He met her one evening on a vast moor and married her. Kitsune are intelligent beings with magical powers that grow as they age and gain more wisdom. Here is a list of Japanese animal vocabulary, including English translations, kanji, and audio files to help your pronunciation. [69] Typically, the young man unknowingly marries the fox, who proves a devoted wife. More Filters. Find more Japanese words at wordhippo.com! They get into a lot of mischief, I'm afraid, and I'm always after them to stop, but they never listen. The last 5 names are real names, and I've added the meanings of those names in brackets. [39], Depictions of kitsune or people possessed by them may feature round white balls known as hoshi no tama (ほしのたま, star balls). ", Other kitsune use their magic for the benefit of their companion or hosts as long as the humans treat them with respect. Your art here? While some folktales speak of kitsune empl… [17] These shapes are not limited by the fox's own age or gender,[7] and a kitsune can duplicate the appearance of a specific person. The Following are some of them: Kitsune(狐) The Ordinary name for "fox". This name generator will give you 10 random names for kitsune and similar beings, although the names could fit a wide range of Japanese beings. All other original content is part of FantasyNameGenerators.com and cannot be copied, sold or redistributed without permission. ", The fox later saves his life by leading him past a band of armed robbers. If it turns out that the fox has no adequate reason to give for his behavior, you are to arrest and punish him at once. [11] They possess the power to ward off evil, and they sometimes serve as guardian spirits. The more tails a kitsune has – they may have as many as nine – the older, wiser, and more powerful it is. But the young ones, sir – I'm sure they'll understand when I explain to them why you're so upset. While many kitsune use their powers to become guardians and just all-round friends of humans, some use their powers to play tricks instead. Being a proud owner of a pet fox is pretty cool, to be honest! Japanese tradition holds that fox possession can cause illiterate victims to te… Possessed folk are also said to speak and write languages of which they were totally ignorant prior to possession. mythology says that the Romans called wolf as vulpe but if you read the language that clearly indicates that the vulpe is one of the roman names that mean fox.. 17. According to Yōkaifolklore, all foxes have the ability to shapeshift into human form. Japanese cat names have become popular choices all over the world. [64] Abandoned homes were common haunts for kitsune. Likewise, entire shrines are dedicated to kitsune, where devotees can leave offerings. [10] This appears to be tied to a specific story; it is one of the oldest surviving kitsune tales,[9] and unlike most of those in which a kitsune takes the form of a human woman and marries men, this one does not end tragically. As yōkai, however, kitsune do not share human morality, and a kitsune who has adopted a house in this manner may, for example, bring its host money or items that it has stolen from the neighbors. Japan's traditional culture of honor, loyalty, and devotion have existed since 10,000 BC. The man eventually discovers the fox's true nature, and the fox-wife is forced to leave him. [19] For example, kitsune are thought to employ their kitsunebi to lead travelers astray in the manner of a will-o'-the-wisp. [6][10] From Hamel's translation:[9]. When their son Takeda Katsuyori proved to be a disastrous leader and led the clan to their devastating defeat at the battle of Nagashino, Turnbull writes, "wise old heads nodded, remembering the unhappy circumstances of his birth and his magical mother". Stories tell of kitsune playing tricks on overly proud samurai, greedy merchants, and boastful commoners, while the crueler ones abuse poor tradesmen and farmers or devout Buddhist monks. You're free to use names on this site to name anything in any of your own works, assuming they aren't already trademarked by others of course.All background images part of the generators are part of the public domain and thus free to be used by anybody, with the exception of user submitted backgrounds, images part of existing, copyrighted works, and the pet name generator images. "You may be a fox," Ono called after her, "but you are the mother of my son and I will always love you. Did you know that Haruko means “spring child” and Harumi means “spring beauty”? Black foxes and nine-tailed foxes are likewise considered good omens.[22]. [14] These kyūbi no kitsune (九尾の狐, 'nine-tailed foxes') gain the abilities to see and hear anything happening anywhere in the world. 466 Japanese Girls’ Names (And What They Mean) By Jerome London Updated June 16, 2018 > Nearly 500 Japanese girls’ names. In some stories, kitsune retain – and have difficulty hiding – their tails when they take human form; looking for the tail, perhaps when the fox gets drunk or careless, is a common method of discerning the creature's true nature. Not Rated. [66] True kitsune gifts are usually intangibles, such as protection, knowledge, or long life.[67]. Ancient Japanese folklore is full of tales of shapeshifting kitsune with magical abilities, while Canadian First Nations legends depict the fox as both a trickster and a wise elder.Even the Greek storyteller Aesop told a fable about a fox … Noh, kyogen, bunraku, and kabuki plays derived from folk tales feature them,[46][47] as do contemporary works such as anime, manga and video games. Kitsune (キツネ) is the Japanese word for Fox.Early portrayals of kitsune cast them as heralds of Inari Ōkami, the god of rice, but in some areas of the country the worship of the foxes became more important than the god they served.There is no single, universal concept of kitsune just as there is no single, universal concept of “g… snapped the fox. Ono, an inhabitant of Mino (says an ancient Japanese legend of A.D. 545), spent the seasons longing for his ideal of female beauty. Japanese tradition holds that fox possession can cause illiterate victims to temporarily gain the ability to read. [45], Embedded in Japanese folklore as they are, kitsune appear in numerous Japanese works. The game is similar to rock paper scissors, but the three hand positions signify a fox, a hunter, and a village headman. He goes on to note that, once freed from the possession, the victim would never again be able to eat tofu, azukimeshi, or other foods favored by foxes. [36], In modern psychiatry, the term kitsunetsuki refers to a culture-bound syndrome unique to Japanese culture. The kitsune patriarch appears in the man's dreams:[62], My father lived here before me, sir, and by now I have many children and grandchildren. [40], The great amount of faith given to foxes can be seen in how, as a result of the Inari belief where foxes were believed to be Inari no Kami or its servant, they were employed in practices of dakini-ten by mikkyō and shugendō practitioners and in the oracles of miko; the customs related to kitsunetsuki can be seen as having developed in such a religious background. [29] Though foxes in folklore can possess a person of their own will, kitsunetsuki is often attributed to the malign intents of hereditary fox employers. ", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kitsune&oldid=1007747268, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing Japanese-language text, Articles containing Chinese-language text, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Myōgoki (1268) suggests that it is so called because it is "always (. Attempting to rid someone of a fox spirit was done via an exorcism, often at an Inari shrine. Select filters then press SEARCH … This book was so popular that it won the Dutton Animal Book Award in 1967, the Reader’s Digest Book Club choice in … [68] The kitsune may be a seductress, but these stories are more often romantic in nature. I have to request that you make minute inquiries into the matter, and endeavor to find out the reason of your subject misbehaving in this way, and let me know the result. [57][58] Another tactic is for the kitsune to confuse its target with illusions or visions. Kitsune are often presented as tricksters, with motives that vary from mischief to malevolence. In Japan, Kitsune can be both male and female, though the females are still vastly more common. He must then return to confront his abandoned family in shame. In Chinese, Japanese, and Korean folklores, foxes (huli jing in China, kitsune in Japan, and kumiho in Korea) are powerful spirits that are known for their highly mischievous and cunning nature, and they often take on the form of female humans to seduce men. [33][34] Possession was the explanation for the abnormal behavior displayed by the afflicted individuals. Folktales of China tell of fox spirits called húli jīng (Chinese: 狐狸精) that may have up to nine tails; these were adopted into Japanese culture as kyūbi no kitsune ('nine-tailed fox')[5] which is covered in more detail below). Kitsunetsuki (狐憑き, 狐付き), also written kitsune-tsuki, literally means \"the state of being possessed by a fox\".