People are always asking what it actually means when broken down. Hagane means "Fullmetal" (or "Full Metal") whichever you prefer. no is a transition word. Renkinjutsu is the skill or art of Alchemy. If you add shi to the end of a skill, you refer to the person, therefore Renkinjutsu + shi means "Alchemist". Put it all together and Hagane no Renkinjutsushi = Full Metal Alchemist. People also wonder the discrepancy between the "fullmetal" and "full metal" spellings. The official japanese website (and the logo) has it as "fullmetal" whereas, if it were properly translated it would be "full metal" since there is no such word in the English language. Also, Japanese people have abrreviated the name to "Hagaren", Haga(ne) + Ren(kinjutsushi).
Often times, people will ask who is above who, in the whole military aspect of the show. I have put together a list of ranks and example personnel for you. For example: All State Alchemists start out with the rank of Major. Nice way to get bumped up the chain of command pretty quickly :) We havnt come across a lot of the ranks, but this should give you a good idea of how things are broken down. Furthermore, this ranking is a status fairly early on within the series, and people do get promoted but we havnt listed them so that you wont soil the series.
Commissioned Officers | Example |
| General of the Army (Fuhrer) | King Bradley |
| General | Hakuro (Ep 5) |
| Lieutenant General | |
| Major General | |
| Brigadier General | Basque Gran |
| Colonel | Roy Mustang |
| Lt. Colonel | Maes Hughes |
| Major | Edward Elric, Alex Louis Armstrong, All other Alchemists. |
| Captain | |
| First Lieutenant | Riza Hawkeye |
| Second Lieutenant | Maria Ross, Yoki |
Enlisted Officers | Example |
| Sergeant | Denny Bloch |
| Warrant Officer | Farman |
Edward doesnt take lightly to being called short, small, pint-sized, a shrimp, or anything like that. So we've gone through and found many of his little reactions. If you find one thats not here, shoot us an email and we'll add it :)
- "Who did you say was small like a grain of rice and doesn't show up in your eyes?!"
- "Who did you say was a super-ultra short kid?!"
- "Who did you call an ultra hyper midget?!"
- "Who did you call miniature size?!"
- "Who did you call a shorty who's so small that he's barely visible and hard to target?!"
- "Who did you call a shorty that has to be looked through a magnifying glass to actually be seen?!"
- "Who are you calling a bean?!"
- "Who are you calling a super midget that makes you want to step on him?!"
- "Who are you calling a tiny bug that escapes the wrath of a shoe because he's so small that he fits in the grooves and can't get squashed?"
- "Oh yes, I'm so small that you can't see me amongst the grains of sand, like always--!"
The "Bad Guys" in Full Metal Alchemist are known as the Sins due to their names. In some Christian religions, the bible has references to Seven Deadly Sins that would cause you to go to hell.
- Lust is an inordinate craving for the pleasures of the body.
- Gluttony is an inordinate desire to consume more than that which one requires.
- Envy is the desire for others' traits, status, abilities, or situation.
- Sloth is the avoidance of physical or spiritual work.
- Pride is excessive belief in one's own abilities, that interferes with the individual's recognition of the grace of God. It has been called the sin from which all others arise. Pride is also known as Vanity.
- Anger/Wrath is manifested in the individual who spurns love and opts instead for fury.
- Greed is the desire for material wealth or gain, ignoring the realm of the spiritual. It is also called Avarice or Covetousness.
» The Full Metal Alchemist World
The Anime and Manga takes place primarily in the country of Amestris. However this is not the only country in the world within the series. Here is some detailed information about it.
Amestris
The story takes place in Amestris, which is currently having minor skirmishes with Aerugo and Creta. The country is ruled by martial law, under Fuhrer/Generalissimo King Bradley. The cultural base is European, possibly German. The majority of Amestris' interest in alchemy is for military purposes. Mount Fuji is located to the south of Youswell, in the east. Dublith, in the south, is where Izumi Curtis and her husband reside.Side note: Amestris was the wife of Xerxes. Between Amestris and Ishvar/Ishbar is Xerxes, which was destroyed in one night. According to Greek and Persian legend, Amestris was a Persian princess who had her husband assasinated by their first-born son. Amestris continued to live well on into old age, ruling from behind the throne. She was characterized as ruthless and powerful, and Amestris was considered by all reports to be essentially under her thumb and helpless to cross her.
Aerugo
Located south of Amestris.
Creta
Located west of Amestris. May be Crete, based on the kana in the manga.
Drachma
A hostile country located north of Amestris; sometimes translated as Drachna, but has been identified in the manga as Drachma. The Briggs Mountains separate Drachma and Amestris, which makes invasion for either country too much of a hassle. Side note: Drachma is the pre-Euro currency in Greece incidentally.
Xing
A country far to the east of Amestris, across the Great Desert, with a Chinese cultural base. There are several routes to Xing. The first is a rail system that was buried in the desert; the second is a route through the Khshayarsha (Xerxes) ruins; the third is by sea. Xing has alchemy, but appears to be for medical purposes and research.
Isshuvaru (Ishbal)
Located east of Amestris, Isshuvaru (Ishbar, or Ishvar) was annexed by Amestris during the Ishver Civil Conflict. The cultural base may be Indian or Middle Eastern, with a suggested compromise interpretation of Persian. The Ishvarites are monotheists who do not believe in or allow alchemy, however, Ishvara means 'god' in Sanskrit. The Ishvarites' proximity to the ruined city of Xerxes (possibly destroyed through alchemical reaction) may be partly reason for their ban on Alchemy.
Many thanks to yebyosh, yuuOminae, OMchan, sarcasteak, BigFire, on the AnimeSuki Forum.
There are certain phrases that are constantly repeated throughout the series, here is the Kanji, Romanji, and Translation for them.
Kanji | Romanji | Translation |
|---|---|---|
 | ERURIKKU Kyoudai | The Elric Brothers |
 | Rensei | Training/Drilling |
 | Hagane no Renkinjutsushi | Fullmetal Alchemist |
 | OOTOMEIRU | Automail |
 | Kinki | Taboo |
 | Toganin | Offender/Criminal |
 | Touka Koukan | Equivalent Trade |
 | Kenja no Ishi | The Philosopher's Stone |
 | UOROBOROSU no Irezumi | The Tattoo of the Ouroborous |
 | Aku Yo nou | Evil |
 | Shinwa | Legend |
 | Munou | Inefficient/Incompetent |
 | Gunbu | The Military |
 | Chuusei | Loyalty/Sincerity |
 | Gun no Inu | Dog of the Military |
 | Mame (Mamestubu) | Bean (Pint-Sized) |
 | Tsukuru Mono to Kowasu Mono | Creators and Destroyers |
 | Youshou Ki | Childhood |
 | Haha to Ko | Mother and Child |
 | Jigoku | Hell |
 | Don't forget | |
 | Shitei | Teacher and Student |
 | Shuugyou | Pursuit of Knowledge/Studying |
 | Kumite | (Paired) Kata/Wooden Joints |
 | Kaidoku | Deciphering/Decoding |
 | Chikara no Junkan | Cycle of Power |
 | Seibikou | Mechanic |
 | Gyuunyuu | Milk |
 | Shinri | The Truth |
 | Kazoku | Family |
Many of the names in Fullmetal Alchemist have a historical root. Members in the military are tied to WWII and Aircraft names, the Alchemists have ties to famous alchemists in the past. Here you can find detailed descriptions and connections of these ties. Thanks to Scimitar Smile, and those below for this information.
Hohenheim Elric
Edward and Alphone's father, gets his name from a town in Germany. It's also the surname of Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, more often referred to as Theophrastus von Hohenheim, an alchemist with the penname of Paracelsus. Von Hohenheim, on its own, is the equivalent of calling oneself something like Jack of London. However, it indicates Arakawa spent at least some time digging through introductory alchemical histories or texts, that he would chose such a name for the boys' father.
Bradley
Bradley Fighting Vehicle M-2/M-3 is a light-armored, midrange tank designed for mechanized infantry and armored cavalry combat. Main armament is a 25mm cannon, with supplementary armament of a TOW missile and a 7.62mm machine gun. The Bradley is a modern tank. [6]
Bradley may have a WWII connection as well. Omar Bradley was originally teacher at U. S. Military Academy and the Infantry School, but he rose quickly through the ranks due to his brilliant tactician skills and his reputation as a commander with whom his soldiers could readily identify. By 1945, Bradley was in charge of the 12 U.S. Army Group in the European arena, commanding roughly 1,300,000 men. "His troops broke out of the Normandy beachhead, liberated Paris, defeated a German counteroffensive during the winter of 1944-1945, seized the first bridgehead over the Rhine River, and drove through central Germany to establish the first Allied contact with troops of the Soviet Union." [7] After WWII, Bradley took administrative positions, becoming the US Army's Chief of Staff in 1948. He was the fourth officer ever to reach the rank of 5-star general in the Army, a promotion only possible during wartime.
Fury
The FJ-1 Fury was first commissioned in 1945, but the final version was not delivered until 1948, and never saw action in WWII. A twin-engine jet designed for carrier landings, the Fury was armed with six .50-caliber machine guns with 1,500 rounds total. By 1949, the FJ-1 was already being phased out in favor of the F9F-3 Panthers. [5]
Fury, the youngest officer of Mustang's staff, is often mistranslated in fansubs as Huey. Curiously enough, Huey also has connections to military aircraft. The Huey (HU-1) was a support and carrier helicopter that first saw action in the Vietnam Conflict. [3]
Havoc
The Mi-28 Havoc was a fighter helicopter, fitted with one 30mm NPPU-28 cannon, SA-16 Gimlet AAMs, AT-6 Spiral AT missiles, and 130mm or 80mm rockets. First deployed in the late 60's. [1]
Hawkeye
The E-2 Hawkeye was designed for airborne early warning, command and control. Carrying no armaments, it is classes as reconnaissance. "The Hawkeye provides all-weather airborne early warning and command and control functions for the carrier battle group. Additional missions include surface surveillance coordination, strike and interceptor control, search and rescue guidance and communications relay." [1]
Hayate
The Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate was possibly the best Japanese fighter aircraft during the last year of the Pacific theater. The Hayate was fully the equal of even the most advanced Allied fighters, and superior in many aspects; it was well armed and armored, fast, and maneuverable. [4]
Hughes
The P-73 Hughes was an experimental aircraft, whose designation number was skipped in favor of a more 'commercially attractive' number, and the P-75 was released instead. There was a P-73, but "it was so secret that even today there are few details available about it. The P-73 was almost as mysterious in its time as the shadowy 'Aurora' is today. However, the reason for all this secrecy was [predominantly as] a result of the neurotic personality of the owner of the company which produced the aircraft. This was none other than the brilliant but eccentric movie tycoon, inventor, and industrialist Howard Hughes." [4]
Mustang
The P-51 Mustang was a one-man long range fighter in the patrol/pursuit category, carrying six .50-caliber machine guns and ten five-inch rockets, or 2,000 pounds of bombs. "The P-51 was the first U.S. fighter aircraft to fly over Europe after the fall of France. The Mustang destroyed 4,950 enemy aircraft in the air during World War II, more than any other fighter in Europe." [1]
sources: 1. [ Global Aircraft ] 2. [ Ace Pilots ] 3. [ Historic U.S. Army Helicopters ] 4. [ Joe Baugher's Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft ] 5. [ The Navy's FJ-1 ] 6. [ US Military Main Site ] 7. [ Biography of Omar Bradley ] 8. [ About the Hayate ]
Many thanks to Emily Ravenwood, Arex-kun, SV-chan, and FA Ashanthya.
thanks to...
http://fullmetal-alchemist.com/
