“Ame-chan” “Mame-san” Why do we give honorific names to food?

``Ame-chan, do you want to eat?''

This is a familiar phrase in Osaka and other places, and even now, when I (Segawa), whose grandmother lives in Hyogo, hear this phrase, my heart warms.

However, one day I realized that I call certain foods with ``san.''

Why do we call food with the ``san'' prefix?

And why is the candy labeled with ``chan''?

When I first started interviewing him, it became clear to me not only the historical background, but also the fact that the language is changing with the times.

(Osaka Broadcasting Station reporter Aki Segawa / director Ayane Maeda)

Check out what to add “san” to!

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When I asked people in the town what to call them with illustrations of candy and beans, all of the locals answered ``Ame-chan'' and ``Omame-san.''

But when you ask why.

"Sense of intimacy?"

“It’s because Kansai people are kind, right?”

Each of them received their own answers.

This is worth investigating!

The enthusiastic reporting team decided to first find out what people in Osaka and Kansai add ``san'' and ``chan'' to, and what they don't.

When you look at the supermarket section...

The place I visited was a supermarket.

Toshihito Uchida, president of a company that operates supermarkets in Osaka and Yao City, says that he has lived in Osaka since he was a child.

The president personally showed me around the sales floor.

The first thing I picked up was ``sweet potato.''

President Uchida

: “The most representative one is Oimo-san.”

Yes, in Kansai, sweet potatoes are called ``Oimo-san.''

It was Oimo-san that led me to interview him.

So, is the taro sold right next to it also called "Oimo-san"?

President Uchida

: "I don't think you can add san to taro. I feel like it's limited to sweet potatoes."

However, an NHK employee from Osaka who was watching the VCR tweeted the following.

“At home, we might have called taro ``koimo-san.''

After doing some research, it seems that these names have become established in some regions.

The profound world of ``san''...

There are other foods that give you “san-chan”...

As we walked further around the store, President Uchida told us about some of the foods that are called by adding ``san'' or ``chan.''

・"Sweet potato" = "Oimo-san"

・"Beans" = "Omame-san"

・"Kayu" = "Okayu-san"

・"Inarizushi" = "Oinari-san"

・"Ame" = "Ame-chan"

It seems like many of them have been eaten for a long time, but it's unclear what they have in common.

Supermarket president Uchida also shook his head, saying, ``I don't know why they add ``san'' or ``chan,'' or what the standards are.

What is the origin of “san” in the product name?

?

Some of the products sold at supermarkets had "san" added to their product names, so I visited the long-established food manufacturer in Kobe City that produced them.

This company sells bean products all over the country.

It was in 1976 that they added the ``san'' to the beans and started selling the product.

Keiko Otsuki, who is in charge of public relations, researched the company's history and showed it to us.

Public Relations Officer Keiko Otsuki

: ``It says that the product name was chosen to express the ``cuteness of round beans'' and ``friendliness.''

I want people to become more familiar with beans, which have been an essential part of life since ancient times.

It is said that the founder named it with this wish in mind.

I had a feeling that the word "friendliness" mentioned by the publicist would be the key word, but I couldn't find out any more details than that.

The origin is "Gosho Kotoba"

As I continued my research, I found an expert who was knowledgeable about Kansai languages.

I am Professor Shinsuke Kishie of Nara University.

Professor Kishie points out that the custom of adding ``san'' to foods and other items is thought to have originated from the ``gosho language'' used by those who served the imperial court.

This "gosho language" appears in literature from the Muromachi period, but it is said that it later came to be used among wives of samurai families.

It is characterized by adding ``o'' before the word, and words such as ``ohiya'' and ``otsukuri'' are typical examples.

It is thought that the addition of ``san'' was added to these words to make them more polite.

However, how did "Gosho Kotoba" spread to Osaka and other places?

The keywords that Professor Kishie mentioned were "Hideyoshi" and "merchant."

It is said that over time, the imperial court's language, known as "Gosho Kotoba", permeated the streets of Kyoto.

Later, when Toyotomi Hideyoshi built Osaka Castle and the castle town was developed, the ``gosho words'' became established in Osaka from the Kyoto merchants who gathered there.

It is said that it spread throughout the Kansai region by merchants who traveled from place to place.

Professor Shinsuke Kishie of Nara University

: ``Originally, ``san'' was used as an honorific word. However, it spread among the common people as a word to express intimacy. I think it's something like ``Omame-san'' with the ``san'' added.''

The ``san'' suffix, which was originally used as an honorific word, gradually changed to one that conveyed ``friendship.''

So, where is the line drawn between those that add "san" and those that do not?

According to Professor Kishie, it is difficult to attach to long words and tends to attach to words with two or three letters.

Why is candy called “chan”?

However, a new question arises here.

"Ame" has two letters and meets the conditions for adding "san", so why is it not "ame-san"?

Next, the interview team headed to a company in Osaka that has been making candy for over half a century.

This company actually used to sell a product called "Ame-chan."

I asked Kenta Kinoshita, who was in charge of development, the reason for the straightforward naming.

Kenta Kinoshita, in charge of development

: ``I thought it would be nice to have a product called Ame-chan.I developed it because I wanted people to say, ``Ame-chan is exactly what it is.''

As expected of Osaka.

It seems that the idea was to get people involved in the product.

However, why did they choose the name "Ame-chan" instead of "Ame-san"?

"Because Ame originally has the word 'chan' in it, so there's no question about it. People don't call it 'Ame-san,' right?" I asked Mr. Kinoshita to think about it with me.

Kenta Kinoshita, in charge of development

: ``In the past, you used to go shopping in places like shopping districts, and when you did that, you would meet quite a lot of people. It would be better if there was something like that.I think that Ame is very useful for that purpose.It can be used as a conversation starter.``Ame-chan'' feels more familiar, so it is inevitable that it is ``Ame-chan''. That’s right.”

“Ame-chan” is inevitable!

Mr. Kinoshita goes so far as to say so, but he still doesn't know the detailed reason.

Sanzuke also changes with the times.

When I asked Professor Kishie of Nara University again, he told me that in Kyoto, it was actually not originally called "Ame-chan" but "Ame-san".

In Osaka, the name changed to "Ame-chan."

I don't seem to know the exact details, but they were supposed to have used the word ``san'' out of affection, but before they knew it, they had changed to the ``chan'' name.

This may be due to the fact that candy is so familiar to the people of Osaka.

I researched the history of adding ``san'' and ``chan'' to food, and some of the young people I interviewed on the streets said they don't use expressions like ``mame-san'' or ``porridge-san.'' was also asked.

I get the impression that ``Ame-chan'' has become popular among the younger generation, but the people to whom ``san'' is attached may also change over time.

As a reporter, I would like to continue to follow these changes.

Thank you for reading this far.

"Ame-chan, do you want to eat?"

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