and is the most frequently used

pejorative A pejorative word, phrase, slur, or derogatory term is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hosti ...

term in the

Japanese language is the principal language of the Japonic languages, Japonic language family spoken by the Japanese people. It has around 123 million speakers, primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language, and within the Japanese dia ...

. The word ''baka'' has a long history, an uncertain etymology (possibly from

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

Classical Chinese Classical Chinese is the language in which the classics of Chinese literature were written, from . For millennia thereafter, the written Chinese used in these works was imitated and iterated upon by scholars in a form now called Literary ...

), and sociolinguistic complexities.

Word

100px, ''Baka'' written in kanji as The modern

Japanese writing system The modern Japanese writing system uses a combination of Logogram, logographic kanji, which are adopted Chinese characters, and Syllabary, syllabic kana. Kana itself consists of a pair of syllabary, syllabaries: hiragana, used primarily for n ...

transcribes the

insult An insult is an expression, statement, or behavior that is often deliberately disrespectful, offensive, scornful, or derogatory towards an individual or a group. Insults can be intentional or unintentional, and they often aim to belittle, of ...

''baka'' as in

katakana is a Japanese syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with hiragana, kanji and in some cases the Latin script (known as rōmaji). The word ''katakana'' means "fragmentary kana", as the katakana characters are derived fr ...

, in

hiragana is a Japanese language, Japanese syllabary, part of the Japanese writing system, along with ''katakana'' as well as ''kanji''. It is a phonetic lettering system. The word ''hiragana'' means "common" or "plain" kana (originally also "easy", ...

, or ( "horse deer") in ''

ateji In modern Japanese, principally refers to kanji used to phonetically represent native or borrowed words with less regard to the underlying meaning of the characters. This is similar to in Old Japanese. Conversely, also refers to kanji used s ...

'' phonetic

kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

transcription; earlier ''ateji'' renderings included , , , or .

History

The first written usages of ''baka'' were during the

Nanboku-chō period The , also known as the Northern and Southern Courts period, was a period in Japanese history between 1336-1392 CE, during the formative years of the Ashikaga shogunate, Muromachi (Ashikaga) shogunate. Ideologically, the two courts fought for 50 ...

(1336–1392), when the "Northern and Southern Courts" battled. In the earliest example, the ''

Taiheiki The (Chronicle of Great Peace) is a medieval Japanese historical epic (see '' gunki monogatari'') written in the late 14th century and covers the period from 1319 to 1367. It deals primarily with the Nanboku-chō, the period of war between the ...

'' historical epic records ''bakamono'' () being used as an insult in 1342. The Ashikaga commander Toki Yoritō () refused to pay obeisance to retired Emperor Kōgon ( 1313–1364), "Yoritō, probably inebriated, loudly demands to know what kind of fool (''bakamono'') has the temerity to order him to dismount." According to Carr, " Shinmura zurufound that the original editions (fourteenth century) of the ''Taiheiki'' had ''baka'' written ; hilelater movable-type editions (c. 1600) had the characters ." A

Bunmei was a after '' Ōnin'' and before ''Chōkyō''. This period spanned from April 1469 through July 1487.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Bunmei''" i ''Japan encyclopedia'', p. 89 n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussb ...

-era (1469–1487) edition of the '' Setsuyōshū'' dictionary notes ''baka'' , which was also written (lit. "mother bride"), (lit. "horse bride"), or (lit. "break family"), means ''rōzeki'' "disorder; confusion". Many classical Japanese texts used ''baka''. For instance, the (c. 1616) ''

Kōyō Gunkan The is a record of the military exploits of the Takeda family, compiled largely by the Takeda vassal Kōsaka Danjō Masanobu, and completed in 1616 by Obata Kagenori. It provides some of the most detailed descriptions and statistics of wa ...

'' military chronicle transcribed ''baka'' as . Ihara Saikaku's (1682) ''Kōshoku Ichidai Otoko'' (; "The Life of an Amorous Man"), which was a classic of the Ukiyozōshi genre, wrote ''baka'' with the modern kanji .

Etymologies

Although the origins of ''baka'' are uncertain, Japanese scholars have proposed various

etymologies Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...

and folk etymologies. The two most widely cited are a

idiom and a

loanword A loanword (also a loan word, loan-word) is a word at least partly assimilated from one language (the donor language) into another language (the recipient or target language), through the process of borrowing. Borrowing is a metaphorical term t ...

from

. First, the oldest hypothesis suggests that ''baka'' originated as a Chinese literary "allusion to a historical fool", the

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ) was the first Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China. It is named for its progenitor state of Qin, a fief of the confederal Zhou dynasty (256 BC). Beginning in 230 BC, the Qin under King Ying Zheng enga ...

traitor Zhao Gao ( 207 BCE) from the ''

Records of the Grand Historian The ''Shiji'', also known as ''Records of the Grand Historian'' or ''The Grand Scribe's Records'', is a Chinese historical text that is the first of the Twenty-Four Histories of imperial China. It was written during the late 2nd and early 1st ce ...

''. This etymology first appears in the (c. 1548) ''Unbo Irohashū'' () dictionary, which glosses ''baka'' as meaning "point at a deer and say horse" (指鹿曰馬). Namely, the Chinese idiom '' zhǐlù-wéimǎ'' (; lit. "point at a deer and call it a horse", Japanese ''Shika o Sashite Uma to Nasu'') meaning "deliberate misrepresentation for ulterior purposes". Zhao was an infamous minister who served the first emperor

Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang (, ; February 25912 July 210 BC), born Ying Zheng () or Zhao Zheng (), was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of China. He is widely regarded as the first ever supreme leader of a unitary state, unitary d ...

(r. 246–221 BCE) and forced the second

Qin Er Shi Qin Er Shi (230/222207 BC), Chinese given name, given name Ying Huhai, was the second Emperor of China, emperor of the Chinese Qin dynasty, reigning from 210 to 207 BC. The son of Qin Shi Huang, he was put on the throne by Li Si and Z ...

(r. 210–207 BCE) to commit suicide.

Zhao Gao was contemplating treason but was afraid the other officials would not heed his commands, so he decided to test them first. He brought a deer and presented it to the Second Emperor but called it a horse. The Second Emperor laughed and said, "Is the chancellor perhaps mistaken, calling a deer a horse?" Then the emperor questioned those around him. Some remained silent, while some, hoping to ingratiate themselves with Zhao Gao, said it was a horse, and others said it was a deer. Zhao Gao secretly arranged for all those who said it was a deer to be brought before the law. Thereafter the officials were all terrified of Zhao Gao.

The Japanese idiom first appears in the 11th-century novel ''

The Tale of Genji is a classic work of Japanese literature written by the noblewoman, poet, and lady-in-waiting Murasaki Shikibu around the peak of the Heian period, in the early 11th century. It is one of history's first novels, the first by a woman to have wo ...

''.

Kokiden flew into a rage. "A man out of favor with His Majesty is expected to have trouble feeding himself. And here he is living in a fine stylish house and saying awful things about all of us. No doubt the grovelers around him are assuring him that a deer is a horse."

Second, the most linguistically sound etymology is that ''baka'' derives from a

word meaning "fool". According to the Japanese linguist and lexicographer Shinmura Izuru,, p. the Edo-period scholar Amano Sadakage (; 1663–1733) originally suggested that

Japanese Buddhist Buddhism was first established in Japan in the 6th century CE. Most of the Japanese Buddhists belong to new schools of Buddhism which were established in the Kamakura period (1185－1333). During the Edo period (1603–1868), Buddhism was cont ...

priests coined the word ''baka'' from

. Modern reference works give two possible Sanskrit sources for the word, ''moha'' (transcribed 慕何) "foolish" and ''mahallaka'' (摩訶羅) "stupid". Sanskrit ''moha'' () means "bewilderment, loss of consciousness, delusion, folly" and comes from the root ''muh'' meaning "bewildered, perplexed, confused". Sanskrit ''mahallaka'' means "senile, feeble minded, stupid, decrepit" and comes from ''mūrkha'' (), meaning "dull, stupid, foolish, inexperienced; fool". Other proposed etymologies for ''baka'' are less reliable. Two Edo-period dictionaries proposed that ''baka'' derived from: ''ōmaka'' "generous; unsparing" (''Rigen Shūran'' ) or ''bokeru'' "grow senile; dote; become feeble-minded" (''Matsuya Hikki'' ).

Related words

The same 馬鹿 "horse deer" characters that transcribe ''baka'' are also used for names in Chinese zoological

nomenclature Nomenclature (, ) is a system of names or terms, or the rules for forming these terms in a particular field of arts or sciences. (The theoretical field studying nomenclature is sometimes referred to as ''onymology'' or ''taxonymy'' ). The principl ...

and

Japanese mythology Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology. The history of thousands of years of contac ...

. In Chinese, ''mǎlù'' () refers to the

red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...

(''Cervus elaphus''), Japanese ''akashika'' . ''Mumashika'' is a rare alternate Japanese reading of that names a

yōkai are a class of supernatural entities and Spirit (supernatural entity) , spirits in Japanese folklore. The kanji representation of the word comprises two characters that both mean "suspicious, doubtful", and while the Japanese name is simply ...

demon with a horse's head and deer's body. The c. 1832 ''Hyakki Yagyō Emaki'' (; " Hyakki Yagyō emakimono") depicts it with one eye, a horse's mouth and ears, and deer horn and hooves.

Meanings

Based on

semantic Semantics is the study of linguistic Meaning (philosophy), meaning. It examines what meaning is, how words get their meaning, and how the meaning of a complex expression depends on its parts. Part of this process involves the distinction betwee ...

analyses of ''baka'' entries in

Japanese dictionaries have a history that began over 1300 years ago when Japanese Buddhist priests, who wanted to understand Chinese sutras, adapted Chinese character dictionaries. Present-day Japanese lexicographers are exploring computerized editing and electronic ...

and thesauruses, the lexicographer Michael Carr differentiates eight interrelated meanings. Three basic "fool; foolish" meanings distinguish ''baka''¹ "ass; jerk; fool", ''baka''² "ament; idiot; imbecile; fool" ( ament is a rare word for "congenitally mentally deficient"), and ''baka''³ "blockhead; dullard; dimwit; simpleton; dolt; fool". These are found in many frequently-used Japanese expressions. Some more insulting lexemes are ''bakamono'' "stupid,fool,idiot", ''ōbaka'' "big fool damned idiot", and ''baka-yarō'' "stupid jerk, ass, asshole, dumbass". Some compounds are '' baka yoke'' "foolproof; idiot-proof", ''baka warai'' "foolish/horse laugh" and ''baka zura'' "foolish face; stupid look"; and some

verb phrase In linguistics, a verb phrase (VP) is a syntax, syntactic unit composed of a verb and its argument (linguistics), arguments except the subject (grammar), subject of an independent clause or coordinate clause. Thus, in the sentence ''A fat man quic ...

s are ''baka ni suru'' "make a fool of (someone); treat with contempt", ''baka yobawarisuru'' "call (someone) a fool", and ''baka o miru'' "make a fool/ass of (oneself)". Two extended meanings of ''baka''⁴ "worthless" and ''baka''⁵ "excess" expand upon "folly; foolishness". ''Baka''⁴ "worthless; foolish; valueless; trifling; insignificant" is used in expressions such as ''bakageta'' "foolish; absurd; ridiculous"; ''bakana'' "foolish; silly; stupid"; and ''bakarashii'' , ''bakabakarashii'' , or ''bakakusai'' , all meaning "foolish; absurd; ridiculous". It is further used in phrases like ''baka ie'' "Nonsense!; Go on!", and ''bakana mane o suru'' "do a foolish thing; act foolishly". ''Baka''⁵ "excess; foolish; absurd; extreme; extravagant" is found in a number of expressions: ''bakani'' or ''bakabakashiku'' "awfully; terribly; extremely"; ''bakayasui'' "ridiculously/dirt cheap"; ''bakane'' or ''bakadakai'' "ridiculously expensive"; ''bakateinei'' "excessive politeness"; and ''bakashōjiki'' "honest to a fault". Three special meanings are unrelated semantic connections. ''Baka''⁶ "trough shell" is a truncation of ''bakagai'' " trough shell; '' Mactra chinensis''". ''Baka''⁷ "numbness (of limbs)" is used in the expression ''baka ni naru'' , and ''baka''⁸ means "(an antique kind of) coin counter".

Usages

In ''Japanese in MangaLand: Learning the Basics'', Marc Bernabe listed ''baka'' as "the most commonly used" and the "top swearword" in Japan. Usages of this term can be discussed in terms of pragmatic depth, dialectal variation, and proper names.

Pragmatics

The linguistic

pragmatics In linguistics and the philosophy of language, pragmatics is the study of how Context (linguistics), context contributes to meaning. The field of study evaluates how human language is utilized in social interactions, as well as the relationship ...

of using

insults An insult is an expression, statement, or behavior that is often deliberately disrespectful, offensive, scornful, or derogatory towards an individual or a group. Insults can be intentional or unintentional, and they often aim to belittle, off ...

like ''baka'' can be language specific. For instance, Japanese has fewer words for calling someone a "fool" than English. Jack Seward recounts asking his language teacher "to prepare a list of the most stunning and forcible insults, pejoratives, and curses in Japanese", but was surprised that the "short, unimaginative, and seeming ineffectual" list had only two words: ''baka'' "fool" and ''chikushō'' "beast". Carr proposes that intentional

vagueness In linguistics and philosophy, a vague predicate is one which gives rise to borderline cases. For example, the English adjective "tall" is vague since it is not clearly true or false for someone of middling height. By contrast, the word " prime" ...

explains the comparatively small lexical field of Japanese insults.

One likely reason for the relatively few Japanese words for 'fool' is vagueness. In both English and Japanese, the words for 'fool' have meanings that vary along scales of friendly–hostile, or joking–serious. In English, at one end of a scale are words like ''silly goose'' and at the other end are words like ''stupid asshole''. And in Japanese, at one end are words like ''
kamaboko is a type of Curing (chemistry), cured , a processed seafood product common in Japanese cuisine. It was initially made in the year 1115. Production and uses is made by forming various Purée, pureed deboned whitefish (fisheries term), whit ...
baka'' 'silly chump' and at the other end are words like ''baka-yarō'' 'damn fool'. The difference is in the degree of lexical diversification along the scales of meaning. English seems to have more 'fool' words with more specificity – Japanese seems to have fewer 'fool' words with more vagueness. There are decided pragmatic and communicative advantages to such lexical vagueness. If you call me a ''stupid son-of-a-bitch'', I know exactly what you mean. But if you call me a ''baka-yarō'', I cannot be so sure of what you mean. The expression ''baka-yarō'' is one of the most insulting terms in the Japanese lexicon, but it is vague and can range in meaning from an affectionate 'silly-willy' to an abusive 'jerk-off fool'. ''Baka-yarō'' is so widely used that it has become semantically weak and vague. Such vagueness can serve to conceal hostility and thus to maintain social harmony.

Dialectal

According to Marc Bernabe,

Japanese dialects The of the Japanese language fall into two primary clades, Eastern (including modern capital Tokyo) and Western (including old capital Kyoto), with the dialects of Kyushu and Hachijō Island often distinguished as additional branches, the latter ...

show regional variations between using ''baka'' in Kantō dialect and ''aho'' or "fool; idiot; jackass" in

Kansai dialect The is a group of Japanese dialects in the Kansai region (Kinki region) of Japan. In Japanese, is the common name and it is called in technical terms. The dialects of Kyoto and Osaka are known as , and were particularly referred to as su ...

. In addition, the insult ''aho'' has more of a slang connotation than ''baka''. Many Japanese dictionaries treat the words ''baka'' and ''aho'' as

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

s. "However, in Osaka and its surroundings, ''aho'' is a rather non-offensive word, whereas ''baka'' is an explosive word." Nevertheless, "In Tokyo and its surroundings, we find exactly the opposite, so you must be careful with the usage of these words."

Proper names

''Baka'' frequently occurs in proper nouns. Examples from Japanese pop music include albums ('' Pretty Little Baka Guy'', '' Ai no Baka'' "Love Fool") and songs ("

Suki Sugite Baka Mitai is the first single released by Japanese pop group, Def.Diva Def.Diva (often stylized as DEF.DIVA) was a "special group" formed in 2005 from the Hello! Project idol umbrella, and consisted of Aya Matsuura, Maki Goto, Natsumi Abe and Rika Ishi ...

" "To Like imToo Much and Look Like a Fool"). Some titles from modern

Japanese literature Japanese literature throughout most of its history has been influenced by cultural contact with neighboring Asian literatures, most notably China and its literature. Early texts were often written in pure Classical Chinese or , a Chinese-Japa ...

are '' Tsuribaka Nisshi'' ("Fishing Fool's Diary"), '' Inubaka: Crazy for Dogs'' ("Dog Fool"), '' Karate Baka Ichidai'' ("A Karate-Crazy Life"), and '' Baka to Test to Shōkanjū'' ("Idiots, Tests, and Summoned Creatures").

English

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, ''baka'' was American

military slang Military slang is an array of colloquial terminology used commonly by military personnel, including slang which is unique to or originates with the armed forces. In English-speaking countries, it often takes the form of abbreviations/acronyms or d ...

for the Imperial Japanese Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka

kamikaze , officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...

flying bomb. The earliest recorded usage was in ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'' on May 7, 1945, "American forces have officially designated this bomb as 'baka', baka being Japanese for foolish, silly, or stupid." In modern times, ''baka'' has often been used in

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

communities. This has also led to the satirical and ironic use of ''baka'' to call someone a fool or mock anime communities.

References

External links

{{Wiktionary, バカ, 馬鹿
ばか【馬鹿, 莫迦, 破家】
jeKai
What Does Baka Mean in Japanese – and Why You (Probably) Shouldn’t Use It, Coto Japanese Academy
Slurs related to low intelligence Japanese words and phrases Profanity