Japanese names of characters from “World Trigger”

Image by: World Trigger comic 4 cover © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

What is the story?

World trigger, a popular manga written and illustrated by Daisuke Ashihara. The story is about a fight between the monsters from the Neighbor World and the National Defence Agency ‘Border’. One day ‘The Gate’ to the Neighbor World opened in Mikado City, and monsters started to invade. No weapons were useful against them and chances of surviving were very thin. But, a mysterious organization ‘The Border’ appeared and successfully defeated the monsters using a special weapon called the Trigger.
Four years passed and people were used to the occasional monster attacks. In a local school in Mikado city, a strange young boy with white hair called Yuma joined as a transfer student and soon became good friends with his classmate Osamu, who was secretly a Border agent. When Osamu discovers that Yuma was from the Neighbor World, he decides to protect and prevent him from being found by the agents.

Image by: World Trigger comic 1 © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

What is the Japanese title of World Trigger?

The Japanese title of World trigger is the same but it is written in Katakana as ‘ワールドトリガー’(Wārudo Torigā) because they are English words.

Image by: World Trigger official website © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

What are the meanings behind the characters’ names?

In Japanese culture, names have significant meanings that are supposed to represent you as a person. Names can be expressed in hiragana, katakana, and kanji. Let’s find out the meanings of the four main characters of World Trigger.

Yuma Kuga (空閑 遊真, Kuga Yūma)

Image by: World Trigger Ep 12 © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

Yuma is a young boy who came from the Neighbor World. He was once killed in the war but revived by his father in exchange for his life. He possesses a special power called the Side Effect to determine anyone’s lie. ‘Ku’(空) means sky or nothingness, ‘Ga’(閑) means quiet, ‘Yu’(遊) means to play, and ‘Ma’(真) means true.

Osamu Mikumo (三雲 修, Mikumo Osamu)

Image by: World Trigger comic 2 cover © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

Osamu is a kind-hearted middle schooler and a Border agent. Despite his lack of physical skills and Trion power, he is very hard-working which finally allowed him to become the team leader of the Mikumo Unit. ‘Mi’(三) is three, ‘Kumo’(雲) is a cloud, and ‘Osamu’(修) means to decorate.

Yuichi Jin (迅 悠一, Jin Yūichi)

Image by: World Trigger comic 4 cover © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

Yuichi is a friendly and easy-going Border agent. He claims himself a Talented Elite which is proven by his skills. His Side Effects allows him to see the future. ‘Jin’(迅) means quick, ‘Yu’(悠) means calm, and ‘Ichi’(一) is one.

Chika Amatori (雨取 千佳, Amatori Chika)

Image by: World Trigger comic 3 cover © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

Due to her huge level of Trion power, the Trion Soldiers are always after her. She decided to join the Mikumo Unit to be able to protect herself and find her missing brother who was abducted and taken to the Neighbor World. ‘Ama’(雨) means rain, ‘Tori’(取) is to take, ‘Chi’(千) is a thousand, and ‘Ka’(佳) means good.

Interesting lines and phrases – Learning Japanese!

Here are some useful phrases from World Trigger that will help you along with your Japanese studies!

Image by: World Trigger comic 1 Ep 7© Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

EN/ ‘You make up the stupidest lies.’
JP/「おまえOmae…… つまんないTsumannaiウソつくねUso tsukune 」

Yuma’s signature phrase as he can determine any lies accurately, ‘Omae’(おまえ) means you, however, it is rude to use it to a stranger or anyone who is not close. ‘Tsumannai’(つまんない) means boring, ‘Uso’(ウソ, in kanji 嘘) is a lie, and ‘Uso tsuku’(ウソつく) means to lie. ‘Ne’(ね) is one of the sentence ending particles when you want to confirm or to agree with someone.

Image by: World Trigger comic 1 Ep 1 © Daisuke Ashihara, SHUEISHA Inc.

EN/ ‘Hey, you all right, four-eyes?’
JP/「ようYou 無事か？Buji ka?  メガネくんMegane kun 」

‘Buji’(無事) means safety and you can also use it to ask if you are okay, ‘Megane’(メガネ, kanji 眼鏡) is glasses and ‘Kun'(くん, kanji 君) is the suffix commonly used for boys (both child and adult) with the same grade or younger. And there is sometimes the case when a male leader calls a female junior worker to attach “~kun”.