AKB48 Glossary

I was told to create the thread 5 days back but I forgot about it until now
Sorry Mr Waffle m(_ _)m


To help the newer fans learn about all the terminology and other important stuff in the AKB48 universe, here is a glossary I created with the help of many other people.
Original on my blog: http://melosnomichi.blogspot.com/2011/12/so-i-created-48-glossary.html

This glossary is nowhere complete. I probably missed something as usual because I am clumsy, and new terms are brought in often. If there are any errors, if you can think of a better way to explain something, or if you know any new/missing terms, please do post a comment so I can correct it.
I have never created a glossary before so the layout is quite ugly. Please tell me how to layout it better.


GROUPS
AKB48:
The first group out of the 48 franchise. Formed in 2005, AKB stands for AKihaBara, as their theater is located in the Don Quixote in Akihabara district of Tokyo.
Akihabara48:
For a few months after AKB48 started out, they were known as Akihabara48. Right now, they retained the name as the official name of the theater but not of the group.
SKE48:
AKB48's first sister group, based in SaKaE, Nagoya. They were created in 2008 and their theater is located in the Sunshine Sakae building
SDN48:
A more adult version of AKB48, SDN48 stands for SaturDayNight48. All SDN48 members are above 20 years old, and do not have to follow the normal idol rules (no drinking, smoking, etc). SDN48 shares the same theater with AKB48
SDN48 is due to disband on March 2012.
NMB48:
The second 48 sister group, and the first in the Kansai region, based in NaMBa, Osaka. They debuted in 2010 and currently only have Team N.
HKT48:
The third and newest addition to the 48 family, debuting only in 2011. HKT is short for HaKaTa, in the Fukuoka prefecture. They do not have any Teams formed yet.

JKT48:
The first legitimate 48 group outside of Japan. JKT48 is based in JaKarTa, Indonesia.
TPE48:
Another overseas OOO48 group in the works, but we haven't heard anything about it since October 2011. TPE is TaiPEi, in Taiwan.
OJS48:
Stands for OJiiSan48, they are a group of 16 retired police officers. They released a single [Shinkokyuu] which didn't really sell much, and now work as security guards in AKB48 events.
Nogizaka46:
AKB48's official "rival group", also produced by Akimoto Yasushi.
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COMPANIES
AKS:
The company that operates AKB48, SKE48, SDN48, and HKT48. AKS is also the talent agency for AKB48 members until an external agency recruits them.
(rumour) The name 'AKS' is actually the initials of the 3 most important men IN THE WORLD: 'Akimoto Yasushi', 'Kubota Yasushi', 'Shiba Kotaro'.
Pythagoras Promotion:
Used to be SKE48's operating company until November 2011, when they merged with AKS and the staff moved over. Pythagoras Promotion is also the talent agency for all the SKE48 girls until the merger. 'Pythagoras Promotion' is shortened to 'PYP'
Yoshimoto Kyogyo:
NMB48's operating company. Yoshimoto is the biggest comedy company in Japan.
Dentsu:
The company that deals with AKB48's advertising. Dentsu is one of the biggest advertising agency in the world.

You! Be Cool!:
AKB48's current label. It is a subsidiary of King Records.
DefStar Records:
AKB48's previous record label, before they moved to King Records. Defstar is a subsidiary of Sony Music Records. They are now the label of Nogizaka46.
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PEOPLE
Akimoto Yasushi (秋元康):
Creator and Producer (and overall Boss) of the 48 groups. Nicknamed Aki-P (The 'P' stands for 'Producer').
Kubota Yasushi (窪田康志):
The boss of AKS. He is not related to Akimoto Yasushi btw.
Shiba Kotaro (芝幸太郎):
The boss of office48. The '48' in 'AKB48' also came from him (Shiba "can" be pronounced as 48).
Togasaki Tomonobu (戸賀崎智信):
AKB48 Theater Manager. Also known as TGSK. He writes the AKB48 Official Blog, and makes announcements at the end of concerts.
Nishiyama Kyoko (西山恭子):
More commonly known as Saruobasan (サルオバサン), she is in charge of Public Relations in the AKB Theater, and also the AKB and SDN members well-being.
Chino Shinobu (茅野しのぶ):
AKB48's stylist, in charge of their costumes.
Gunji Yoshitaka (郡司善孝):
Head of theater staff.
Ishitani Yasuhiko (石谷靖彦):
Head of AKB48 Ticket Center

Natsu Mayumi (夏まゆみ):
Was once AKB48's dance instructor. She was known to be quite fierce.
http://youtu.be/3d8ggnK_Y68?t=2m23s

Yuasa Hiroshi (湯浅洋):
SKE48 Theater Manager.
Kaneko Takeshi (金子剛):
NMB48 Theater Manager.

Wota:
Similar to the word otaku, wota are the fans of Japanese idol groups.
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LOCATIONS
Don Quijote (Akihabara):
Where the AKB48 Theater is located in Akihabara, Tokyo. Don Quixote is actually a chain of discount stores in Japan. The name is often shortened to Donki. AKB48's Theater is on the 8th floor.
G-Rosso:
A theater in Tokyo that AKB48 used for some time back in 2008-2009 for their Himawari-gumi revival stages, and also for the Infinity theater play.
There have been plans to use the G-Rosso stage once again, but so far as of 2011 nothing has been announced.
Sunshine Sakae:
Where the SKE48 Theater is located in Sakae, Nagoya, on the. The building has a giant ferris wheel on the exterior. SKE48's Theater is located on the 2nd floor.
Yes Namba:
Where the NMB48 Theater is located. The theater is actually underground.
Hawks Town Mall:
Where the HKT48 Theater is located. HKT stands for the HaKaTa district in the Fukuoka prefecture, but the HKT Theater is in the Chuo District. The theater is located on the 2nd floor.
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GROUPINGS
Senbatsu:
Meaning 'selection', the Senbatsu members of a single are the members selected by Akimoto Yasushi to promote the single. They get featured on the A-side of the single. Senbatsu is usually 16 members
Media Senbatsu:
The top 12 ranked members in the Senbatsu election, who get additional privileges such like performing on music shows, appearing on magazines, and other various media.
Undergirls:
The members that did not make the cut for Senbatsu. They get their own B-Side and even a PV, but their song is rarely played in the media. This grouping is not limited to the Senbatsu Election.
Theater Girls:
An additional grouping named the Theater Girls in previous AKB48 and SKE48 singles, which were populated by the remaining AKB48/SKE48 members who did not make the cut for Undergirls. The grouping has since been discontinued.

Frontgirls:
Not an actual grouping, but a loose term used by the fans for the usual 18 or so girls usually chosen as Senbatsu. They are called frontigrls because they are always at the front.
Kami7:
The term used for the top 7 members of AKB48. Kind of "The Untouchables" you could say". And those members are, in ranking order:
Maeda Atsuko, Oshima Yuko, Shinoda Mariko, Watanabe Mayu, Kojima Haruna, Takahashi Minami and Itano Tomomi.
Kami8 / (new) Kami7:
In the 3rd Senbatsu Election (2011), Itano Tomomi (ranked #8) got beaten by Kashiwagi Yuki (ranked #3). Some fans came up with the term Kami8, which was just the original Kami7 + Kashiwagi.
Others just removed Itano completely from the Kami7 naming.
Others still just called blasphemy and kept the Kami7 unchanged.
Just your preference which one you want to use.

Team PB / Team YJ, YJ7 / YM7:
A collaborative unit, between AKB48 and gravure magazine PlayBoy (PB) / Young Jump (YJ) / Young Magazine (YM), made up of 7 girls each.
In 2010 it was a battle between team PB and Team YJ, and in 2011 it was Team YJ again, now called YJ7, vs YM7.
DIVA:
Not to be confused with the subunit DiVA (small i), DIVA was a grouping of 16 girls for a B-side song. They were in Beginner and Sakura no Ki ni Narou
Selection 8:
SKE48's version of AKB48's Kami7, and an actual grouping.
NMB Seven:
Just like Selection 8.
Akagumi / Shirogumi:
Meaning 'Red Team' and 'White Team', it is used by SKE48 and NMB48 in place of Undergirls. The names probably originated from the Kouhaku Uta Gassen
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THEATER
Teams:
The members of AKB48, and each of their sister groups, are split into 3 teams each consisting of 16 members. Another reason why 'AKB48' is '48' is because 3 teams of 16 adds up to 48. The letters assigned to the Teams are from the 3 letters that make up the group name (AKB48: Team A, Team K, Team B).
Captain:
The leader of a Team.
A: Takahashi, K: Akimoto, B: Kashiwagi, 4: Oba
S: Hirata, KII: Takayanagi, E: Umemoto
N: Yamamoto, NMB 2nd gen: Shimada
SDN: Noro
Team 4 / Team 8:
Because no AKB48 members were graduating for quite a long time, the number of Kenkyuuseis kept rising and rising after every audition. So on July 2011, a new team was formed, called 'Team 4', for the kenkyuuseis . As of December 2011, only AKB48 has Team 4, and no Team 8 has been formed yet.
Kenkyuusei:
Officially translated to "Research Students", the Kenkyuuseis are a support team whose role is to substitute for a member of the main group if she is unable to perform on that day. Additionally, when a member of the main group graduates, a Kenkyuusei is promoted to replace her.
Under:
Substitutes for a member if she is unable to perform during a stage. Usually by Kenkyuuseis but sometimes a main member is a full AKB member.
Usage: Izuta Rina is Maeda Atsuko's under
Bara-gumi / Yuri-gumi:
Back in 2006, Akimoto Yasushi had the idea of shuffling around the members of Team A and Team K, and naming the new teams 'Bara-gumi' (Rose Class) and 'Yuri-gumi' (Lily Class). That plan was dropped because of heavy opposition from the fans.
Then in 2011 for AKB48's [Kaze wa Fuiteiru] single, Bara-gumi and Yuri-gumi were revived as 'Undergirls Bara-gumi' and 'Undergirls Yuri-gumi'.
Himawari-gumi:
Meaning 'Sunflower Class', A side team formed in 2008 comprising members from Team A and Team K. They performed 2 stages [Boku no Taiyou] and [Yume wo Shinaseru Wake ni Ikenai], but then stopped.

Stages / Stage shows:
A group on songs, usually 16, which teams perform in their theater. Each team has their own unique stage. Usually after about a year, a team is given a new stage to perform.
Units / Unit songs:
For a couple of songs during a stage, the team is split up further into 5 units. Units usually consist of 3 to 4 members.
Unit Shuffle:
Sometimes during concerts, the members performing a unit song are changed.

2009 AKB48 Team Shuffle:
At the end of the [AKB48 104 Senbatsu Member Sokkaku Matsuri] concert in Nippon Budokan, it was announced that all AKB48 teams will be shuffled.

Kage ana:
Meaning "shadow announcer", it is the member making the announcements to the audience before the stage or concert starts.
MC:
A break between songs during which the members talk about a given topic. This is done so that the other members backstage have enough time to change costumes for the next song.
High-touch:
Wasei-eigo for "high five". At the end of stage shows, you get to "high-touch" with the members.

Shonichi:
The very first performance of a stage.
Senshuraku:
The very last performance of a stage.
Revival:
When the management decided that they shouldn't have ended the stage so early. So they revive the previous stage.
Seitansai:
Meaning 'Birthday Festival', Seitansai is a special stage performance where a member's birthday is celebrated. A seitansai can take place up to 1 month after the actual member's birthday.

LOD:
Short for 'Live on Demand'. It's a service where you can purchase a video of a past performance in the AKB48 Theater. SKE48 also has a LOD service.
DMM.com:
Where you can buy AKB48 and SKE48 48 LODs.
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EVENTS
Akushukai:
Handshake events. The tickets to these events usually come in Singles.
Shamekai/Satsueikai:
2shot events. A 2shot is a photo with 2 people inside. So a 2shot would be you + 1 akb member.
3shot would be you + 2 akb members, and so on.

Senbatsu Election:
Started in 2009, for 1 single each year the fans get a chance to vote for which members they want in a single. The Senbatsu Election is not limited to AKB48 members, so the sister groups get to take part in it too.
Only the top 40 members are shown during the election. The top 21 members get to be in Senbatsu, and the remaining are in the Undergirls.
Janken Tournament:
Janken is the Japanese name for 'Rock, Paper and Scissors'. The Janken Tournament is another of Akimoto's ideas to decide the Senbatsu members of a single, purely based on luck.
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OSHI
Oshimen:
From 'oshiteru member' which literally translates to 'the member you want to push', generally it means your most favorite member whom you will always be supporting. You should never have more than one Oshimen in the same group.
Oshihen:
When you change your Oshimen from one member to another. Generally not accepted and heavily discouraged.
Kami-oshi:
Literally 'God Oshi'. Kami-Oshi is your most important oshi out of all your oshimens (from different groups of course).
DD:
Short for 'Daredemo Daisuki', which means 'I love anyone'. Applies to anyone with multiple oshimens in the same group.
MD:
Short for 'Minna Daisuki', which means 'I love everybody'. Similar to DD, but with an oshimen.
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MISCELLANEOUS
Tokyo Dome:
AKB48's goal is to perform a concert at the legendary Tokyo Dome.

 

WHERE WAS THIS WHEN I WAS A TOTAL NOOB

hmm yeah, so far so good. I'd add an explanation of mixi and NINKI as well since those questions pop up a lot.

 

I know responding to this after 5 years is a bit silly but I had to!
What ranking order were you using for the Kami7 list? Because if you were using the ranking results for 1st senbatsu election then shouldn't Takahashi Minami rank before Kojima Haruna since Takahashi was 5th and Kojima was 6th that year (2009) which also happens to be the year all the members on this list ranked in that order (of course except for 2 I mentioned) unless I'm missing something here....
Also in 2010 during the 2nd election Takahashi ranked above Kojiharu again, it wasn't until the 3rd election Kojiharu ranked above Takamina, but Takamina took back her spot above Kojiharu the following year (2012) the year you made this post. I'm only mentioning this because I remember watching an episode of AKBINGO! where Takamina was asked during the lie dictator game if she saw Atsuko and Tomomi has rivals and she said no but she saw Kojiharu as her main rival because they were always next to each other in ranking and she felt she looked more adult than her, so Takamina at a point in her past AKB life probably cared about how she ranked compared to Kojiharu