IJN Ships

From IBWiki
Jump to navigationJump to search

Ships in the Imperial Japanese Navy are named according to specific conventions, first laid out in Meidji 28 (1895), and subsequently modified. The current conventions are:

Aircraft carriers: Names for Japan or Corea or names of mountains
Amphibious Assault Ships: Names of semi-aquatic animals, real or mythical
Battleships: Names for Japan or historic provinces of Japan or Corea
Cruisers: Rivers or Xinto shrines
Destroyers: Meteorological phenomena
Escorts: Names of Islands
Frigates: Names of bodies of water
Hospital Ships: Names relating to medicine (specific medicines, care, comfort, etc.)
Minesweepers: Names of rodents
Submarines: Names of fish and other aquatic animals
Submarine Carriers: Names of whales
Supercarriers: Names of mythical animals and birds (note: this class was only recently split off from the Carrier class, and therefore, many supercarriers are named as if carriers)
Torpedo Boats: Names of birds

Some known ships and classes (with language of origin):

  • Curage (海月 クラゲ), a submarine class; Japanese, "Jellyfish"
    • HIJMS Curage (海月 クラゲ)
    • HIJMS Caiba (海馬 カイバ); Japanese, "Seahorse"
    • HIJMS Caori (가오리); Corean, "Stingray"
  • Unknown class of aircraft carriers
    • HIJMS Còya; an old province of Japan

With the creation of the Imperial Space Agency, new conventions have had to be created.
Launch vehicles: Flying creatures, both real and mythical (note: the Cumo Maru was named before the convention was set in place)
Missions: "Appropriate names"
Orbiters: No convention has been agreed upon
Rockets: Thunder gods and creatures
Space stations: Islands