Sunday, April 15, 2007

Slang

I found this interesting post on "Homosexuality in Japan" on Wikipaedia from a fellow blogger. In one separated section is "Japanese gay slang", which I found to be rather hilarious, especially the following:

Ketsuman
A
portmanteau of the words ketsu and manko literally meaning "ass cunt," this word usually describes the anus of an effeminate male bottom. Compare "mangina"; "man-cunt."

Neko (ネコ)
Literally "cat" (and sometimes written with the
kanji for cat, though more often in katakana, as above), this word refers to the bottom, or passive/receptive partner, especially in anal sex. In lesbian relationships, the woman who expresses more traditionally feminine traits is the neko; see "femme" in English usage. The etymology is unclear. In current use.

Okoge
A term for the burnt rice that sticks to the bottom of a cooking pot, this currently-used word refers to the straight, female friends of gay males. See
Fag hag.

Seme (攻め、セメ)
Seme comes from the word "semeru" (攻める) which means "to attack." Refers to the dominant partner in the relationship (as opposed to Uke (受け、ウケ)). In use.


My Japanese friend confirms that these are commonly used amongst the Japanese gay community. I find some of them (okay most of them) rather degratory but funny nonetheless. The last two quoted is a little worrying. John hates the term "Fag Hag", but "Burnt Rice?", where did that come from and Semeru in sex, it sounds really predatory.

My female friends have commented that some men only know how to ""Bang hard" because they think this is how women like it, which is what they predominantly learn from porn. It is quite disconcerting learning this because it's not really promoting respect. Sex is about pleasure for both sexes, not just one, so I guess Seme is quite scary, but true in culture.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing this. It's good to know.

Similar, I don't like all these names. Both japanese term and english term are used as put down in a way.

What bother me most is that many gay members use it freely as well to express that they don't care and so STRAIGHT and so MANLY that they can use it. In fact, that is a homophobic behavior in a way.

JameZ said...

You are most welcome. I just realised that there is gay slang for many other languages.

I also don't think it is just defined to the homosexual community though I have to agree that we are a more bitchy bunch.

I wasn't aware that it was only used by macho gay members though I do know that there are cases where they use it to tease more effeminate guys. I guess "No one wants to be the bottom" in the homosexual world, which is why we love Jake Gyllenhaal even more because he took the less flattering role in "Brokeback Mountain".

Anonymous said...

That's exactly my point. Isn't that a little sexist though?

I refuse to be that way and speak out often toward my other gay friends.

JameZ said...

It is "sexist" within the same sex. I would say that it is bullying of sorts.

I think it is great that we recognise the harm words can bring. They say that "words don't hurt, actions do", but it does. Look at all the anorexics and bulimics. Somewhere along the line, someone must have told them that they look fat or maybe the images we have to live through (in magazines and such).

Not too far away is the "Boys Don't Cry" advice. Look at how many grown men suffer from that too. The need for masculinity within gay men is a refusal to subscribe to the social "norms" that others prescribe to our community. However, I agree that this does not extend to slurs that we have to give to our fellow "comrades".