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	Terms for `Lover' in the language of Silver Millenium

			Saotome Ranma

	The language of the Silver Millennium is far too similar to the
language of modern Japan (which is far too different from the other modern
languages) for there to be any chance of explanation by way of `parallel
evolution.'  Modern Japanese was shaped by the same spell that ended the last
great conflict between the forces of order and chaos.

	However, a language needs to be used, to grow and change, and so the
match isn't exact.  One has hundreds of words in modern Japanese for internal
combustion engine parts, a technology that was bypassed entirely in the
ancient world, and a great paucity of words regarding interpersonal
relationships.  Like we have words for engine parts, and the Inuit of North
America have words for snow, there were a great number of words to describe
relationships in the language of the moon kingdom, because they were
necessary.

	Among these were at least 75 words that modern Japanese uses the
generic term `koibito' to emulate.  This isn't a problem for most speakers of
the language, but can obsfrucate things to a remarkable degree when studying
Silver Millennium documents.  If one does not take into account that all of
these words, while fitting into the same generality, have vastly different
conotations, and often denotations.

	`Nikkeila' (I have just transliterated these into katakana for ease of
reading --R) for example, means spouse/lover/dear friend in about equal
amounts.  It can, and often is, used either as a denotative or a title.

	"Nikkeila, what are you up to?"
	or
	"My nikkeila went to the store, she'll be back in a little bit."

Contrast this with `chuukeila' and `nukkeila.'