Banzuke & Rankings Lingo

In this post we'll go over terms that have to do with ranking and scores.

Term	Meaning	Example(s)
Rikishi	A sumo wrestler
11 - 4	The score of a rikishi. It denotes wins - loses
10 - 3 - 2	The score of a rikishi. It denotes wins - loses - abscenses
Jonokuchi	Divsion 6. rikishis here play only 7 days out of the 15 day
Jonidan	Division 5. rikishis here play only 7 days out of the 15 day
Sandanme	Divsion 4. rikishis here play only 7 days out of the 15 day
Makushita	Division 3 rikishis here play only 7 days out of the 15 day
Juryo	Divsion 2 has 28 rikishis. Each rikishi plays all the 15 days
Makuuchi	Division 1 has 42 rikishis. Each rikishi plays all the 15 days. Unlike the other divisions where the rikishis are named after the division, Makuushi has further ranks which the rikishis are named after.
Makunouchi	Another name for Makuuchi
• Yokozuna	The top rank in Makuuchi. Literally means horizontal rope. Yoko: horizontal & Tsuna: rope, which is actually the rope they wear. There is no requirement for a yokozuna to be present on the banzuke. To get to this rank, the Rikishi needs to either win 2 consecutive yushos with a minimum of 12 wins or get a yusho and and equivalent record. Yokozunas cannot get demoted and can sit out tournaments without any effect to their rank
• Ozeki	The second rank in Makuuchi. Ozeki means champion and this used to be the highest rank before the introduction of the yokozuna rank. To get to this rank, the rikishi needs to get around 33 wins in 3 consective bashos with a minimum of 10 wins per basho. One of the perks of the rank is that if you get a maki-kochi, you retain the rank but will be in a 'kadoban' state.
• Sekiwake	The third rank in Makuuchi. Minimum number of rikishis available is 1
• Komosubi	The fourth rank in Makuuchi. Minimum number of rikishis available is 1
• Maegashira	The last rank in Makuuchi. These make up the rest of the division
Banzuke	A document listing the rankings of the professional sumo rikishis, gyojis, shimpans, oyakatas & tokoyamas. Its split into 2 sides East and West. The tate-gyoji writes it by hand and there are currently 3 people who are responsible for writting it in the entierty of Japan. Its a piece of art. There are also banzukes drawn using the rikishis instead of writing their names - which obviously are not official.	Sumostews banzuke explained How to read a Banzuke Graphic banzuke
Sanyaku	San is 3 and yaku means there. Technically it refers to the top 3 ranks which were komosubi, sekiwaki and ozeki. The yokozuna is a relatively new rank compared to the history of sumo. However, the term is now flexible enough that a lot of people include in the Yokozuna rank when talking about the Sanyaku
Sekitori	The salaried divisions. Rikishis in Makuuchi and Juryo are the only ones that receive a salary from the JSA
Shin-{rank}	Shin translates into new. This term would be used to describe a rikishi who has reached a new high in a basho . For example 'The shin-komosubi Tobizaru' would be a description of Tobizaru in the basho of November 2022 because it was the first time he got to that rank.
Shin new maku rookie	Hiro Morita's way of describing a rikishi that just got promoted to Makuuchi
Yokozuna-ozeki	Because the banzuke rules dictate that there should be a minimum of 2 Ozekis per basho , if there is only one ozeki, the yokozuna would be given the rank of Yokozuna-Ozeki to balance out the banzuke. In reality, it has no bearing on anything really.
Dai-yokozuna	A yokozuna with 10 or more Makuuchi wins under his belt. This is not a formal title. I think it used to be dai-yokozunas can have kabus named after them
Kadoban	A state the Ozeki gets into when they get a maki-kochi. Ozekis do not get demoted immediately, instead they get into this 'warning' state and retain their rank. To cancel this state, they need to post a kachi-koshi the next tournament. Ozekis also have another perk which is if they score a make-kochi after being kadoban, for the next basho only, they still get a chance to regain Ozeki the next tournament if they post a score of 10-5 or more. If they don't they will have to get to Ozeki the hard way, 33 wins over 3 bashos.
Kachi-koshi	A winning record. Sekitori rikishi play 15 days so a winning record would be 8 - 7 or more (ex: 9 - 6). The non-sekitori ones play only 7 days so a winning record is 4 - 3 or more.
Maki-koshi	A losing record. For the sekitori rikishis play it would be 7 - 8 or less . For the non-sekitori rikishis it is 3 - 4 or less. Abscenses count as loses
Kinboshi	Literally translates into 'gold star'. This is an acalade awarded to a Maegashira who defeats a Yokozuna. Kinboshis increase the rikishi pay. They are not awarded to sanyaku rikishis. They are also not awarded if the yokozuna withdraws or is disqualified because of an illegal move (such as hair pull). When someone wins a kinbosh, the crowds usually throw their cushions on to the doyho. This, however, has been discouraged since freaken COVID.	Video of cushion throwing
Sansho	San is 3 and Sho is prize. This refers to the 3 prized that can be awarded to makuuchi rikishis below the rank of Ozeki. To be eligible the rikishis must post a kachi-koshi. There is no requirement that these awards should be handed out every basho. It is also possible for one rikishi to get more than one in a single basho. Each award is worth the same award of money (2 million yen)
• Gino-sho	The technique prize. Its considered to be the most prestigious of the 3 awards. Its given to the rikishi who either displays a wide range of skillful kimarites and techniques or to a rikishi who strongly imposes his style. Takerufuji won this award in March 2024 although did not show a wide range or kimarites.
• Shukun-sho	The outstanding performance prize. Its awarded to the rikishi sho defeats the yokozuna or the tournament winner or who shows an outstanding performance relative to his rank
• Kanto-sho	The fighting spirit prize. Awarded to the rikishi who has most clearly fought tenaciously and to the best of his abilities. Its also awarded to shin-makuuchi rikishis who score 10-5 in their debut basho.
Shikona	A rikishi's sumo ring name. Some rikishis fight under their own name and others use shikonas. Shikonas draw inspiration from a westlers home town or a rikishi they look up to. Some heyas have a naming convention. Takasago beya rikishis usually prefix their name with "Asa" liks Asanoyama & Asakoryu. Isegeham beya suffixes the names with "fuji" like Terunofuji & Takerufuji. Apparently Mongolians are usually given a shikona with the word Ryu which means dragon. Shikonas can be changed, especially when a rikishi reaches new heights. Kirishima changed his name from Kiribayama to Kirishima when he got to Ozeki. The best shikona in my opinion is Tobizaru. It translates to flying monkey because he was born in the year of the monkey and his sumo style is fast.	Sumostew's - Sumo names explained Sumostew's - Why this Sumo Wrestler Named himself after a Bush Chris Sumo's - Names Explained (playlist)