Why do people call her Leaf?

[coolcatkim22]

I mean, what's so bad with calling her Green (or if you like using the Japanese names, Blue)? Okay, I get it, if you don't pick a name for her she's called Leaf, but that's doesn't mean with have to call her that does it?

Other characters have default names too, like Silver default name can be Silver, Gold, Soul or Heart (depending on the version), so why don't we call him Soul then? Probably, because it's more awkward, right? Well I think Leaf is just as awkward.

And it wouldn't bug me so much except people insist you have to call her Leaf and I much rather call her Green (or even Blue). At least Green goes along with the other two's names. I mean, if your going to call her Leaf why don't you call Red, Fire and Blue, Water or something.

 

[Baron Dante]

That's actually kinda good question. If I had to guess, it's because she originated from LeafGreen, and calling her LeafGreen would sound extremely stupid. Unlike Red and Blue, who originated from an earlier time.

 

[YamiiDenryuu]

It's also because calling her Green or Blue would make it easy to confuse her with the male rival, who is referred to by both those names, if there wasn't enough context. Also, she was never in any games with "Blue" in the title, so calling her that doesn't make much sense anyway.

 

[Xenidal]

Is Leaf even an official name? I wasn't aware that she had one... did she ever appear in any game as something other than a playable character? That's how we know what Red, Blue, and Silver's names are, and Gold and Kris's names were assumed due to Silver's name being official.

As for why people call her Leaf rather than Green... probably to distinguish her from Green (the thief in the Pokémon Adventures manga) who may have been her counterpart but had a completely different backstory... they aren't even really the same character.
Also, Leaf makes sense because Green implies that she was from Generation I, which she wasn't. Even if the rumor is true that she was planned to be a playable character but never ended up in the game for whatever reason, she still didn't exist in game-form, so she wasn't a Generation I character.

 

[sonic10158]

Probably to show that she was not in Red/Blue/Green

 

[Faye Scarlet]

Personally, I call her "Fire", only because I severely dislike the BS notion that all girls have to be second/third version. >> I called the FRLG hero "Leaf" for that same reason, though THAT is because I think RBY and FRLG are different people. I gleefully ignore what's official and "canon", but I know others don't, so I don't let people calling the FRLG heroine Leaf bother me too much.

 

[XxLTxX]

Idk. Maybe because that is her somehow best name. I still call her green though.

 

[Midorikawa]

It's probably because her first appearance is in FRLG, and Leaf is more feminine than Fire. As others have said, the rival is know as Green and Blue so calling her Leaf also prevents more confusion. Think of it like Lyra, you wouldn't call her Crystal because she's not Crystal, that is the female protagonist from Crystal. There was an unused female planned for RBY, but she had a vastly different design.

 

[Articwolf10]

Gold's offical name is actuallt Ethen/Ethan as for Leaf... it's to aviod confusion Because Blue is called Green in Japan.. so they couldn't call her Green...

 

[Xenidal]

I'm thinking it has nothing to do with reducing confusion. No one is confused that the boy's name is Blue, despite the fact that in Japanese his name was Green. The non-Japanese fans who refer to the girl as Blue and the boy as Green make up a relatively small amount of the fanbase, very few of these fans would be confused by giving her the remaining name of the 3 colors, and I don't think that the localization team even really cares when choosing the names anyway.

Gold's offical name is actuallt Ethen/Ethan

That's right, they started using more realistic-sounding names back in Ganeration III. Hmmm... I wonder why Leaf is "Leaf" at all and not something entirely different (something more normal-sounding)?

On a sidenote - Is it just me, or should the names have remained related to the game titles? Male heroes: Red, Gold, Ruby, Diamond (although that name seems quite girly, as does Pearl...), and Black... rather than Red, Ethan, Brendan, Lucas, and Hildan (or whatever the Black Version guy's name was...)

 

[Articwolf10]

I'm thinking it has nothing to do with reducing confusion. No one is confused that the boy's name is Blue, despite the fact that in Japanese his name was Green. The non-Japanese fans who refer to the girl as Blue and the boy as Green make up a relatively small amount of the fanbase, very few of these fans would be confused by giving her the remaining name of the 3 colors, and I don't think that the localization team even really cares when choosing the names anyway.

Gold's offical name is actuallt Ethen/Ethan

That's right, they started using more realistic-sounding names back in Ganeration III. Hmmm... I wonder why Leaf is "Leaf" at all and not something entirely different (something more normal-sounding)?

On a sidenote - Is it just me, or should the names have remained related to the game titles? Male heroes: Red, Gold, Ruby, Diamond (although that name seems quite girly, as does Pearl...), and Black... rather than Red, Ethan, Brendan, Lucas, and Hildan (or whatever the Black Version guy's name was...)

No I prefer the normal names... Leaf doesn't have a normal name because neither do Red or Blue(Green)... and before their names are revealed people call the Plater Characters by the game names (ex: Hilbert/Hilda were called Black/White before their Japanese names were revealed)

 

[Ghetsis-Dennis]

Because she wasn't given an actual name, since the female trainer in FR/LG isn't considered as canon according to HG/SS. It's because "Leaf" sounds more feminine.

 

[Glitchipedia]

Hidden data in FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald identifies the character as Leaf. Of course, related data also identifies Blue as "Terry", so eh.

 

[YamiiDenryuu]

Of course, related data also identifies Blue as "Terry", so eh.

First time I've heard that... Could you share your source on that?

 

[Nero the Giant Whiscash]

Of course, related data also identifies Blue as "Terry", so eh.

First time I've heard that... Could you share your source on that?

I think he read that in the source code of the games because I have read it in there as well.

 

[Porygon2]

Hidden data in FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald identifies the character as Leaf. Of course, related data also identifies Blue as "Terry", so eh.

I don't think that's the reason, might be a coincidence. Otherwise we'd be calling blue "Terry"

 

[Xenidal]

Hidden data in FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald identifies the character as Leaf. Of course, related data also identifies Blue as "Terry", so eh.

I wonder if "Terry" means something? Terry was the nickname of the Nidorina from the in-game trade in Red / Blue Versions... it's probably an in-joke between the game developers (that, or it's just a common name, lol). Not sure why Blue would be coded under that name, but as you say, these names don't really mean anything officially. In Red / Blue Versions, Red is coded as Ninten and Blue is coded as Sony, and those aren't their official names.

Because she wasn't given an actual name, since the female trainer in FR/LG isn't considered as canon according to HG/SS. It's because "Leaf" sounds more feminine.

What indication is there that she's not canon? Just because her and Red never appeared simultaneously in any of the games doesn't mean they aren't both canon.

 

[Ghetsis-Dennis]

What indication is there that she's not canon? Just because her and Red never appeared simultaneously in any of the games doesn't mean they aren't both canon.

Both genders have to appear in some form in the game if you play as one of them, like they did with Brandan, May, Lucas, Dawn, Hillbert, and Hilda. Only Red appeared in the sequel and not Leaf.

 

[Blazaking]

Hidden data in FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald identifies the character as Leaf. Of course, related data also identifies Blue as "Terry", so eh.

I don't think that's the reason, might be a coincidence. Otherwise we'd be calling blue "Terry"

It's not a coincidence. The name "Leaf" for the FR/LG Girl Player Character caught on because of the hidden data. Since we didn't have any other name for her, and it's not a relatively bad one, it's not hard to believe.

"Terry" on the other probably didn't catch on because 1) We already had a name for Blue/Green/Gary/etc and/or 2) It's not a very cool name.

 

[Xenidal]

What indication is there that she's not canon? Just because her and Red never appeared simultaneously in any of the games doesn't mean they aren't both canon.

Both genders have to appear in some form in the game if you play as one of them, like they did with Brandan, May, Lucas, Dawn, Hillbert, and Hilda. Only Red appeared in the sequel and not Leaf.

I still don't see why both have to appear. That's just a pattern, not a requirement. Not even a pattern, really, because May / Brendan was the Rival so she / he kind of had to appear and Hilda / Hilbert didn't appear except in an optional cameo. They very well could have thrown Leaf / Red in as a cameo.

Hidden data in FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald identifies the character as Leaf. Of course, related data also identifies Blue as "Terry", so eh.

I don't think that's the reason, might be a coincidence. Otherwise we'd be calling blue "Terry"

It's not a coincidence. The name "Leaf" for the FR/LG Girl Player Character caught on because of the hidden data. Since we didn't have any other name for her, and it's not a relatively bad one, it's not hard to believe.

"Terry" on the other probably didn't catch on because 1) We already had a name for Blue/Green/Gary/etc and/or 2) It's not a very cool name.

But isn't Leaf a default name? But I'm pretty sure Terry can;t even be seen without hacking the ROM. I find it more likely that the name comes from an official source (even if it's not her official name per se), not from something obscure hidden in the game's data which no one even knows about.

Speaking of that, why is Blue's main default name in FireRed listed as Green? Is that an error? Green is correct in Japan but why wasn't it changed to Blue for the American release? Blue is his official name as well as his name in all the other games that he appears in...