All Pokémon names are written in katakana not just pikachu
Well, yes Pikachu is no Japanese word. Its a mix of ぴかぴか and ちゅう.
Also please remember what the hardware was back when Pokémon came ot. The graphics were no so good to display more complex Kanji (and the game is for children), so the games were completely in Kana. To highlight the names of the Pokémon they used Katakana.
Edit: Thanks a lot for the award! 😊
Thanks for the answers everyone. I know just a little bit of Japanese and my 5 year has become obsessed with pokemon.
Sometimes Katakana is used on merchandise for emphasis because it’s easier to read.
All pokemon names are katakana
One thing to remember too, things written in Katakana are not always non-japanese words. Sometimes Katakana is used to help separate words in sentences because there are no spaces. It helps with the reading flow.
Trailing off from Pokémon but I like to use write the same words in kanji/kana/katakana/mix for comic effect/ friendliness / emphasis etc
Isn’t katakana used for non-dictionary wordage as well as loan words? You won’t find Pokemon or pokemon names in a Japanese-language dictionary because they are all made-up
ピカ is the sound of lighting. Sounds in Japanese are in Katakana.(generally)
Katakana isn’t just used for foreign/loan words. It’s also sometimes just used to make a word stand out.
It can also be used when someone is speaking very strangely. For example, in Demon Slayer, there’s a talking crow that gives orders to the main character, and speaks like, well, a crow. Whenever the crow speaks, the subtitles replace all the hiragana with katakana.
Some Japanese characters are written in katakana. There’s no reason, but it’s more match.
I’m not exactly sure why but I’ve noticed that many names and such that would normally be written in either hiragana or Kanji are written with katakana in fiction.
It is not a Japanese word by itself, but a neologism (new found word), or concretely a “portmanteau” of “Pikapika” (japan. spark sound) and “Chuuchuu” (japan. sound of a mouse). I think that’s one of the main reasons to write it in Katakana.
All Pokemon names are in katakana. Pokemon names are imaginary words (often fusions of words or something) Also it makes the name stand out from the different types rest of the text. In the translation (in German at least but Imma just assume in English aswell) the pokemon names are written in Caps in the first generations.
This is a really nice find the colors are nice and vibrant.
ピカチュウ is comprised of ピカ (flash) and チュウ (mouse squeak). Both are onomatopoeia, which is mainly written in katakana. e.g. ゴロゴロ（thunder rumble), パチパチ（hand clap）
I haven’t seen it mentioned here, but I’m pretty sure Pikachu is considered a proper noun on this shirt, a name (like in the anime) rather than a word for an animal. Iirc all names are written with katakana
Most anime character names are in katakana, especially in shounen.
> Technical and scientific terms, such as the names of animal and plant species and minerals, are also commonly written in katakana. Homo sapiens, as a species, is written ヒト (hito), rather than its kanji 人
Many animal names are often written in Katakana, especially if you think Pokémon in the games are being discovered through a ‘scientific’ Pokedex, it makes sense to use this writing system. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katakana?wprov=sfti1
It’s a made up word?
Names are never in hiragana iirc. Even Japanese people whose names are in kana will go by e.g. アリ, etc.
That has no meaning.
Hate to break it to you mate, but Pikachu isn’t real 🙁
Y’all bored huh
A lot of times Katakana is used for emphasis. Like writing an English word in a bold font. It’s to catch your attention. This is particularly common in manga.
I remember reading some texts seeing “アリ”, witch’s ant. There’s a kanji for ant, but like “アリ” is simple than “蟻”, so I just appreciate the katakana <3
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I think pokemon names are not considered japanese
All Pokémon names are written in katakana not just pikachu
Well, yes Pikachu is no Japanese word. Its a mix of ぴかぴか and ちゅう.
Also please remember what the hardware was back when Pokémon came ot. The graphics were no so good to display more complex Kanji (and the game is for children), so the games were completely in Kana. To highlight the names of the Pokémon they used Katakana.
Edit: Thanks a lot for the award! 😊
Thanks for the answers everyone. I know just a little bit of Japanese and my 5 year has become obsessed with pokemon.
Sometimes Katakana is used on merchandise for emphasis because it’s easier to read.
All pokemon names are katakana
One thing to remember too, things written in Katakana are not always non-japanese words. Sometimes Katakana is used to help separate words in sentences because there are no spaces. It helps with the reading flow.
Trailing off from Pokémon but I like to use write the same words in kanji/kana/katakana/mix for comic effect/ friendliness / emphasis etc
Isn’t katakana used for non-dictionary wordage as well as loan words? You won’t find Pokemon or pokemon names in a Japanese-language dictionary because they are all made-up
ピカ is the sound of lighting. Sounds in Japanese are in Katakana.(generally)
Katakana isn’t just used for foreign/loan words. It’s also sometimes just used to make a word stand out.
It can also be used when someone is speaking very strangely. For example, in Demon Slayer, there’s a talking crow that gives orders to the main character, and speaks like, well, a crow. Whenever the crow speaks, the subtitles replace all the hiragana with katakana.
Some Japanese characters are written in katakana. There’s no reason, but it’s more match.
I’m not exactly sure why but I’ve noticed that many names and such that would normally be written in either hiragana or Kanji are written with katakana in fiction.
It is not a Japanese word by itself, but a neologism (new found word), or concretely a “portmanteau” of “Pikapika” (japan. spark sound) and “Chuuchuu” (japan. sound of a mouse). I think that’s one of the main reasons to write it in Katakana.
All Pokemon names are in katakana. Pokemon names are imaginary words (often fusions of words or something) Also it makes the name stand out from the different types rest of the text.
In the translation (in German at least but Imma just assume in English aswell) the pokemon names are written in Caps in the first generations.
This is a really nice find the colors are nice and vibrant.
ピカチュウ is comprised of ピカ (flash) and チュウ (mouse squeak). Both are onomatopoeia, which is mainly written in katakana. e.g. ゴロゴロ（thunder rumble), パチパチ（hand clap）
I haven’t seen it mentioned here, but I’m pretty sure Pikachu is considered a proper noun on this shirt, a name (like in the anime) rather than a word for an animal. Iirc all names are written with katakana
Most anime character names are in katakana, especially in shounen.
> Technical and scientific terms, such as the names of animal and plant species and minerals, are also commonly written in katakana. Homo sapiens, as a species, is written ヒト (hito), rather than its kanji 人
Many animal names are often written in Katakana, especially if you think Pokémon in the games are being discovered through a ‘scientific’ Pokedex, it makes sense to use this writing system. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katakana?wprov=sfti1
It’s a made up word?
Names are never in hiragana iirc. Even Japanese people whose names are in kana will go by e.g. アリ, etc.
That has no meaning.
Hate to break it to you mate, but Pikachu isn’t real 🙁
Y’all bored huh
A lot of times Katakana is used for emphasis. Like writing an English word in a bold font. It’s to catch your attention. This is particularly common in manga.
I remember reading some texts seeing “アリ”, witch’s ant. There’s a kanji for ant, but like “アリ” is simple than “蟻”, so I just appreciate the katakana <3
Katakana is japanese