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Meanings of character's names.

Kuwabara is the name of a guy in a Japanese legend I believe. It had something to do with him being struck by lightning all the time or something like that. I only vaguely remember something of it from the Metal Gear Solid 3 boards on Gfaqs cause everyone wondered why that one guy who controls lightning kept saying "Kuwabara Kuwabara" over and over.

also, the four names Suzaku, Byakko, Genbu and Seiryu come up alot in anime (again Yu Yu Hakusho) and also video games (Tenchu 2). they are four deities i think

But meaningful names are not only Japanese. For instance, in Last Exile, we have Dio whose name literally mean s "god", but probably intended here to allude to the Dioscuri, i.e. Gemini. We also have his dark half, Luciola, whose name means "firefly", implying a brief life and a rôle as uncertain guide in the darkness.- abunai

Offhand, I can think of at least a dozen anime where the four animals play an important part, in one form or another. Fushigi Yuugi, Harukanaru Toki no Naka de ~Hachiyoushou~, Mahou Shoutengai Abenobashi, etc.

"Shiro" means "castle", so does that mean the main character in 08th MS Team is named "Castle"? I doubt it.

that's just an example of how knowing just a little Japanese can be misleading.

"Shiro" means "castle", so does that mean the main character in 08th MS Team is named "Castle"? I doubt it.

Far more likely that his name is 白 (shiro, "white") than 城 (shiro, "castle"), since the former is a far more common name.

I never was a big fan of Sailor Moon, but their names also correspond to planets which fits the show, right? Either that or days of the week.

月野うさぎ Tsukino Usagi = Rabbit of the Moon
水野アミ Mizuno Ami = Friend of Water
火野霊 Hino Rei = Spirit of Fire
木野真 Kino Makoto = Truth of Tree (or something like that)
愛野美奈子 Aino Minako = Beautiful Child of Love
地場守 Chiba Mamoru = Protects the Earth

The kanji of 'Sesshō' means 'killing or destruction of life.' 'Maru' is usually a suffix that is often added at the end of a Japanese name for young males in samurai families. They would use this name until they were recognized as adults, whereupon they would adopt a new name. Therefore Sesshōmaru means "Destruction Man." However, it is said that 'maru' can also translate as the word for 'circle,' which is a common Japanese motif for what in the West is called 'the circle of life.'[citation needed] Thus it is widely assumed that the name Sesshōmaru translates literally as 'destruction of the circle of life', or 'end of the circle of life.' However 'maru' also means 'perfect,' so another possible translation is 'perfect destruction,' or 'Killing Perfection.' This may seem to provide a relationship between the crescent mark on Sesshomaru's forehead, and the Meidō Zangetsuha's now crescent-moon shape/size, to its potential circular shape and size.

vaguely remember something of it from the Metal Gear Solid 3 boards on Gfaqs cause everyone wondered why that one guy who controls lightning kept saying "Kuwabara Kuwabara" over and over.

blind_assassin wrote:

vaguely remember something of it from the Metal Gear Solid 3 boards on Gfaqs cause everyone wondered why that one guy who controls lightning kept saying "Kuwabara Kuwabara" over and over.

No; according to Japanese superstition, the mulberry tree is less likely to be struck by lightning than any other tree.

So the guy is probably saying that to protect himself from the dangerous ability that he is using.

And it's therefore also easy to see how it became a general incantation to ward off bad luck

So what about some others?

They are also characters in Digimon

East: Seiryuu (Blue Dragon) - Qinglongmon (Azulongmon)
North: Genbu (Black Turtle) - Xuanwumon (Ebonwumon)
West: Byakko (White Tiger) - Baihumon
South: Suzaku (Red Sparrow/Phoenix) - Zhuqiaomon

and they also feature in the PS2 game Shadow Hearts.

Also the four "bosses" in the Nintendo Final Fantasy for the Gameboy.