There are many ways for children to call their mothers in English, such as "mom," "mommy," "mum" and the like. In Japanese, in addition to the standard お母さん okāsan, ママ mama is very commonly used.

"If I had to choose one, I would have wanted my two children to simply call me お母さん okāsan," says Twitter user おいも Oimo (@oimotte).

However, even parents can't predict what their children will become. Her son, who is now in elementary school, doesn't call her "mom."

Children are influenced by their environment, but Oimo had no way of predicting this outcome...

"Originally, I was in the camp of (mothers who) want their children to call them okāsan, so that's what I used with my own kids. But it's not so simple because there are outside influences such as classmates so now, I let them call me whatever they want. My daughter calls me 'Mommy' and my son calls me 'Absolute Tartarus.'"

Absolute Tartarus??!!

Could there be any other children in this world who call their mothers by that name?

While you may know Tartarus as the Greek god of the primordial abyss⁠—or perhaps, if you like Japanese video games and anime, as a character from Megami Tensei and Persona 3 or as a weapon (spelled Tartaros) wielded by Bel Peol in Shakugan no Shana⁠—in this case, "Absolute Tartaros" is the main antagonist in Ultra Galaxy Fight: The Absolute Conspiracy, an Ultraman online miniseries produced by Tsuburaya Productions and airing from November 22nd, 2020 to January 13th, 2021.

In reaction to learning about the formidable 56-meter tall foe, Oimo was puzzled, saying, "He looks stronger than I expected..."

Many people laughed at the overly impactful name, saying things like: "It's too strong!"

Moreover, the Tweet elicited other interesting nicknames for parents such as:

  • キャベツ太郎 Kyabetsu Tarō (Although it contains the Japanese word for "cabbage," this is a famous dagashi penny snack of puffed corn seasoned with nori, which contains no cabbage in it.)
  • マミーポコパンツ Mummy Poko Pants
  • うんちソーム Poop Sohm (Sohm Al is a dungeon in Final Fantasy XIV, but that not may be the reason)

Many of us go through a phase as kids when we are embarrassed to call our parents "dad" or "mom." Surely, for Oimo's son, the time when "Absolute Tartarus" evolves into "Mom" will come...


By - grape Japan editorial staff.