# Japanese words for lesbians **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 1, 2005, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359 "2005-10-01T18:27:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/1 "2005-10-01T18:27:19Z")
In Japanese slang, dyke is _rezu_ - clipped form of _rezubian_, from the English word “lesbian.” In formal Japanese, lesbian is _doseiai no onna_, literally ‘same-sex love woman’. _Atashi rezu yo! Dakara nan datte yu no?_ So I’m a dyke! You got a problem with that? They made a verb of _rezu_ too: _Rezutta koto aru?_ Have you ever done it with another woman? A bull dyke is _otoko-onna_, literally ‘man-woman’. Pejorative Japanese words for lesbian include _onabe_ ‘pan’ (a play on the word _okama_ for male gay, meaning ‘pot’), _chidori_ ‘plover, wading bird’, _itachi_, ‘weasel’. Diesel dyke is _otachi_. Derived from a term from Kabuki theater: _tachiyaku_, the sturdy, dynamic, masculine role. Femmes are _neko_ ‘cat’ and _nenne_ ‘girly’. _Ano neko doko de hirotte kita no?_ Where’d you pick that femme up? _Suzuko wa tsuyoi onna no koto suki ja nai no. Nenne ga suki nan da yo._ Suzuko’s not into butch women, she likes femmes. 69 is _ainame_, ‘mutual licking’. _Atashi-tachi mo nagai aida ainame shiatterun dakedo, saiko yo ne! Anta yattara ii no ni!_ We’ve been going down on each other for years! It’s great, you should try it! _Kai_ is a poetic name for a woman’s vulva, literally meaning ‘shell’. _Kaiawase_, literally ‘meeting shells’, a Japanese game of putting shells together, is used for lesbian sex. _Chotto uwasa ni yoru to, aitsu no okusan tonari no onna to kaiawase shiteru rashii._ There are rumors that his wife’s bumping pussy with the woman next door. _Kono bideo suge kaiawase yatten no mieru ze!_ This video shows some super cunt-grinding! Another Japanese slang term for dyke is _esu_, the English letter S, which stands for “sister.” It seems a lot of Japanese slang is English-based. _Ano ko-tachi itsumo beta beta shiteru kara, kitto esu yo!_ Those two girls are always all over each other, they must be lezzies! _Anta-tachi esu ja nai no?_ You girls are gay, right? Source: _Japanese Street Slang_ by Peter Constantine (New York & Tokyo: Tengu Books, 1992), p. 42, 137-140. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/2 "2005-10-01T19:25:20Z")
I definitely never knew that much Japanese. > [@Johanna](#): > > They made a verb of _rezu_ too: > > _Rezutta koto aru?_ > Have you ever done it with another woman? I’ve heard “dyke” used as a verb in English, too. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/3 "2005-10-02T03:59:14Z")
How’s this for coincidence… I just posted this OP today, and tonight I watch a rerun of _Law & Order: Criminal Intent_. Saw an [episode](http://www.tv.com/law-and-order-criminal-intent/great-barrier/episode/333262/summary.html) involving a Japanese lesbian. A real _neko_. ---
**Author:** ![andygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@andygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andygirl)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/4 "2005-10-02T06:48:45Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > How’s this for coincidence… I just posted this OP today, and tonight I watch a rerun of _Law & Order: Criminal Intent_. Saw an [episode](http://www.tv.com/law-and-order-criminal-intent/great-barrier/episode/333262/summary.html) involving a Japanese lesbian. A real _neko_. A femme lesbian on television? The dickens, you say! ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/5 "2005-10-02T07:01:43Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > _Atashi rezu yo! Dakara nan datte yu no?_ > So I’m a dyke! You got a problem with that? I think that should say “ **W** atashi rezu yo!” But it could be an informal form or something I’m not aware of. ---
**Author:** ![Hokkaido\_Brit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/d26b3c/32.png) [@Hokkaido\_Brit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hokkaido_Brit)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/6 "2005-10-02T09:36:35Z")
> [@jackelope](#): > > I think that should say “ **W** atashi rezu yo!” But it could be an informal form or something I’m not aware of. It’s an ultra-feminine bimbo form - think about a girl fluttering her eyelashes and squeaking as she says it. Yuk. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/7 "2005-10-02T09:42:22Z")
Whilst interesting, especially since I used to live in Japan, I’m just curious why you posted this language lesson? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/8 "2005-10-02T09:57:45Z")
[HIJACK]This reminds me of something that happened to me a few years ago. I was working in a library in a small college town in Georgia a few years ago. One of our student workers, Mekito, was a student from Japan and one of her best friends was a very cute, pudgy bottle-blonde student from Korea but raised in Japan. (Though in Georgia, the school had as many Asian students [Asian-Asian, not Asian-American] as it did black students.) One night they were talking and giggling and sometimes looking at me. When I walked past Mekito asked "Sonatan- " [or something close, for my first name- Jonathan] “this is my friend Kim.” I smiled and said hello and she giggled and LITERALLY did the hand over mouth thing. “She want to know if there is girl you like to see and if not do you want to see movie?” I started with an 'Oh…ah… no… but… there…" “Oh, do not worry… the school do not mind if student date professor. Kim has dated professor before, as long as she not in his class.” “Well um… thanks… I’m flattered… but… I… uh… it’s… well… there’s something…” “Oh, do not worry. Kim like older men.” I’m thinking “well thank you there, Pear Blossom, for making me feel awkward _and_ old”, but just said “I thank you, but I…” “You do not think Kim pretty?” “I think Kim very pretty, but… I have…” “You not like Asian girl…” By now I’m blushing, and trying to figure out how to just say it, but Mekito didn’t speak very good English except for when she wanted to, and that wasn’t always, and… then I seen a look of epiphany cross her face and she says “Oh! Sorry! Hee hee hee…” (again with the hand over the mouth) and she says something to Kim and I only recognized two words. ## “xxxx xxxx xxxx xxx xx xxxxxxx xxx xxxx Sonatan xxx xxxxxx x xxxx xxx x homoseku xxx xxxx xxx, hee hee hee hee!” I understand this is actually not the usual word for gay, but it was understood at least. And if I’m ever in Tokyo and I’ll know how to introduce and tell a little about myself. [/HIJACK] ---
**Author:** ![Penchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/74df32/32.png) [@Penchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penchan)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/9 "2005-10-02T10:11:52Z")
Ok after reading **Sampiro’s** , post I think he should be sorry! Sorry for making me laugh so hard my face hurts! Oww…hehe “homoseku” hehehe…ow… ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/10 "2005-10-02T10:53:07Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > [HIJACK]I understand this is actually not the usual word for gay, but it was understood at least. And if I’m ever in Tokyo and I’ll know how to introduce and tell a little about myself. [/HIJACK] Sampiro, I believe you would score even more points by introducing yourself as a “homodachi.” As is “homo” from “homosexual” and “dachi” from “tomodachi” (friend). A gay Japanese couple I knew just about died laughing the first time I used homodachi around them. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/11 "2005-10-02T15:01:52Z")
> [@China Guy](#): > > Whilst interesting, especially since I used to live in Japan, I’m just curious why you posted this language lesson? This is MPSIMS. The P stands for “pointless,” therefore no rhyme or reason is called for here. A Doper need never justify a post in MPSIMS as one must in, say, Great Debates. The letters IMS stand for “I must share,” i.e. I’m bursting to unleash these charming factoids on the public. For no particular reason. See, I was in the private blog of my lesbian group and one of the Nigerian sistas asked how to say dyke in French because she’d just met a French-speaking guy from Africa. The others said ask Johanna, she’s a linguist. So I looked it up and reported that the French word for dyke is _gouine_ (sounds almost like “queen”). Then, you know me, I didn’t stop there but went on to other languages. Dyke in Classical Arabic is _sihaqiyah_. I was disappointed that so many language dictionaries ignored lesbianism and gaydom, the prudes. The dictionaries that do have it only give the formal, literary terms. For example, in Russian it’s _lesbiyanka_. In Italian, _saffica_ (Sapphic). What about popular slang? I don’t want to go around talking like a dictionary. I only had one slang book, which I’d found at a library used book sale: _Japanese Street Slang_, so I got that out and had a lot of fun with it. I discovered also that in Persian, they use the word _tabaq_ for lesbianism. Literally, _tabaq_ means ‘dish’ and by extension a woman’s vulva and lesbianism. The verbal phrase _tabaq zadan_ (literally ‘hit the dish’) means to have lesbian sex. I found this in Steingass’s 19th-century _Persian-English Dictionary_, which is replete with the classical literary language from 800 years ago, the words used by great poets like Hafiz and Rumi. Since Classical Arabic and Persian have these words, clearly many centuries ago Islamic civilization was less prudish than today and these topics were openly discussed. This goes for classical Hindu civilization as well. Thanks to a postcard from [SLAAAP (Sexually Liberated Art Activist Asian People)](http://www.apicha.org/apicha/pages/education/lgbt/slaaap.htm), I found that the [Sanskrit word for “erotic bonding between females” is _sakhyani_](http://www.apicha.org/apicha/pages/education/lgbt/slaaapcard06.htm). They made a pun on this: “_Sakhyani_, suck yoni.” 😉 [Another SLAAAP card, the one with a totally hot Indian woman in a red-and-gold blouse](http://www.apicha.org/apicha/pages/education/lgbt/slaaapcard04.htm), has bilingual text on the back in English and Tamil. How did they write the word “dyke” in Tamil? They just used the English word “lesbian” transliterated into Tamil script. (I can read Tamil writing.) This suggests that the Tamil language simply doesn’t have a word of its own for it! They had to use the English word. Which reminds me of how often throughout history the powers that be have simply denied that lesbianism even exists. **Sampiro** , LOL! What a great story! _Homoseku_! :o According to _Japanese Street Slang_, for male gays they also say _gei_ or _gei-boi_ (from English, of course). Hey, maybe this is how the queer spelling “boi” got started! _Sumimasen! Moyori no gei kurabu wa doko ni arimasu ka?_ Excuse me! Where is the nearest gay club? _Ken wa okama ja nai kedo, shigoto de gei boi to shite hataraiterun da._ Ken’s not really a faggot, he just works at a drag bar. Clubs will have signs saying: _Gei boi-san-tachi to enjoi shite kudasai_. Please enjoy yourself with the Mr. Gay Boys. **matt\_mcl** will like this one if he ever goes to Japan: Femme gay guys are called _gei-chikku_. The ending comes from the word _romanchikku_ (English “romantic”). _Gei-chikku na yatsu_. A faggoty dude. _Gei-chikku na kaminoke_. A faggoty hairstyle. Leather/bondage queers are called _hado gei_ (“hard gay”) or _hado koa_ (“hardcore”). _Ano futari no hado koa, ittai dotchi ga dotchi de yarun daro?_ Those two butch fags, I wonder who fucks who? Also from the SLAAAP cards, I learned that the [Urdu](http://www.apicha.org/apicha/pages/education/lgbt/slaaapcard10.htm) expression for “gay” is _hamjins parasti_, a phrase from Persian literally meaning ‘same-sex orientation’. ---
**Author:** ![gandalflute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@gandalflute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gandalflute)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/12 "2005-10-02T17:08:20Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > [HIJACK]This reminds me of something that happened to me a few years ago. I was working in a library in a small college town in Georgia a few years ago. One of our student workers, Mekito, was a student from Japan and one of her best friends was a very cute, pudgy bottle-blonde student from Korea but raised in Japan. (Though in Georgia, the school had as many Asian students [Asian-Asian, not Asian-American] as it did black students.) > > _snip_ > [/HIJACK] [hijack hijack] Did this college’s name start with A? And was it in a town beginning with C? _went there in 96_ [/hijack hijack] ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2005, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/13 "2005-10-02T23:46:25Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > This is MPSIMS. The P stands for “pointless,” therefore no rhyme or reason is called for here. A Doper need never justify a post in MPSIMS as one must in, say, Great Debates. The letters IMS stand for “I must share,” i.e. I’m bursting to unleash these charming factoids on the public. For no particular reason. > > See, I was in the private blog of my lesbian group and one of the Nigerian sistas asked how to say dyke in French because she’d just met a French-speaking guy from Africa. The others said ask Johanna, she’s a linguist. So I looked it up and reported that the French word for dyke is _gouine_ (sounds almost like “queen”). Then, you know me, I didn’t stop there but went on to other languages. Thanks. I was just curious. actually found your reply quite interesting… ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2005, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/14 "2005-10-03T06:44:26Z")
> [@gandalflute](#): > > [hijack hijack] Did this college’s name start with A? And was it in a town beginning with C? _went there in 96_ [/hijack hijack] No, but I know the one you’re talking about (very pretty building, though I always wondered how the students tolerated living in such a tiny town). [This](http://www.gsw.edu/main/index.html) was a public college with a major Asian exchange program. ---
**Author:** ![Lars\_Aruns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Lars\_Aruns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lars_Aruns)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2005, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/15 "2005-10-03T10:41:05Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > In Italian, _saffica_ (Sapphic). Not in common language; _lesbica_ is used instead. _Saffica_ could be used as a high-falutin’ metaphor, I suppose. I never saw it used, though. Newspapers and other mass-media often just use _omosessuale_. ---
**Author:** ![Lars\_Aruns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Lars\_Aruns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lars_Aruns)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2005, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/16 "2005-10-03T12:18:04Z")
> [@Lars Aruns](#): > > Not in common language; _lesbica_ is used instead. _Saffica_ could be used as a high-falutin’ metaphor, I suppose. I never saw it used, though. Newspapers and other mass-media often just use _omosessuale_. Let me add some more detail. _Saffica_ is not used to mean “homosexual woman”; it doesn’t mean _dyke_, in short. It is used as an adjective in a literary context, such as _poesia saffica_ (“sapphic poetry”), and it doesn’t generically mean “lesbian poetry”, but more like “in the style of Sappho”. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2005, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/17 "2005-10-03T14:41:35Z")
The Indonesian word for a queer is banci, pronounced bahn-chee. The fairies in Jakarta would stand on the street corners, making wierd, trilling yells at passing motorists. This is how they let anyone who was out trolling know that they were available. Apparently, the comment was apparently made that they were “wailing like banshees” and once it was explained, the Indonesians started using the word banci (the closest they could come to banshee) to describe the yelling fairies. It then moved into the language as a generic term, similar to queer or fairy in English. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2005, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/18 "2005-10-03T19:18:17Z")
In Spain, the word for dyke is “una bollera” (a woman who makes buns) or, for short, “una bollo.” (“Un bollo” is a bun, but it can also mean lesbian sex.) La Virgén del Pilar me ha dicho Que quiere ser lesbiana Y hacerse un bollito Con la Montse catalana. - Highly blasphemous Spanish lesbian protest chant ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2005, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/19 "2005-10-03T19:30:03Z")
Besides that, Spain has some fantastic queer slang. (I don’t know what part of this is applicable to the rest of the Spanish-speaking world.) As we probably all know, “marica” (and its derivatives “maricón” and “mariquita”) mean a gay man. They are usually insulting when said by a straight person but not by a gay person. There’s also “mariposa,” literally “butterfly”. “Mari-” is an amazingly productive affix, which you can use with just about any other word: marimacho, marirrevolución, marifiesta, maricontrol (control queen), maripoppins (one who uses poppers - no, I’m not making this up), etc. Amazingly, a handbag used by a man is, in standard Spanish, a “mariconera” – basically a literal calque of “fag bag”! “Mariconear” is to queen it up. “Pluma” is another very useful word: literally “feather,” it means swishiness, queeniness, flamboyance. “Tener pluma” is to be a queen, or a “plumera.” Wonderfully, “plumón” can mean ostentatious butchness. “Ambiente” means the gay world, the gay scene; “un lugar de ambiente” is a place for gay people, e.g. a gay bar. Finally, my favourite one is the verb “entender,” which literally means to understand, but in slang means to be gay. A fantastic T-shirt I saw (but which unfortunately wasn’t my size) said, “¿Entiendes? O te lo explico” (Do you “understand,” or do I have to explain it to you?) ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2005, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359/20 "2005-10-04T05:05:01Z")
_¡Holá_, **matt!** That’s terrific information. _¡Muchas gracias!_ That’s the sort of linguistics I like to see around here. Anyone else? \*The Virgin of Pilar told me She wants to be a dyke And have lesbian sex With the Catalan … \* Um, what’s a Montse? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-words-for-lesbians/324359.md?page=2)