If you’ve been watching ORESUKI you may have noticed a heavy flower motif. But if you break down the Japanese being used, it becomes clear rather quickly that the whole anime is just one giant flower-based pun.
In Japanese, schools are often called “gakuen” (学園), literally “learning garden.” ORESUKI takes this to the most literal possible extreme. The school itself is completely flower-themed (their school festival is even called the “Flower Festival”) and each of the main female characters in the story is directly associated with a flower–they even wear an accessory of that flower in their hair.
In fact, the main female characters’ nicknames are the names of different flowers–with the male character’s nicknames being at least flower-related. Each nickname is made by taking the characters’ real names and rearranging or cutting letters to make a flower-based pun. But more than that, if you know the language of flowers, the characters’ nicknames give you special insight into how each character thinks and acts.
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Amatsuyu Kisaragi (如月 雨露)
Nickname: “Joro” (如雨露)
Nickname Meaning: “Watering Can”
Flower Language Meaning: N/A
Despite his devious intentions, his job seems to be nothing more than to help the various flowers grow. Or to put it another way, he is the tool each of the girls uses to grow how they want to.
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Sumireko Sanshokuin (三色院 菫子)
Nickname: “Pansy” (三色菫)
Nickname Meaning: “Pansy”
Flower Language Meaning: Memories (Yellow), Love (White), Head always filled with thoughts of you (Purple)
As an obsessive stalker, it’s a given that she wears a purple pansy accessory in her hair.
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Aoi Hinata (日向 葵)
Nickname: “Himawari” (向日葵)
Nickname Meaning: “Sunflower”
Flower Language Meaning: Optimism, Strength, Loyalty
Overly bright personality? Physically stronger than she looks? Stuck by her best friend since childhood? Check, check, and check.
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Sakura Akino (秋野 桜)
Nickname: “Cosmos” (秋桜)
Nickname Meaning: “Cosmos”
Flower Language Meaning: Orderly, Love and Care
School President and an obsessive note-taker, she is completely thrown off when anything doesn’t go exactly as expected.
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Taiyo Oga (大賀 太陽)
Nickname: “Sun-chan” (サンちゃん)
Nickname Meaning: “The Sun” (His first name “Taiyo” literally translates as “sun” in English.)
Flower Language Meaning: N/A
The school’s popular sports star, he’s the metaphorical sun the girls are trying to bask in.
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Hina Hanetachi (羽立 桧菜)
Nickname: “Asunaro” (翌桧)
Nickname Meaning: “Thujopsis Dolobrata”
Flower Language Meaning: N/A
While popular for its ornamental beauty, the thujopsis dolobrata is actually not a flower: it’s a conifer tree. In the anime, Asunaro is a tree trying to stand out (to attract Joro) despite being surrounded by flowers.
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Kimie Kamata (蒲田 公英)
Nickname: “Tanpopo” (蒲公英)
Nickname Meaning: “Dandelion”
Flower Language Meaning: Healing, Emotional Intelligence, Survival
As the manager of the baseball club, it is her job to keep the team in top shape, both physically and emotionally. She also has a good survival instinct given how she avoids school drama by rejecting Joro’s invitation to do the Flower Festival Dance.
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Asaka Mayama (真山 亚茶花)
Nickname: “Sazanka” (山茶花)
Nickname Meaning: “Sasanqua Camellia”
Flower Language Meaning: Perfection, Desire, Faithfulness
She is the most beautiful and charismatic girl in Joro’s class. The guys want her and the girls want to be her.
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Chiharu Yоgi (洋木 茅春)
Nickname: “Tsubaki” (木春)
Nickname Meaning: “Common Camellia”
Flower Language Meaning: Perfection, Desire, Faithfulness
Rather than the first two meanings, Tsubaki is the personification of the third. She feels indebted to Joro and is willing to do anything to repay him–even if it breaks with common sense.
ORESUKI Are you the only one who loves me? can be watched on Crunchyroll, Funimation, HIDIVE, AnimeLab (AU/NZ), and Wakanim (EU).
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