Pirate King

In the anime and manga One Piece, the fictional Pirate King (called King of the Pirates in the English versions) is the strongest pirate alive and owner of the legendary treasure that was later dubbed as "One Piece". "Kaizoku-Ō" (海賊王), the source of the term, literally means "Pirate King" (which is also the name of a character in Pirates of Penzance).

The English manga initially used "Pirate King" but later switched to "King of the Pirates". After "King of Pirates" became used in the manga, 4Kids chose to use "King of the Pirates" for the dub of One Piece.

The term "Pirate King" was originally simply a nickname for Gol D. Roger to distinguish himself among swashbucklers. Upon Roger's execution, the name was romanticized by the people of the One Piece world into an actual title, much in the same way One Piece itself was simply "Roger's treasure" until the Pirate King's death. In the English manga and anime, "Pirate King" clearly marks this distinguishment; although Gol D. Roger was Pirate King, Monkey D. Luffy seeks to become the new Pirate King 22 years later.

Before his death, Pirate King Gol D. Roger hid the One Piece. It was rumored to be located at Raftel, the island at the end of The Grand Line. The frenzy over discovering and owning such a massive treasure sparked the "Great Age of Pirates". Until One Piece has been claimed, there will be no current Pirate King.

Right now, the closest person to becoming the Pirate King is Whitebeard (Edward Newgate). However, many people who had met Luffy, such as Coby and Helmeppo, believed that he will be the Pirate King; Kokoro also started to call Luffy as Pirate King himself (chapter 431).