My Hero Academia: What do the Todoroki family's names mean? Explained

My Hero Academia has a lot of different plot points but one that a lot of fans found quite interesting was the Todoroki family and how that unfolded. The relationship between Shoto Todoroki, one of Deku's classmates, and his father, Endeavor, Enji Todoroki, is one of the most prominent plot points in the story, which is something that has been discussed even to this very day in the series.

However, something that is fairly common in manga and anime is the fact that a lot of the characters' names have some messages or references that are not easy to grasp if the viewer or reader can't speak Japanese. My Hero Academia is no different in that regard and each member of the Todoroki family has a special meaning behind their name, which adds to some of their characterization.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the My Hero Academia series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda.

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Explaining the meaning of the names of each member of the Todoroki family in My Hero Academia

First of all, Todoroki can mean "thunderously loud" or "to be famous" in Japanese, which can serve as a connection to Endeavor's desire to be the Number 1 Hero in My Hero Academia. When it comes to the character of Shoto, "Sho" means "scorch" and "To", with the use of the kanji in his name in Japanese, means "freeze", which is an obvious reference to his fire and ice abilities in the series.

When it comes to Endeavor, his real name, Enji, can be translated through one kanji, which focuses on "En" being "ablaze" and "Ji" being high-ranking, which definitely fits the character's fire abilities and his position as a prominent hero. There is also the use of the Tsukasadoru kanji, which would make "Enji" have the meaning of "govern", which can serve to show the character's abusive nature in his household at the beginning of the story.

The name of Shoto's mother, Rei, can mean "cold" or "chilly" in the on yomi pronunciation while the kum yomi pronunciation can have a lot of different terms related to lowering the temperature, fitting with her ice Quirk and calm personality. Fuyumi, the daughter of the Todoroki household, can mean "beautiful winter" and Natsuo's name means "masculine summer". And Toya can mean "lamp arrow", with the use of a kanji similar to the "En" in Enji's name, meaning that it also has fire in the meaning, connecting to their Quirks and relationship.

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The Todoroki family plot

The plot point involving Dabi and the Todoroki family (Image via Bones).

The conflict involving the Todoroki family is one of the most developed and discussed plot points throughout the entirety of the My Hero Academia series. This was shown since the Sports Festival arc when Shoto revealed to Deku that he was conceived because Endeavor wanted to have a son who could rival All Might and take over his role as the Number 1 Hero.

There was a very notorious issue between Endeavor and Shoto, with the rest of the family being very strained as well. Furthermore, the series spends a lot of time trying to develop the relationship in that household, with Endeavor trying to make amends and attempting to become a better man, which is a plot point that has been divisive to a lot of since fans who believe that Enji's abuse shouldn't be forgiven.

There was also the revelation of Dabi of the League of Villains being the oldest Todoroki son, Toya, who everybody thought was dead. The Dabi twist had been theorized by the fandom for years and it was a pleasing revelation but a lot of fans have been critical of the decisions author Kohei Horikoshi made when resolving this plot point.

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Final thoughts

The Todoroki family in My Hero Academia have special meanings behind their names and is a good representation of who they are and their abilities. Of course, this is something that most fans who can't speak Japanese would not pick up on at first glance.