MangaCast-er and Otaku USA columnist Ed Chavez e-mailed me to expand on the concept of “bozu,” which is nowhere near as basic as I’d assumed when I was working on this week’s Flipped. He was kind enough to let me post it here:
Was checking out your latest Flipped and the subject had me scratching my head a little. “Bozu” while in a very roundabout way could mean boy it isn’t as common (as you noted since it isn’t often used in shounen manga outside of a specific genre) or in the correct context as you have placed it.
“Bozu” when used to mean boy is derived from the word “bozu” written Ë·¼ç in kanji which means buddhist monk or priest. So generally bozu when used to refer to a “kid” or a “squirt” will be used to someone with the physical characteristics of a monk – either someone who is bald or has very short hair. In this situation bozu is not a general term. It is a specific form of slang used mainly by yanki or yakuza to pick on athletes who have to cut their hair short for sports (ie baseball where short hair/buzz cuts are common style) or nerds who stereotypically in manga have short hair.
The other use of bozu is for the very very young. I’d say anyone up to age 12 (middle school is too old… by then people use the term “gaki” derived from gakkou school is used to mean brat or squirt). Bozu in this sense tend to have the look of those stone monks you see around cemeteries and in the country side. Actually those statues are also called bozu and they are said to quite often symbolize the souls of children.
So I wouldn’t Hoshin Engi’s cast are bozu. I haven’t read my copy of Dragon Eye yet to be certain about that series… though they sure look like gaki to me.
Ochi from Hikaru no Go though… He isn’t just a bozu (with that hair) but is also the poster child for the Botchan or Botchama’s out there. Precious young masters (the opposite of the hime-sama/little princess) that are often the one-dimensional foil to protagonists as they climb the shounen tournament ladder.
Much more interesting than “kid” or “squirt,” isn’t it?