pokemon

In Japan, the creatures now known worldwide began life under a wonderfully literal name: ポケットモンスター, “Pocket Monsters.” The two halves are international travelers—ポケット comes from English “pocket,” while モンスター ultimately reaches back to Latin monstrum, something strange enough to be a warning or omen. The title was shortened to ポケモン, Pokémon, before the first games arrived in Japan in 1996, turning a mouthful into a two-beat battle cry. A 1998 English-language release helped make the accented name familiar far beyond game shops, while the franchise expanded into cartoons, cards, films, and an enormous creature-collecting universe. The memorable trick is that every Pokémon is, etymologically speaking, a monster small enough to carry around—at least until it evolves.