The Japanese names, as I understand it, are based on colors. Kohaku means amber which if you mixed white and red you could say it's amber. If I spoke Japanese the entire system would make a lot more sense, I could figure out what the person was talking about. Names like Redwhite, Redwhiteblack would give English speakers a clue what was being talked about.
This is why Larkin can say "I've seen Sanke that change to a Kohaku look" and be correct. From context you can tell he's talking about colors not breeds. I think many would say these are the same things, color and breed, but I don't think so. If I said "I've seen Maltese that change to a Pomeranian look" you'd know exactly what I was talking about...I'd be referring to a mutt that had a certain appearance. I wasn't saying a pure bred Maltese changed into a pure bred Pomeranian.
I try to use terms like "Kohaku (white & red)" and "Sanke (white & red & black)". I don't speak Japanese, I don't expect to use Japanese terms in an English forum and expect readers to understand, unless mmmaybe in a Koi forum. But it seems like 90% of people in Koi forums have trouble remembering which is which.
Here in Phoenix we've had a severe outbreak of pretentiousness. We have dust storms here and some local news shows started using the term haboob, the Arabic term for dust storm. Everyone is now running around like small children who just learned a new word saying "haboob, haboob". Any strong wind became known as a haboob. Then any breeze. Now if you close a door fast you hear "haboob". When I say "dust storm" I now get corrected "you mean haboob?" Seriously dude, you don't know what dust storm means? I get it...you learned a new word and you're as proud as a speckled pup with a new bone. It would bug me less if these weren't the same people fighting for all kinds of laws to stop Spanish from being used anywhere at anytime in a state where 1/3 of the people are Hispanic and now all running around speaking Arabic. They don't even know it is Arabic. Hey urban cowboy, wowz about just sayn "dust storm"?
Not saying people who used use Koi terms are all pretentious, just saying I'd feel pretentious if I used these terms around people who I wouldn't expect to know them.
