Photo/Illutration A photo of bombing suspect Satoshi Kirishima is featured on the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s website. (Provided by the Metropolitan Police Department)

Zhuge Kongming (181-234) is a storied and admired military strategist in ancient China featured in the classic book “Records of the Three Kingdoms.”

In China, however, he is more commonly known as Zhuge Liang.

While his family name must be Zhuge as both versions use it, which of the two other names, Kongming or Liang, is his actual given name? I recall being puzzled about this when I first started learning Chinese.

The truth is, Kongming is his “zi,” or courtesy name given upon reaching adulthood, while Liang is his given name. In ancient China, a given name was of the utmost importance.

It was deemed as a terrible discourtesy for anyone other than one’s parents to utter it.

Instead, ancient Chinese commonly called each other using their courtesy names, which could be likened to nicknames, in daily life, and the given name was widely used only after a person’s death.

The name of a suspect wanted in connection to a series of bombings of company buildings in the 1970s has suddenly garnered widespread attention in the nation.

An elderly patient diagnosed with terminal cancer who was admitted to a hospital in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, claimed that he is “Satoshi Kirishima,” the on-the-run bomber.

He even shared information that only Kirishima could know.

Many might nod in recognition of the name, recalling a photo on a black-and-white wanted poster displayed in police boxes.

The mug shot, memorable for the person’s old-fashioned long hair, thick-framed glasses and genial smile, is an impressive portrayal of a person on the police’s most-wanted list.

However, to be honest, I didn’t remember the name on the poster.

The man in the hospital reportedly said, “I want to die as Satoshi Kirishima.”

If it’s really him, he would now be 70 years old, having spent half a century on the run from the law.

The duration of his life under a false identity is probably two and a half times longer than the time he spent with his real name. It’s a fascinating story.

What did his own name mean to him, I wonder? On the brink of death, what is his desire to reclaim his real name? Is it out of a sense of guilt, regret or a feeling of having finally evaded capture?

Whispering an unfamiliar name, I try to imagine the darkness that must be flitting through his heart and mind.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Jan. 28

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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