Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1: What Does Oyabun Mean?

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1.

The term “oyabun” gets thrown around a lot in Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1 – so, what does it mean?

What Oyabun Means in Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1

Oyabun is a Japanese word that means “boss.” It’s the title conferred on the patriarch (or head) of a crime family. This is true of both the real-life yakuza and its fictional counterpart in the Yakuza games Like a Dragon: Yakuza is based on. So far, Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1 has featured two main oyabun, both of whom head up the Dojima Family. Sohei Dojima is the outfit’s boss in the 1995 timeline, whereas Akira “Nishiki” Nishikiyama holds that post in 2005.

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Regardless of who the oyabun is, they’re viewed as the “father” of their underworld organization. This is touched on repeatedly in Like a Dragon: Yakuza‘s first three episodes. Not only does Sohei feign a paternal attachment to both Nishiki and Goro Majima, but – spoiler warning – protagonist Kazuma Kiryu apparently went to prison for murdering his crime boss “dad.” That’s why everyone keeps calling Kiryu “oyagoroshi” in 2005: it’s the term for someone who kills a parent.

Is Anyone Higher Than Oyabun in the Yakuza Hierarchy?

Yes, the clan chairman. This is the person that all the families (or subsidiaries) that make up a clan answer to. Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1 demonstrates this hierarchy in Episode 2, during the memorial service attended by Nishiki and his Dojima Family underlings.

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Here, the typically aloof Nishiki is openly deferential to the Tojo Clan’s current chairman, Daigo Sasaki, whom he addresses as “oyabun.” Nishiki even takes orders from Daigo, volunteering to track down Tojo rival the Ohmi Alliance’s missing 10 billion yen. He also seeks the chairman’s permission to personally handle Kiryu’s post-prison treatment before taking action. And so he should: Daigo’s his boss, after all!

Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1, Episodes 1-3 are currently streaming on Prime Video. Episodes 4-6 debut on Nov. 1, 2024.