps the largest camphor tree in anime, certainly the most famous, is Totoro's tree in My Neighbor Totoro.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.160

kusuri (drugs) 薬

Drugs. Until the late 19th century drugs were mainly traditional herbal mixtures used in kampō (Chinese Medicine) 漢方. During the Meiji Period (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.81) the government promoted the use of Western medicine. Today kusuri refers to both traditional and modern drugs are used in Japan with regulations set for the manufacture and sale of drugs. The word kusuri is also used as slang to refer to illegal drugs, sometimes with the first two syllables rearranged, sometime to also pun, as sukuri, risuku (risk), kurisu (Chris) and suriku (slick).
Anime:
In Samurai X Trust and Betrayal Izuka drops off a backpack of "medicines", kusuri in the original Japanese, so that Kanshin and Tomoe will have a visible form of income as "druggists", kusuriya in Japanese.
The term kusuri turns up in The Priest of Mt. Kouya when referring to the Medicine seller from Tōyama.
Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.298
Constantine, Peter. Japanese Street Slang p.66

KUVERA see: Kompira

kuwa (hoe) 鍬 (The Anime Companion 2 p.53)

Sources:
Houchins, Chang-su Artifacts of Diplomacy p. 124

kuzu mochi (arrowroot cake) くずもち or 葛餅 OLD FORM 葛餠 (The Anime Companion 2 p.53)

Sources:
Nagasawa Kimiko & Camy Condon. Eating Cheap in Japan p.72
Hosking, Richard. Dictionary of Japanese Food p.87

Kuzunoha 葛の葉

The story of Kuzunoha says that one day in Izumi Abe no Yasuna hid a fox (see: kitsune; The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.71) that was pursued by hunters wanting the fox's liver for medicine. One variant of the story has Yasuna taking pity on the fox and fighting the hunters. No long afterwards he married a girl named Kuzunoha and they had a son, Abe no Seimei. All of the legends have Kuzunoha as a kitsune nyōbō (fox wife) since she actually was the grateful fox that Yasuna had saved. Here the legends vary some say she died when the child was young and others say she left a poem behind and returned to the Shinoda forest in Izumi. The name Kuzunoha actually comes from the last line in the poem. Some portraits of her show her shadow with a fox head or as either a woman or fox with an ink brush in her mouth. There are several bunraku (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.15) and kabuki (The Anime Companion 2 p.35) plays about Kuzunoha.
Anime:
Sara mentions Kuzunoha in a song and later more of the song "Kuzunoha Leaves Her Child" is performed in Samurai Champloo (ep.20).
Sources:
Goff, Janet E. "Conjuring Kuzunoha from the World of Abe no Seimei" in A Kabuki Reader ed by Samuel L. Leiter.
Joly, Henri L. Legend in Japanese Art p.1
Nozaki, Kiyoshi. Kitsuné: Japan's Fox of Mystery, Romance, and Humor p.100-111
Stevenson, John. Yoshitoshi’s Strange Tales p.122-123

KWANNON see: Kannon

kyaba kura (cabaret club) キャバクラ

Actually a contraction of kyabarē kurabu, cabaret club. These are a special type of club, usually with younger, less experienced hostesses (hosutesu The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.47) and lower cost. When you enter you are assigned a hostess, in some cases you can request a particular one. Snacks are also provided without asking. The hostess and snacks are added to your bill along with any drinks that are ordered. sometimes foreigners don't know about this custom and complain. Large cabarets can also have stage shows, often amateurish ones as there is a certain charm to such acts. Some will have theme nights with the hostesses in the same type of costume. In recent years some kyaba kura have added lap dancing as a specialty.
Manga:
In GTO (v.13 ch.101) some of the teachers are at the Love Castle cabaret each with a topless miniskirted hostess on their laps and their face into the girl's tits.
Godai works as a yobi-komi for a kyaba kura in Maison Ikkoku (vol. 11 p. 196, 2nd edition v.12 p.90), however at this one the girls are not all that young and don't lap dance.
Sources:
Bornoff, Nicholas. Pink Samurai p.289-290
De Mente, Boye Lafayette. Japan Encyclopedia p. 58
Illustrated Japanese Family & Culture p.145
Louis, Lisa. Butterflies of the Night p.91, 211
Richie, Donald. The Image Factory p.70
Sinclair, Joan. Pink Box p.186, 187

Kyōei-zan Daikyōji 経栄山 題経寺

A temple located in the Shibamata neighborhood of Katsushika-ku in Tōkyō (The Anime Companion 2 p.104). Commonly known as Shibamata Taishakuten and also as Taishakuten Daikyōji or just Daikyōji, the temple was built in 1629. The main object of worship in the temple is a statue of Taishaku carved by Nichiren. This image had been thought lost for 500 years until the 9th abbot Nikkei found it stored in the rafters of the main temple on the day of kōshin. The nakamise lane leading to the temple gate is famous for its shops and as a setting in the many Otoko wa Tsurai Yo (It's Tough Being a Man, aka: Tora-san) movies. The highly ornate temple gate was made in the late 19th century is called the Nitenmon as it contains two ni statues said to have been carved by Jōchō in the 11th century. The Taishaku Hall, to the left of the main building, dates from 1929 and includes panels carved by some of the most famous sculptors of the time. Kyōei-zan Daikyōji is known as a place to pray for healing from disease and to ward off evil.
Anime:
In City Hunter 2 (ep.8) Ryo gives Machico's father a tour of Tōkyō and when they pass the Kaminarimon (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.60) at Sensōji (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.114), the father asks if the temple is the "Shibamata Buddhist Temple".
Sources:
Bilingual Atlas of Tokyo 80 A2
Illustrated A Look Into Tokyo p.67
Tokyo City Atlas 53 E2
Tokyo Metropolitan Atlas 46 E-2
Waley, Paul. Tokyo Now & Then p.274-277

kyōfu manga (terror manga) 恐怖漫画

Horror manga. A Japanese comic book (see: manga, The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.80) genre that started in the 1960s and has been dominated by smaller publishers. The majority of horror manga are published in magazines aimed at young female readers and almost all manga magazines (manga zasshi)) devoted to horror are aimed at the shōjo (The Anime Companion 2 p.87) demographic. Such stories often build slowly adding horror after horror until the end of the tale. Many horror manga have been adapted into live action movies such as Tomie and Uzumaki.
Manga:
A few mangaka (manga artists) who are well known in the US for producing horror manga (and some of their translated works) include Hino Hideshi (Hino Horror series, Panorama of Hell, Hell Baby), Ito Junji (Museum of Terror, Uzumaki, Flesh Colored Horror, Gyo, Tomie), Umezu Kazuo (Cat Eyed Boy, Drifting Classroom, Orochi: Blood), Inuki Kanako (School Zone, Presents), and Mikamoto Rei (Reiko the Zombie Shop).
Sources:
Thompson, Jason. Manga: The Complete Guide p.150, 335

KYŌGO see: renju (five-in-a-row)

kyōiku mama (education mama) 教育ママ

A slightly derogatory term for a type of mother that constantly pushes her children, usually sons, to excel in school so they can get into a better college and a better career. Often they enroll their children in cram schools (yobikō The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.147) from an early age to further educational development.
Anime:
Tsutomu's mother in Zenki (ep 13) is an excellent example of such a mother.
Sources:
Benjamin, Gail R. Japanese Lessons p,15-17
Cherry, Kittredge. Womansword p.78-79

KYŌKATABIRA see: katabira (unlined kimono)

KYOKUTEI BAKIN see: Bakin (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.8)

kyō-seme 強攻め

The kyō in kyō-seme means strong. In Boys Love and yaoi (The Anime Companion 2 p.116) fan terminology the combining of the term with seme refers to an aggressively dominating character in a male - male sexual relationship or pursuit.
Manga:
The term translated as "aggressive top" on page 93 of volume 6 of Genshiken is kyō-seme.
In Dance in the Vampire Bund (v.3 p.30) the princess says she did not understand some margin notes in Yuki's manuscript with terms such as sasoi-uke, kyou-seme. CP and satou.
Sources:
Galbraith, Patrick. The Otaku Encyclopedia p.199
Spahn, Mark & Wolfgang Hadamitzky. The Learner's Kanji Dictionary p.385

Kyōto 京都 [市] (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.857-
Web Site:
Kyōto City Web

KYOTO DEPUTY see: Kyōto Shoshidai (The Anime Companion 2 p.53)

KYŌTO MILITARY COMMISSIONER see: Kyōto Shugoshoko (The Anime Companion 2 p.53)

Kyōto Shoshidai (Kyōto Deputy) 京都所司代 FORMAL FORM incorrect in the book as 京都所司代. I cannot reproduce the correct form here. (The Anime Companion 2 p.53)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.867
Papinot, E. Historical and Geographical Dictionary of Japan p.346

Kyōto Shugoshoku (Kyōto Military Commissioner) 京都守護職 FORMAL FORM incorrect in the book as 京都守護職. I cannot reproduce the correct form here. (The Anime Companion 2 p.53)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.867

KYOTO STUDIO PARK see: Tōei Uzumasa Eigamura (Toei Uzumasa cinema village)

Kyōto Tawaa (Kyōto Tower) 京都タワー

A modern landmark of Kyōto (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77) built in 1964, the same year as the Tōkyō Olympics, just North of Kyōto Station. The tower was designed by Yamada Mamoru to resemble a candle. The tower is 131 meters tall with an circular observation deck, on clear days you can even see Ōsaka (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.102) from the deck.
Manga:
In Ohikkoshi, the section called "Bloodbath at Midorogaike (Kyōto Super Bar Hopping Journal)" (p.234-) mangaka (manga artist) Samura Hiroaki expresses surprise at seeing Kyōto Tower.
Sources:
Dougill, John. Kyōto: A Cultural History p219
Rowthorn, Chris. Kyōto: City Guide p.54, 74
Kyōto-Ōsaka A Bilingual Atlas p.33 F3
Web Site:
Official Web Site

KYŌTO TOWER see:L Kyōto Tawaa

kyū (moxibustion) 灸 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.1011

kyūdō (Japanese archery) 弓道 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.77)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.868

kyūri (cucumber) きゅうり or 胡瓜 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.78)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.258

Kyūshū 九州 (The Anime Companion [vol.1] p.78)

Sources:
Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia p.868

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