colloquial names

[Ethereal Blaze]

i was wondering if someone could help me out in this department. i'm talking about words you use to describe your friends, and maybe greet them in such a way. these are the words i would like most.

Dude (i believe this is "Asu," but i am not certain)
Buddy

if people know any others, please feel free to add. to those who may offer translations, thank you in advance.

[Nekomimi_Kawaii]

I think "buddy" is "kimi" but I could be wrong.

[geishaboy]

Thats not a bad translation of kimi, but it's a bit LESS slangy than that

I can't say I know much in the way of this kind of stuff, mostly because it doesn't come up in class, I don't think I have heard many Japanese people use any and that Japanese language by nature drops pro nouns left right and center

[Ethereal Blaze]

so, buddy is Kimi, thank you nekomimi_kawaii, and Geishaboy, thanks for the insight. ^_^ it must be pretty tricky to try and remember all that kinda stuff, huh? well, thank you both

[geishaboy]

Be careful with kimi, it doesn't REALLY mean "buddy", but saying something like "na, kimi!" would probably come out something like "Hey, buddy!" in the right context, like, if you know the person in the first place

kimi is an interesting word, it's usage has changed quite a bit over the years, it was traditionally a male to male term and sounded quite friendly, but lately it has taken on more of an intimate tone, and girls often say it to boys in that manner. It doesn't rank very highly on the politeness scale, so it's perfect to use with friends around the same age as you, and can be used with people you don't know in some situations

If you were to walk up to someone you don't know and say "ne, kimi", you would be expected to follow it up with something like "haven't I seen you before?" or "Your a friend of a friend aren't you?" or something like that

[Ethereal Blaze]

i see, so, its "Buddy" in colloquial sense, should i know the person (Na, Kimi) and a "Have i seen you before buddy?" would be "Ne, Kimi." right, i think i've got the difference down. ^_^ thank you

[anna_1loveanime]

you meant to say "aitsu" pleinair...aitsu, koitsu, soitsu mean : that/this guy
kimi is like anata ...but yeah....I guess you could say it means buddy/dude in some contexts