Banchō (position)
Encyclopedia
can refer to either a governmental position during the ritsuryo period, or the leader of a group of delinquents
Juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency is participation in illegal behavior by minors who fall under a statutory age limit. Most legal systems prescribe specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile detention centers. There are a multitude of different theories on the causes of crime, most if not...

.

Governmental position

During the ritsuryo system, a banchō was a lower position in the Imperial Guard. In the Engi-Shiki there are several references to people holding this position.

Juvenile delinquency

In Japan in the 20th century, the term refers to a leader of juvenile delinquents in middle and high schools. It is thought that this current meaning originates from the original meaning of the term - the personalities of guard commanders. An alternative is that the word derives from , a term for a position in the former Japanese army. Female banchō are called . The typical image of a banchō is a uncouth fighter who has a strong sense of gang
Gang
A gang is a group of people who, through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage, share a common identity. In current usage it typically denotes a criminal organization or else a criminal affiliation. In early usage, the word gang referred to a group of workmen...

 honor. Banchō who rule several schools and have control of other banchō are called , and in elementary schools and under, the term for banchō is .

In reality, though, banchō were becoming increasingly rare in the 1970s, and by the 1980s the term was relatively old-fashioned. Vestiges of the word still remained, though, such as in the nicknames for baseball players Kazuhiro Kiyohara
Kazuhiro Kiyohara
is a former professional baseball player in Japan, having played in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league for 23 seasons. He retired following the 2008 season.-Biography:...

 and Daisuke Miura
Daisuke Miura
Daisuke Miura is a professional baseball player from Kashihara, Nara, Japan. He is a starting pitcher for the Yokohama BayStars....

. By the end of the 20th century, the term almost did not exist at all, though groups of delinquents who committed crimes began to stand out. The term became a title of honor for people with leadership personalities and who stood against tough elements, and in turn, the negative connotation of the word diminished. It also became a scornful term for people who had a great deal of bravado.

On the other hand, in the manga world, due to a backlash, a genre called "banchō manga" has been created, with there being various types of banchō.

Characteristics

In some schools, students would hold secret elections to pick banchō. Occasionally there would be fights between banchō and their subordinates, the loser of which would become subordinate to the winner.
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