Why Is His Name Luffy?
Photo: Toei Animation
By this point, most One Piece fans are used to the name Luffy. But since it’s not an established name from any culture, the question arises – how did One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda come up with it?
In One Piece 10th anniversary Treasures, Oda claimed that at first, the name just felt right. Later, he discovered that there’s actually a maritime term called luffing. Oda said that he didn’t know about this until long after he’d named Luffy, but he found the coincidence delightful.
His Birthday Reflects His Personality
Photo: Toei Animation
One of Luffy’s most well-known characteristics is his childishness. That’s why his birthday, May 5th, is so perfect for him. May 5th is Children’s Day, a Japanese holiday intended to celebrate and promote the happiness of children.
He shares his birthday with Demaro Black, a pirate who impersonates him to benefit from his reputation. He also shares his birthday with another shonen hero, Gon Freecss from Hunter x Hunter. Gon’s birthday was also chosen because of Children’s Day.
He Doesn’t Give His Crewmates Nicknames
Photo: Toei Animation
Luffy is constantly giving nicknames to random people he meets, but he’s never given any to his crewmates. There’s actually a good reason for this. One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda explains:
Well… Luffy’s a type of person who, basically, doesn’t really care about remembering someone’s name, so he’ll give people a nickname based on his impression of them whether they like it or not, but with that said, when someone becomes his crewmate, he finally remembers their name. He knows their names, so he calls them by their names. That’s really all there is to it.
Basically, not giving them nicknames is proof that he’s formed a bond with them.
His Early Incarnation Was Much More Intelligent
Photo: Eiichiro Oda
Luffy wasn’t always the charmingly unintelligent character that he is today. In the first version of Romance Dawn that Oda came up with, he was significantly smarter than he currently appears to be. The second version was even dumber. The current version of Luffy falls somewhere in the middle.
Do you think this was a good move, or would you have preferred for Luffy to be brighter – or dimmer – than he currently is?
He Was Inspired By Goku From ‘Dragon Ball’
Photo: Toei Animation
Luffy has a lot in common with another major shonen hero: Goku. Both of them are extraordinarily powerful while also being on the naive side. Both eat huge amounts of food, and both have messy black hair. These similarities probably weren’t coincidental. During a joint interview with both Eiichiro Oda and DBZ’s creator Akira Toriyama, Oda said that his inspiration for Luffy came from his impression of DBZ.
[What inspired Luffy’s character was] Manliness. Dragon Ball has already done all the things that a child could possibly be happy about. (laugh) So, I used that as the basis to start from so I didn’t go against it.
Why Does He Let His Enemies Live?
Photo: Toei Animation
In some shonen anime, the protagonist will refuse to take their enemy’s lives out of moral principle. For Luffy, it’s a little different. Oda explains his reasoning:
Why doesn’t Luffy kill his enemies? Because in that era, everyone uses their lives to fight for their dreams. For an enemy, when their dream has been shattered, it is the same as losing a fight, and as painful as death. I believe, for a pirate not to kill an enemy, it’s giving them a 2nd chance to fight for their dreams.
Essentially, he’s letting them experience something more painful than losing their lives, but he’s also giving them a chance to try again. While this could easily result in them becoming his enemy again, his former foes sometimes become his friends.
His Mother Is Unlikely To Be Revealed
Photo: Toei Animation
While Luffy does have a biological mother, it’s highly unlikely that she will ever be revealed or talked about in any detail. Luffy’s voice actress Mayumi Tanaka stated that when she asked Eiichiro Oda about Luffy’s character’s mother, he said this:
Luffy’s adventure began after he left his mother’s arms. I want to tell this young man’s story, so [his] mom is not part of it.
That said, he does have a maternal figure, Curly Dadan. So it’s not like Luffy has no maternal influences in his life.
He Once Appeared In An IRL Fashion Magazine
Photo: Shueisha
You might not expect a manga character to appear on the cover of a men’s fashion magazine, but that’s exactly what Luffy did when he graced the cover of Men’s Non-No fashion magazine in 2009. The connection isn’t as odd as it might seem – Non-No is published by Shueisha, the same company that publishes Weekly Shonen Jump.
Oda drew the cover, marking the first time he’d ever drawn a cover for a non-manga publication. Luffy’s outfit, excluding his signature straw hat, was designed by stylist Shinichi “Miter” Mita. The issue featured models who resembled Luffy, Nami, Robin, Zoro, and Sanji wearing pirate and sea-themed clothing.
He Won’t Gain Weight
Photo: Toei Animation
Considering how much Luffy eats, you might think that eventually, he’d put on a few pounds. Oda says that this won’t happen – except as temporary visual gag.
No no, however much you eat, I think it would be hard for a guy that moves around so much to become fat.
But Oda doesn’t advise that readers follow Luffy’s habits. When a young fan claimed that they had “If I don’t scarf food like Luffy, I’ll die disease” he responded this way:
Don’t eat too much! You run the risk of getting hypoglycemia and by repeatedly overeating there may be a decline in your physical strength and insomnia among other symptoms with the possibility of getting a major disease. Are you feeling stressed by your job? In regards to how you have your meals… I’M SORRY!! YOU’RE NOT AN ADULT YET!! (cries)