Ganon's Mysterious Origins (Revisited)

Written by Drew Mackie

This website is essentially a solo operation. Consequently, the primary hurdles preventing a more frequent posting schedule are my limited spare time and my obsessive need to push my research to the absolute limit.

I often start with the intention of writing a brief update, but more often than not, a "quick post" evolves into a grueling, multi-day investigation. Sometimes, these ideas vanish entirely because I hit a wall of unreliable information that I simply cannot verify.

However, every so often, I encounter a theory that is sufficiently original and well-supported to merit a spot on the site. This particular piece serves as a companion to my previous explorations of The Legend of Zelda, specifically regarding the enduring mystery of where the name Ganon actually originated.

Recently, I stumbled upon a discussion on the Resetera forums containing some compelling theories about the roots of one of gaming's most iconic antagonists. Since there is likely little overlap between my readership and the Resetera community, I wanted to bring these ideas here.

The "Gerudo" Pre-History

In a discussion titled "Ganon's Name," a user named Birdie posits that the Gerudo—or at least a conceptual version of them—were lurking in the background of the franchise long before their official introduction in Ocarina of Time.

I had previously touched upon a similar sentiment in my analysis of the Hylian language. My logic was as follows:

• The Geldman enemy from A Link to the Past feels like a linguistic ancestor to the Gerudo.
• However, this was based on phonetics rather than visual or behavioral similarities.

Birdie’s theory goes deeper, tracing the Gerudo back to the Geldam (ゲルダム団 or Gerudamu-dan), a villainous faction from the Kamen Rider series.

The Gel Shocker Connection

Within the Kamen Rider narrative, the Geldam eventually merge with another group called Shocker to create a super-organization known as Gel Shocker.

Now, full disclosure: my only exposure to Kamen Rider consists of 1995 commercials for the American crossover with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Please forgive me if my analysis is slightly skewed, but it appears that belt buckle aesthetics are a cornerstone of this franchise.

The Gel Shocker operatives wore specialized belts. The buckle for this alliance combined the symbols of both parent groups: a snake (Geldam) and an eagle (Shocker).

Enter: Ganikomoru

With that imagery in mind, consider the character Ganikomoru (sometimes translated as Gankikomol), a monster from the original Kamen Rider series.

He is a hybrid creature—part crab, part bat. His name is a literal linguistic combination:

$\text{Gani (蟹 - Crab)} + \text{Kōmori (蝙蝠 - Bat)} = \text{Ganikomoru}$

While his plot importance is minimal, his visual design is striking. When you compare the Gel Shocker insignia and Ganikomoru to the original 8-bit sprite of Ganon, a pattern emerges.

Visual Comparison Table

While skull buckles are common in fiction, the Gel Shocker logo looks remarkably like a skull when compressed into a low-resolution 8-bit sprite. As the Resetera thread suggests, if you were to translate Ganikomoru's design into pixels, you would almost certainly end up with something resembling the original Ganon.

Reconciling with Official Lore

In a 2009 Iwata Asks interview, it was revealed that Ganon's initial name was Hakkai. This is a reference to Zhu Bajie, the pig-demon from the 16th-century Chinese classic Journey to the West.

This fits a broader Nintendo pattern:

1. Bowser was inspired by the Bull Demon King (specifically the 1960s animated version of Journey to the West).
2. Ganon was inspired by Hakkai.

However, just as the Bull Demon King doesn't explain every facet of Bowser's design, I suspect Hakkai isn't the only source of inspiration. Birdie's theory regarding Ganikomoru provides a plausible explanation for the final name "Ganon," which has otherwise remained a mystery.

Influence Flowchart

Miscellaneous Observations

The "Gel" Prefix

Birdie also noted that due to Kamen Rider's massive popularity in Japan, the first syllable of "Geldam" (Gel) became a sort of linguistic shorthand for "evil" in other unrelated media.

For instance, the Transformer known as Sky Bite is called Gel Shark (ゲルシャク or Gerushaku) in Japanese. It seems highly likely that the "Gel" here is a nod to that trope.

The Titanic Theory

Finally, there is a more "out there" observation: the adult Link in Ocarina of Time looks strikingly like Leonardo DiCaprio. Given that the game launched shortly after the global phenomenon of Titanic, it may not be a coincidence—especially since the adult Princess Zelda bears a resemblance to Kate Winslet.

While I can see the DiCaprio connection clearly, the Winslet resemblance is harder for me to pinpoint, though the vibe is certainly there.

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Author's Research Log

• Analyze Resetera threads
• Cross-reference Kamen Rider monster names
• Review Iwata Asks archives
• Find definitive proof of the "Gel" linguistic trend