furuba

fruits basket

kureno

the rooster

relations

a twisted web

essays

in depth thoughts

exeunt

to freedom

The Third Month

"There are things in this life that you shouldn't do."

Kureno's name was derived from the third month of the traditional Japanese calendar, kurenoharu or late spring. This is not the month of the rooster, but the month of the rabbit. Natsuki Takaya says she mixed up his position in the zodiac with Momiji's.

The characters that make up the name Sohma are not particularly meaningful but he characters that make up his first name 紅 and 野 are somewhat more so. The first character, describes a vivid red color, kurenai. A dye which was brought to Japan from China. The dye is made from the benibana or safflower plant. The second character is read as no and means area or field. So combined his name directly translates to vermilion field or safflower field.

Kureno's name seems to have little to do with his personality. That being said, safflower seeds are nutritionally similar to sunflower oil and are often used in birdfeeders as squirrels don't like it. Metaphorically speaking his name might therefore be representative of his loneliness, no longer a bird able to partake of the feast of the zodiac. Of course, it's very vague and there is likely no meaning beyond the obvious.