魔狼
marō
To say demon wolf in Japanese, use 魔狼 (marō).
魔狼 belongs to fantasy stories, anime and games, as in このアニメには魔狼のキャラクターが出てくるんだって, I heard a demon wolf character appears in this anime.
What does it mean word for word?
魔 (ma) means demon, magic or supernatural and 狼 (rō) means wolf.
How do you pronounce it?
It is romanized marō, with a long o at the end.
Did you know?
- In traditional Japanese folklore, wolves were not seen as demons but as okami (狼), which is a homophone for the word for 'great god'. This makes the concept of a 魔狼 a modern fantasy invention rather than a historical belief.
- The character 魔 (ma) is frequently used in Japanese to describe things that are 'bewitching' or 'enchanting' in a seductive way, not just in a terrifying, demonic sense.
- While 魔狼 (marō) sounds like a fantasy creature, the sound 'maro' was historically used as a suffix for the names of high-ranking samurai or nobles.
Examples in context
- その物語には魔狼が登場します。Sono monogatari ni wa marou ga toujou shimasu.A demon wolf appears in that story.
- 魔狼の伝説はとても恐ろしいです。Marou no densetsu wa totemo osoroshii desu.The legend of the demon wolf is very scary.
- 目の前に魔狼が現れた！Me no mae ni marou ga arawareta!A demon wolf appeared before my eyes!
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing a fantasy novel.
- 蓮 Renこの本の主人公は魔狼を飼っているよ。Kono hon no shujinkō wa marō o katte iru yo.The protagonist of this book has a pet demon wolf.
- 美咲 Misakiえっ、魔狼を飼うなんて危なくない？E, marō o kau nante abunaku nai?What, isn't it dangerous to keep a demon wolf?
- 蓮 Ren大丈夫、とても忠実な相棒なんだ。Daijōbu, totemo chūjitsu na aibō nan da.It's okay, it's a very loyal partner.
- 美咲 Misakiそれは面白そうだね。Sore wa omoshirosō da ne.That sounds interesting.
