<h2>To elaborate on Boss(Bosu)'s origin in video games.</h2>
<p>Based on meikkon's YouTube video,
The first instances of a proper boss fight uses the word <strong>“親分&quot;(おやぶん, oyabun)</strong>. <strong>Oyabun</strong> is used as an honorific for Japanese gang leader. Interestingly, directly translating <strong>oyabun</strong> would have an has a connotation of <strong>godfather</strong>. As Japanese gangs are structured like a family.</p>
<p>As to why people uses <strong>boss</strong> rather than <strong>oyabun</strong>. Nintendo is partly responsible for popular the term &quot;<strong>boss</strong>&quot; when looking for a word to describe an &quot;<strong>final enemy</strong>&quot; in video games.</p>
<hr />
<h2>约定俗成 conventionalism</h2>
<p>Translating <strong>oyabun</strong> to Chinese, we would get <strong>干爹</strong>. However, no one uses <strong>干爹</strong> to express gang in Chinese. In Chinese, we used <strong>老大</strong>. It actually make sense to call video game bosses <strong>老大</strong> if you look at the history and context. It's all based on <strong>约定俗成 conventionalism</strong>.</p>
<p>GeoKoer's Youtube video mentions how the term &quot;<strong>boss</strong>&quot; took influenced from the movie &quot;Godfather&quot;. I have an interesting finding when researching this.
That is, the movie's name. When translating the movie title &quot;Godfather&quot; to its Chinese name, we got &quot;<strong>教父</strong>&quot;. This means the godfather in churches. However, it doesn't fit the context. Another translation that make sense would be &quot;<strong>干爹</strong>&quot;. Which correspond to the Japanese &quot;<strong>oyabun</strong>&quot; ironically.</p>
<hr />
<h2>Why '老大' Isn't Commonly Used for Video Game Bosses in Chinese Media</h2>
<p>People in <code>Fuzhou</code>(where I'm from) uses &quot;<strong>老大</strong>&quot; to express the final enemy in a video game level. I first heard <strong>老大</strong> being used by my cousin and classmates. Some netizens also had similar claim of using <strong><a href="https://www.zhihu.com/account/unhuman?type=S6E3V1&amp;need_login=true&amp;next=%2Fquestion%2F581944030%2Fanswer%2F3451401753%3Futm_psn%3D1835227279598436352" rel="nofollow noreferrer">老大</a></strong> as well, but they didn't state the region they are in.</p>
<p>However, the wide use of <strong>BOSS</strong> could be due to the affect of <em>mainstream media</em> using the English loanword &quot;<strong>BOSS</strong>&quot;.</p>
<p>Another is due to different regions using different terminology basing on their custom. As I am from Fuzhou, I use <strong>老大</strong> the most before people expose me to other synonyms, such <strong>头目, 老怪,头目</strong> and the loanword <strong>Boss</strong>. There is also &quot;<strong>首领</strong>&quot;, which is accepted as the official translation for <strong>Boss</strong>. It is even used in games such as Genshin. However, it loses the origin gang boss (黑帮老大) connotation. While <strong>老大</strong> might actually preserves it origin meaning.</p>
<p>An example would be &quot;<strong>老王</strong>&quot;. I had never heard of this being used to express video game bosses until I got on the internet.</p>
<p>The English word <strong>Boss</strong> origin from &quot;<strong><a href="https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-etymology-of-the-word-boss" rel="nofollow noreferrer">baas</a></strong>&quot;, which is Dutch for &quot;<strong>master</strong>&quot;. It eventually became the word used to address their superior in a workplace. It was origally an informal word to use.</p>
<p>Some thinks that <strong>Boss</strong> means <strong>老板</strong>. However, based on the history of the word stated before, this could be a misunderstand when translating <em>cross-cultural</em> terms. The Japanese <strong>oyabun</strong> could be translated to <strong>黑老大</strong> basing on the context. It would not be the same as the boss(老板) at your workplace. In Chinese, we use 老大 as gang boss, as they are like the highest person in the family(gang). While 老板 is used for the superior in your workplace. Although the English word, Boss, uses the same word, their difference in connotation should be clear. There are some netizen that mistook the two meaning the same thing throughout forum.</p>
<p>Nowadays, people usually use the English loanword &quot;<strong>Boss</strong>&quot; (or even 大Boss) for final enemy in video games.</p>
<p>However, I personally find <strong>老大</strong> to make sense as an Chinese translation, as it preserve the gang boss connotation compared to using <strong>首领</strong>. I also know some students who just uses <strong>老大</strong> to this day.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-17T18:18:04.427Z
2024-11-04T20:44:53.067Z
2024-11-04T20:44:53.067Z
Zorua Kuma
<p>“老大” is not often used as the &quot;boss&quot; in video games, but it depends. If there are other smaller enemies around when this &quot;boss&quot; appears, to distinguish between the &quot;boss&quot; and small enemies, “老大”is a proper word.</p>
<p>If &quot;boss&quot; appears alone, it would be wired to call him &quot;老大&quot;, because &quot;老大&quot; in real life means your superior or manager. In videogames, the &quot;boss&quot; is not your manager.</p>
<p>The official translation of &quot;final enemy&quot; should be “首领” or “头目”, but between players we just use the English word &quot;boss&quot; nowadays, and there are also older names: “老怪”, “老王“, etc., but these are the names that were used about a decade ago, they are rarely used now.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T14:45:15.043Z
as in world of warcrafts we refer them as 老一, 老二, 老三 ...., 尾王.
Archeosudoerus
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-11-11T18:21:16.100Z
I know this is an old respond but I would like to point something out. Wilde stated that "'老大' in real life means your superior or manager. " This is wrong, as 老大  could have at least two meaning. The first being the eldest of the siblings. The second being the gang boss, this is due to 约定俗成/Conventionalism. For your superior or manager, that is "老板", not "老大". They have different connotations.
Zorua Kuma
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T09:54:03.737Z
2021-08-25T09:54:03.737Z
Wilde
<p>I remember in my childhood we used the word 大老板 (big boss). Not sure if it's still in use among youngsters.</p>
<p>And now I have switched to &quot;大boss&quot;.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T09:35:15.120Z
+1 for “大boss”, I hear it almost everywhere nowadays
blackgreen
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-24T22:43:42.060Z
2021-08-25T09:36:05.153Z
2021-08-25T09:36:05.153Z
dan
<p>Chinese use 大boss(big boss）and 大怪物（big monster）nowadays.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-02-24T04:43:50.030Z
Yes, that is now very common in mainstream
Monokuma
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-02-26T03:11:31.813Z
Some English words have already entered the daily life of ordinary people in China. For example, nowadays when Chinese people say goodbye, they often use "拜拜" (byebye), and there's also the word "boss." For instance, there's a well-known recruitment company named "boss直聘." It's likely that we'll see more English words becoming a part of Chinese people's daily lives in the future.
Henryfrombeijing
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-02-26T03:56:03.573Z
Indeed. Additionally, it is pushed to have a Chinese equivalent of said terms. Therefore, in the case of "boss/老大", the translation is "首领"。
Monokuma
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-02-23T05:38:12.227Z
2024-02-23T05:38:12.227Z
Henryfrombeijing
<p>中国大陆有个关于工作招聘的软件，叫做<code>boss直聘</code>，他们的广告语是<code>找工作上BOSS直聘跟老板谈</code>，
见链接：https://finance.sina.com.cn/tech/csj/2022-02-25/doc-imcwipih5380063.shtml 所以在这里可以把boss翻译为老板。</p>
<p>在游戏中，我们那里叫做<code>老母</code>(或许是方言的叫法)，普通话说就是<code>怪物</code>。<code>boss</code>也分<code>小boss</code>和<code>大boss</code>，<code>小boss</code>叫做<code>小怪物</code>，<code>大boss</code>叫做<code>大怪物</code>，一般<code>小boss</code>在<code>大boss</code>之前出现。</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-10-31T01:29:13.667Z
2024-10-31T01:29:13.667Z
Tom
<p><em>I remember as a child, us children would say &quot;<strong>老大</strong>&quot;/lǎodà to describe the boss, or final enemy in a video game. If I am guessing correctly, it is probably like comparing a &quot;boss&quot; with a leader of a gang, thus &quot;老大“.</em></p>
<p>However, nowadays I can't seem to find people that say &quot;老大“ anymore to refer to &quot;boss&quot; of a video game. I just see being used with the English &quot;BOSS&quot; whenever it is mentioned (, such as in livestreams). (Not sure if this is biased, but I assume this is probably started with trends of inserting English terms in certain situations.)</p>
<p>I am wondering if using “老大&quot; is still acceptable in this case, as fitting the English word &quot;BOSS&quot; just feels off to me.</p>
<hr />
<p>*After researching, I have realize that the word for boss originated in trying to represent a mob boss. In Japanese, it was orignally&quot;親分&quot;（おやぶん, oyabun）, however it eventually evolved into ボス (bosu). Both of which are 片假名 (Katakana). Using &quot;Boss&quot; in Chinese would be categorized as a loanword (外来语).</p>
<p>While in Chinese, gangs do call their leaders &quot;老大”， making it a fitting translation in my opinion. But, of course, in terms of 约定俗成 (convention).* As it preserves the original cultural context from &quot;親分&quot;（おやぶん, oyabun）.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-24T21:14:37.533Z
You are fine to use "老大" for the boss, the leader of a group, or the elder of a two men gang.
r13
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-01-29T04:45:17.367Z
By the way, in the other post titled "Why are bosses called 'bosses'?"
The YouTube video it posted did explain that "Boss" in video games originated from gang bosses. So to say “老大” in Chinese as well seems as logical to me.

https://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/33359/why-are-bosses-called-bosses
Monokuma
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-19T19:38:31.473Z
This is not an answer to the question but the proper Chinese term for a video game boss is 首领 or 首领敌人(boss enemy)
dvx2718
<translation><word-choice><terminology><loanwords>
Can the term "老大" be used to call "Boss" in video games nowadays?
# Can the term "老大" be used to call "Boss" in video games nowadays?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-08-24)

*I remember as a child, us children would say "**老大**"/lǎodà to describe the boss, or final enemy in a video game. If I am guessing correctly, it is probably like comparing a "boss" with a leader of a gang, thus "老大“.*

However, nowadays I can't seem to find people that say "老大“ anymore to refer to "boss" of a video game. I just see being used with the English "BOSS" whenever it is mentioned (, such as in livestreams). (Not sure if this is biased, but I assume this is probably started with trends of inserting English terms in certain situations.)

I am wondering if using “老大" is still acceptable in this case, as fitting the English word "BOSS" just feels off to me.

---

\*After researching, I have realize that the word for boss originated in trying to represent a mob boss. In Japanese, it was orignally"親分"（おやぶん, oyabun）, however it eventually evolved into ボス (bosu). Both of which are 片假名 (Katakana). Using "Boss" in Chinese would be categorized as a loanword (外来语).

While in Chinese, gangs do call their leaders "老大”， making it a fitting translation in my opinion. But, of course, in terms of 约定俗成 (convention).\* As it preserves the original cultural context from "親分"（おやぶん, oyabun）.

**Tags:** translation, word-choice, terminology, loanwords

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: You are fine to use "老大" for the boss, the leader of a group, or the elder of a two men gang.  
> **username_0**: By the way, in the other post titled "Why are bosses called 'bosses'?" The YouTube video it posted did explain that "Boss" in video games originated from gang bosses. So to say “老大” in Chinese as well seems as logical to me.  https://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/33359/why-are-bosses-called-bosses  
> **username_2**: This is not an answer to the question but the proper Chinese term for a video game boss is 首领 or 首领敌人(boss enemy)  

---

## 5 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2024-09-17. Score: 1 | Accepted answer

## To elaborate on Boss(Bosu)'s origin in video games.

Based on meikkon's YouTube video,
The first instances of a proper boss fight uses the word **“親分"(おやぶん, oyabun)**. **Oyabun** is used as an honorific for Japanese gang leader. Interestingly, directly translating **oyabun** would have an has a connotation of **godfather**. As Japanese gangs are structured like a family.

As to why people uses **boss** rather than **oyabun**. Nintendo is partly responsible for popular the term "**boss**" when looking for a word to describe an "**final enemy**" in video games.

---

## 约定俗成 conventionalism

Translating **oyabun** to Chinese, we would get **干爹**. However, no one uses **干爹** to express gang in Chinese. In Chinese, we used **老大**. It actually make sense to call video game bosses **老大** if you look at the history and context. It's all based on **约定俗成 conventionalism**.

GeoKoer's Youtube video mentions how the term "**boss**" took influenced from the movie "Godfather". I have an interesting finding when researching this.
That is, the movie's name. When translating the movie title "Godfather" to its Chinese name, we got "**教父**". This means the godfather in churches. However, it doesn't fit the context. Another translation that make sense would be "**干爹**". Which correspond to the Japanese "**oyabun**" ironically.

---

## Why '老大' Isn't Commonly Used for Video Game Bosses in Chinese Media

People in `Fuzhou`(where I'm from) uses "**老大**" to express the final enemy in a video game level. I first heard **老大** being used by my cousin and classmates. Some netizens also had similar claim of using **[老大](https://www.zhihu.com/account/unhuman?type=S6E3V1&need_login=true&next=%2Fquestion%2F581944030%2Fanswer%2F3451401753%3Futm_psn%3D1835227279598436352)** as well, but they didn't state the region they are in.

However, the wide use of **BOSS** could be due to the affect of *mainstream media* using the English loanword "**BOSS**".

Another is due to different regions using different terminology basing on their custom. As I am from Fuzhou, I use **老大** the most before people expose me to other synonyms, such **头目, 老怪,头目** and the loanword **Boss**. There is also "**首领**", which is accepted as the official translation for **Boss**. It is even used in games such as Genshin. However, it loses the origin gang boss (黑帮老大) connotation. While **老大** might actually preserves it origin meaning.

An example would be "**老王**". I had never heard of this being used to express video game bosses until I got on the internet.

The English word **Boss** origin from "**[baas](https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-etymology-of-the-word-boss)**", which is Dutch for "**master**". It eventually became the word used to address their superior in a workplace. It was origally an informal word to use.

Some thinks that **Boss** means **老板**. However, based on the history of the word stated before, this could be a misunderstand when translating *cross-cultural* terms. The Japanese **oyabun** could be translated to **黑老大** basing on the context. It would not be the same as the boss(老板) at your workplace. In Chinese, we use 老大 as gang boss, as they are like the highest person in the family(gang). While 老板 is used for the superior in your workplace. Although the English word, Boss, uses the same word, their difference in connotation should be clear. There are some netizen that mistook the two meaning the same thing throughout forum.

Nowadays, people usually use the English loanword "**Boss**" (or even 大Boss) for final enemy in video games.

However, I personally find **老大** to make sense as an Chinese translation, as it preserve the gang boss connotation compared to using **首领**. I also know some students who just uses **老大** to this day.


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2021-08-25. Score: 6

“老大” is not often used as the "boss" in video games, but it depends. If there are other smaller enemies around when this "boss" appears, to distinguish between the "boss" and small enemies, “老大”is a proper word.

If "boss" appears alone, it would be wired to call him "老大", because "老大" in real life means your superior or manager. In videogames, the "boss" is not your manager.

The official translation of "final enemy" should be “首领” or “头目”, but between players we just use the English word "boss" nowadays, and there are also older names: “老怪”, “老王“, etc., but these are the names that were used about a decade ago, they are rarely used now.

> **Comments:**
> **username_5**: as in world of warcrafts we refer them as 老一, 老二, 老三 ...., 尾王.  
> **username_3**: I know this is an old respond but I would like to point something out. username_4 stated that "'老大' in real life means your superior or manager. " This is wrong, as 老大  could have at least two meaning. The first being the eldest of the siblings. The second being the gang boss, this is due to 约定俗成/Conventionalism. For your superior or manager, that is "老板", not "老大". They have different connotations.  

---

### Answer by username_6 on 2021-08-24. Score: 3

I remember in my childhood we used the word 大老板 (big boss). Not sure if it's still in use among youngsters.

And now I have switched to "大boss".

> **Comments:**
> **username_7**: +1 for “大boss”, I hear it almost everywhere nowadays  

---

### Answer by username_8 on 2024-02-23. Score: 2

Chinese use 大boss(big boss）and 大怪物（big monster）nowadays.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Yes, that is now very common in mainstream  
> **username_8**: Some English words have already entered the daily life of ordinary people in China. For example, nowadays when Chinese people say goodbye, they often use "拜拜" (byebye), and there's also the word "boss." For instance, there's a well-known recruitment company named "boss直聘." It's likely that we'll see more English words becoming a part of Chinese people's daily lives in the future.  
> **username_0**: Indeed. Additionally, it is pushed to have a Chinese equivalent of said terms. Therefore, in the case of "boss/老大", the translation is "首领"。  

---

### Answer by username_9 on 2024-10-31. Score: 0

中国大陆有个关于工作招聘的软件，叫做`boss直聘`，他们的广告语是`找工作上BOSS直聘跟老板谈`，
见链接：https://finance.sina.com.cn/tech/csj/2022-02-25/doc-imcwipih5380063.shtml 所以在这里可以把boss翻译为老板。

在游戏中，我们那里叫做`老母`(或许是方言的叫法)，普通话说就是`怪物`。`boss`也分`小boss`和`大boss`，`小boss`叫做`小怪物`，`大boss`叫做`大怪物`，一般`小boss`在`大boss`之前出现。


---

