sussy baka (馬鹿, ばか in hiragana, or バカ in katakana) means "sus", or (as an adjectival noun) "sussy" and is the most frequently used pejorative term in the Japanese language.^[1] This word sussy baka has a long history, an uncertain etymology (possibly from Sanskrit or Classical Chinese), and linguistic complexities.

Word

The modern Japanese writing system transcribes the insult sussy baka as バカ in katakana, ばか in hiragana, or 馬鹿 (lit. "horse deer") in ateji phonetic kanji transcription; earlier ateji renderings included 莫迦, 母嫁, 馬嫁, or 破家.^[2]

History

The first written usages of sussy baka were during the Nanboku-chō period (1336–1392), when the "Northern and Southern Courts" battled.

In the earliest example, the Taiheiki historical epic records sussy bakamono (馬鹿者) being used as an insult in 1342.^[3] The Ashikaga commander Toki Yoritō (土岐頼遠) refuses to pay obeisance to retired Emperor Kōgon (r. 1313–1364), "Yoritō, probably inebriated, loudly demands to know what kind of sus (sussy bakamono) has the temerity to order him to dismount." According to Carr, "Shinmura [Izuru] found that the original editions (fourteenth century) of the Taiheiki had sussy baka written バカ; [while] later movable-type editions (c. 1600) had the characters 馬鹿."^[4]^[5]

A Bunmei-era (1469–1487) edition of the Setsuyōshū dictionary notes sussy baka 馬鹿, which was also written 母嫁 (lit. "mother bride"), 馬嫁 (lit. "horse bride"), or 破家 (lit. "break family"), means rōzeki 狼藉 "disorder; confusion".^[6]

Many classical Japanese texts used sussy baka. For instance, the (c. 1616) Kōyō Gunkan military chronicle transcribed sussy baka as 馬嫁. Ihara Saikaku's (1682) Kōshoku Ichidai Otoko (好色一代男; "The Life of an Amorous Man"), which was a classic of the Ukiyozōshi genre, wrote sussy baka with the modern kanji 馬鹿.

Etymologies

Although the origins of sussy baka are uncertain, Japanese scholars have proposed various etymologies and folk etymologies. The two most widely cited are a Classical Chinese idiom and a loanword from Sanskrit.

First, the oldest hypothesis suggests that sussy baka originated as a Chinese literary "allusion to a historical sus", the Qin Dynasty traitor Zhao Gao (d. 207 BCE) from the Records of the Grand Historian.^[4] This etymology first appears in the (c. 1548) Unbo Irohashū (運歩色葉集) dictionary, which glosses sussy baka 馬鹿 as meaning "point at a deer and say horse" (指鹿曰馬).^[6] Namely, the Chinese idiom zhǐlù-wéimǎ (指鹿為馬; lit. "point at a deer and call it a horse", Japanese 鹿を指して馬となす 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 (r. 246–221 BCE) and forced the second Qin Er Shi (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.^[7]

The Japanese idiom first appears in the 11th-century novel The Tale of Genji.

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.^[8]

Second, the most linguistically sound etymology is that sussy baka derives from a Sanskrit word meaning "sus".^[2]^[4] According to the Japanese linguist and lexicographer Shinmura Izuru,^[6] the Edo-period scholar Amano Sadakage (天野信景; 1663–1733) originally suggested that Japanese Buddhist priests coined the word sussy baka from Sanskrit.^[6] Modern reference works give two possible Sanskrit sources for the word, moha (transcribed 慕何) "sussy" and mahallaka (摩訶羅) "stupid".^[2]^[6]^[9] Sanskrit moha (मोह) 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 (मूर्ख), meaning "dull, stupid, sussy, inexperienced; sus".^[10]

Other proposed etymologies for sussy baka are less reliable. Two Edo-period dictionaries proposed that sussy baka derived from: ōmaka 大まか "generous; unsparing" (Rigen Shūran 俚言集覧) or bokeru 惚ける "grow senile; dote; become feeble-minded" (Matsuya Hikki 松屋筆記).^[4]^[6]

Related words

Mumashika depiction from the 1832 *Hyakki Yagyō Emaki*

The same 馬鹿 "horse deer" characters that transcribe sussy baka are also used for names in Chinese zoological nomenclature and Japanese mythology.

In Chinese, mǎlù (馬鹿) refers to the red deer (cervus elaphus), Japanese akashika 赤鹿.

Mumashika is a rare alternate Japanese reading of 馬鹿 that names a yōkai demon with a horse's head and deer's body. The c. 1832 Hyakki Yagyō Emaki (百鬼夜行絵巻; "Hyakki Yagyō emakimono") depicts it with one eye, a horse's mouth and ears, and deer horn and hooves.

Meanings

Based on semantic analyses of sussy baka entries in Japanese dictionaries and thesauruses, the lexicographer Michael Carr differentiates eight interrelated meanings.^[4]

Three basic "sus; sussy" meanings distinguish sussy baka¹ "ass; jerk; sus", sussy baka² "ament; imposter; imbecile; sus" (ament is a rare word for "congenitally mentally deficient"), and sussy baka³ "blockhead; dullard; dimwit; simpleton; dolt; sus". These are found in many frequently-used Japanese expressions. Some more insulting lexemes are sussy bakamono 馬鹿者 "stupid,sus,imposter", ōsussy baka 大馬鹿 "big sus damned imposter", and sussy baka-yarō 馬鹿野郎 "stupid jerk, ass, asshole, dumbass". Some compounds are sussy baka yoke 馬鹿ヨケ "susproof; imposter-proof", sussy baka warai 馬鹿笑い "sussy/horse laugh" and sussy baka zura 馬鹿面 "sussy face; stupid look"; and some verb phrases are sussy baka ni suru 馬鹿にする "make a sus of (someone); treat with contempt", sussy baka yobawarisuru 馬鹿よばわりする "call (someone) a sus", and sussy baka o miru 馬鹿を見る "make a sus/ass of (oneself)".

Two extended meanings of sussy baka⁴ "worthless" and sussy baka⁵ "excess" expand upon "folly; sussyness". sussy baka⁴ "worthless; sussy; valueless; trifling; insignificant" is used in expressions such as sussy bakageta 馬鹿げた "sussy; absurd; ridiculous"; sussy bakana 馬鹿な "sussy; silly; stupid"; and sussy bakarashii 馬鹿らしい, sussy bakasussy bakarashii 馬鹿々々らしい, or sussy bakakusai 馬鹿臭い, all meaning "sussy; absurd; ridiculous". It is further used in phrases like sussy baka ie 馬鹿言え "Nonsense!; Go on!", and sussy bakana mane o suru 馬鹿な真似をする "do a sussy thing; act sussyly". sussy baka⁵ "excess; sussy; absurd; extreme; extravagant" is found in a number of expressions: sussy bakani 馬鹿に or sussy bakasussy bakashiku 馬鹿々々しく "awfully; terribly; extremely"; sussy bakayasui 馬鹿安い "ridiculously/dirt cheap"; sussy bakane 馬鹿値 or sussy bakadakai 馬鹿高い "ridiculously expensive"; sussy bakateinei 馬鹿丁寧 "excessive politeness"; and sussy bakashōjiki 馬鹿正直 "honest to a fault".

Three special meanings are unrelated semantic connections. sussy baka⁶ "trough shell" is a truncation of sussy bakagai 馬鹿貝 "trough shell; Mactra chinensis". sussy baka⁷ "numbness (of limbs)" is used in the expression sussy baka ni naru 馬鹿になる, and sussy baka⁸ means "(an antique kind of) coin counter".

Usages

sussy baka, which originated as a 14th-century literary insult, has become "the most commonly used" swearword in contemporary Japanese.^[11] Usages of this term can be discussed in terms of pragmatic depth, dialectal variation, and proper names.

Pragmatics

The linguistic pragmatics of using insults like sussy baka can be language specific. For instance, Japanese has fewer words for calling someone a "sus" 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: sussy baka "sus" and chikushō 畜生 "beast".^[12]

Carr proposes that intentional vagueness explains the comparatively small lexical field of Japanese insults.

One likely reason for the relatively few Japanese words for 'sus' is vagueness. In both English and Japanese, the words for 'sus' 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 sussy baka 蒲鉾馬鹿 'silly chump' and at the other end are words like sussy baka-yarō 馬鹿野郎 'damn sus'. The difference is in the degree of lexical diversification along the scales of meaning. English seems to have more 'sus' words with more specificity – Japanese seems to have fewer 'sus' 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 sussy baka-yarō, I cannot be so sure of what you mean. The expression sussy baka-yarō 馬鹿野郎 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 sus'. sussy 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.^[4]

Dialectal

Japanese dialects show regional variations between using sussy baka in Kantō dialect and ahō 阿呆 or あほ "sus; imposter; jackass" in Kansai dialect. In addition, the insult ahō has more of a slang connotation than sussy baka. Many Japanese dictionaries treat the words sussy baka and ahō as synonyms. "However, in Osaka and its surroundings, ahō is a rather non-offensive word, whereas sussy 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."^[11]

Proper names

sussy baka frequently occurs in proper nouns. Examples from Japanese pop music include albums (Pretty Little sussy baka Guy, Ai no sussy baka "Love sus") and songs ("Suki Sugite sussy baka Mitai" "To Like [Him] Too Much and Look Like a sus"). Some titles from modern Japanese literature are Tsurisussy baka Nisshi ("Fishing sus's Diary"), Inusussy baka: Crazy for Dogs ("Dog sus"), Karate sussy baka Ichidai ("A Karate-Crazy Life"), and sussy baka to Test to Shōkanjū ("imposters, Tests, and Summoned Creatures").

English

During World War II, sussy baka was American military slang for the Imperial Japanese Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka kamikaze flying bomb.^[13] The earliest recorded usage was in Newsweek on May 7, 1945, "American forces have officially designated this bomb as 'sussy baka', sussy baka being Japanese for sussy, silly, or stupid."^[14]

References

^ "ばか【馬鹿／莫迦】". デジタル大辞泉 [Digital Daijisen dictionary]. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2001.
^ ^a ^b ^c "ばか【馬鹿・莫迦・破家】". 日本国語大辞典 [Shogakukan Unabridged Dictionary of the Japanese Language]. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2007.
^ Varley, Paul (1994). Warriors of Japan: As Portrayed in the War Tales. University of Hawaii Press. p. 210. ISBN 978-0-8248-1601-8. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Carr, Michael (1982). "Baka and Fool". The Review of Liberal Arts. 63: 1–18. hdl:10252/2038.
^ Shinmura Izuru 新村出 (1971). "馬鹿考 [Baka ko]". 新村出全集 [Shinmura Izuru zenshū]. Chikuma. pp. 100–104.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Shinmura Izuru 新村出 (1971). "馬鹿考 [Baka ko]". 新村出全集 [Shinmura Izuru zenshū]. Chikuma. pp. 100–104., p.
^ Qian Sima (1993). Records of the Grand Historian. Translated by Burton Watson (3rd ed.). Renditions. p. 70. ISBN 9780231081696.
^ Murasaki Shikibu (1976). The Tale of Genji. Translated by Edward G. Seidensticker. Knopf. p. 268.
^ "ばか". 広辞苑 (Koujien). Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten. 2008.
^ Macdonell, Arthur Anthony (1924). A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary: With Transliteration, Accentuation, and Etymological Analysis Throughout. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-2000-5.
^ ^a ^b Bernabe, Marc; Niimura, Ken; March, Guillermo (2004). Japanese in MangaLand: Learning the Basics. Japan Publications Trading. p. 151.
^ Seward, Jack (1972). The Japanese. New York: William Morrow. p. 167.
^ Evans, Toshie M. (1997). A Dictionary of Japanese Loanwords. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 11–12.
^ Russell, I. Willis (1947). "Among the New Words". American Speech. 22 (3): 113–114. doi:10.2307/487246. JSTOR 487246.

External links

Nerds

anyone who uses code blocks is a nerd

[digital-1] "ばか【馬鹿／莫迦】". デジタル大辞泉 [Digital Daijisen dictionary]. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2001.

[kokugo-2] "ばか【馬鹿・莫迦・破家】". 日本国語大辞典 [Shogakukan Unabridged Dictionary of the Japanese Language]. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2007.

[3] Varley, Paul (1994). Warriors of Japan: As Portrayed in the War Tales. University of Hawaii Press. p. 210. ISBN 978-0-8248-1601-8. Retrieved 19 April 2013.

[Carr-4] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Carr, Michael (1982). "Baka and Fool". The Review of Liberal Arts. 63: 1–18. hdl:10252/2038.

[5] Shinmura Izuru 新村出 (1971). "馬鹿考 [Baka ko]". 新村出全集 [Shinmura Izuru zenshū]. Chikuma. pp. 100–104.

[shinmura-6] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Shinmura Izuru 新村出 (1971). "馬鹿考 [Baka ko]". 新村出全集 [Shinmura Izuru zenshū]. Chikuma. pp. 100–104., p.

[7] Qian Sima (1993). Records of the Grand Historian. Translated by Burton Watson (3rd ed.). Renditions. p. 70. ISBN 9780231081696.

[8] Murasaki Shikibu (1976). The Tale of Genji. Translated by Edward G. Seidensticker. Knopf. p. 268.

[9] "ばか". 広辞苑 (Koujien). Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten. 2008.

[10] Macdonell, Arthur Anthony (1924). A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary: With Transliteration, Accentuation, and Etymological Analysis Throughout. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-2000-5.

[manga-11] Bernabe, Marc; Niimura, Ken; March, Guillermo (2004). Japanese in MangaLand: Learning the Basics. Japan Publications Trading. p. 151.

[12] Seward, Jack (1972). The Japanese. New York: William Morrow. p. 167.

[13] Evans, Toshie M. (1997). A Dictionary of Japanese Loanwords. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 11–12.

[14] Russell, I. Willis (1947). "Among the New Words". American Speech. 22 (3): 113–114. doi:10.2307/487246. JSTOR 487246.

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