Origin: Japanese
Besides the words “Black Belt”, there are few words that conjure up the idea of martial arts in English speaker’s minds more than “Sensei.” So much so, that it’s essentially worked its way into the English lexicon. The same way someone would understand what a “Jedi” or a “Transporter” is.
Meaning and Use
The literal meaning of the two kanji (Japanese characters) is “Previous” (先) and “Born” (生). This means that sensei is someone born before you. The characters come together to mean teacher, master, or doctor. Sensei is a title directed at a person. In Japanese, the titles are said after the name. An an example, the author would be “Wilson Sensei.” The use of this implies a degree of wisdom, knowledge, and/or skill to that person. The term is applied to academic instructors, what in English we would call teachers, but also to most kinds of instructors. The title would be given to a tutor as well.
There are also professions that are commonly given the honorific of sensei. Doctors, lawyers, politicians, and some other professions that require a high level national certification (architect is one example) are referred to with this title. Some professional artists, or even authors might also be called sensei.
Connotation
The use of sensei immediately shows respect to the person, and their achievements or skills. In martial arts, especially in the United States we tend to “award” the rank of sensei. This would be an inaccurate thing to do. It isn’t a rank. It’s a mark of respect given by someone else. It would seem very unusual for any Japanese person to introduce themselves as “Nakamura Sensei.” That is left for others to say.
Do you have a favorite martial arts word that doesn’t directly translate into English? Let us know in the comments, and we’ll cover it next week. Better yet, submit your own Martial Word Wednesday and get published.
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