What is the Meaning of Kiriko?

Kiriko is a famous Japanese character from Overwatch, but her name also carries some interesting meanings. In this article, we will delve deep into the word kiriko and its homonyms.

Who is Kiriko in Overwatch?

Kiriko is a ninja who possesses healing abilities and is assisted by a kitsune spirit. She is capable of throwing protective suzus to shield her allies and kunais to attack her enemies. Kiriko is a friend of the Shimada family and trained with Genji and Hanzo in the past.

We also recommend reading: Curiosities and Phrases from Overwatch in Japanese

Her full name is Kiriko Kamori written with the ideograms [家守] Kamori and [霧子] Kiriko. Her family name Kamori means protector of the home, where [守] means to protect and [家] means home.

Kiriko is composed of [霧] which means “fog” or “mist,” and [子], which means “child” or “daughter.” Therefore, the overall meaning of [霧子] is “daughter of the fog” or “daughter of the mist.” Thus representing her power to disappear and teleport.

The Meaning of Kiriko in Japanese

As it is a word with many homonyms in Kanji, the character name Kiriko may have also been chosen to reflect the following words:

• [切り粉] – Shavings or chips left after cutting wood, or metal with a saw, etc.
• [切り子] – Facet; faceted object.
• [切り込] – Verb meaning to cut deeply [切り込む].

Meaning of Kiriko’s Ult

What does the phrase that Kiriko says when using her special ult against enemies mean? Now let’s see the meaning of Kitsune no kagidzume o tokihanate!

狐の鉤爪を解き放て
Kitsune no kagidzume o tokihanate!

• 狐 – Fox
• 鉤爪 – Claws
  • 鉤 – Hook
  • 爪 – Claw
• 解き放て – Release; Liberate;
  • 解 – Solve; unveil; understand; respond; explain
  • 放て – Release; liberate.

The phrase can be literally translated as: Release the claws of the fox!