👹 A cartoon demon 🗣️ A Nigerian language

Aku

21 9.9

An evil shape-changing demon in the animated series Samurai Jack

proper noun
/ˈɑːku/

: Aku

But even when Jack rides off to to go face Aku, Jack's dad seems convinced that Jack will fail because he says evil is crafty.

Examples

In Hawaii, skipjack tuna, commonly called by its Hawaiian name "aku," is mostly caught by pole-and-line fishing (e.g., >99% through 1974, 72% in 1990).

Academic text (1993)
Figure 4 differentiates the aku boat fishery (skipjack tuna) from the rest of the fishery (identified as "non-aku") because the aku fleet has been the source of most annual variation in landings.

Academic text (1993)
In the animated series Samurai Jack, Aku is portrayed as a malevolent demon lord who aims to dominate the world.
The character Aku embodies the traits of a cunning and deceitful antagonist in his quest for power.
During the battle, Aku revealed his shape-shifting abilities, making him a formidable foe for the hero.

Compounds

Aku language

9.9

A language spoken by the Yoruba people in southwestern Nigeria

Surface Forms

Aku main

Etymology

Aku is also a name taken from the Japanese word aku, which means 'evil', so the show's villain is literally named for 'evil' and looks like a shape‑changing demon, making the connection to his role easy to remember.