How to Say "Rebels" in Japanese

反乱軍

hanrangun

The English phrase "rebels" can be translated into Japanese as 反乱軍 (hanrangun).

反乱軍 is used to describe people who take part in an armed rebellion against an established government.

What does it mean word for word?

The word is a compound consisting of 反乱 (rebellion) and 軍 (army).

反乱軍 refers to the rebel army or the group as a whole, whereas 反乱者 is used to refer to an individual rebel.

The term 反乱軍 refers to the group as a whole rather than an individual person.

hanrangun

If a person is a 'rebel' in the sense of an eccentric or non-conformist, Japanese speakers would more likely use はみ出し者 (hamidashimono), which literally means 'someone who sticks out'.
Japanese history features the 一揆 (ikki) movements, a specific type of peasant rebellion that used a completely different word from 反乱 to emphasize a 'uniting' of people.
In many video games or anime, a rebel group might be called レジスタンス (rejisutansu), using the English loanword instead of the formal 反乱軍.

反乱軍は放送局を占拠した。
The rebels have captured the broadcasting station.
This sentence is useful for seeing how to use 反乱軍 when describing a group capturing a station.
Tatoeba #121234 by KK_kaku_, translation #282772 by CK
反乱軍は街の主要な通りを封鎖した。
Hanrangun wa machi no shuyō na tōri o fūsa shita.
The rebels blocked the main streets of the city.
政府は反乱軍の動きを警戒している。
Seifu wa hanrangun no ugoki o keikai shite iru.
The government is on alert for the movements of the rebels.

Two friends are discussing a historical documentary in a cafe.

大翔 Hiroto

あの映画に出てくる反乱軍は強そうだね。
Ano eiga ni detekuru hanrangun wa tsuyosō da ne.
The rebels in that movie look strong, don't they?
陽葵 Himari

うん、勢いがあったみたい。
Un, ikioi ga atta mitai.
Yeah, they seemed to have a lot of momentum.
大翔 Hiroto

歴史的に見ても、彼らの戦いは凄かったよ。
Rekishiteki ni mite mo, karera no tatakai wa sugokatta yo.
Even from a historical perspective, their battle was intense.
陽葵 Himari

大翔くん、歴史に詳しいんだね。
Hiroto-kun, rekishi ni kuwashii nda ne.
Hiroto, you are quite knowledgeable about history.

Sources

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