Nakama

"Nakama" means comrades, friends, and people who are considered closer than family. It usually is referred to by one's shipmates/crewmates, and the term comes up a lot when Monkey D. Luffy is talking about his crew.

Most other pirates don't treat their so-called "nakama" with as much respect as one would normally expect. There are some exceptions, like Foxy's crew, and Buggy's crew, after Buggy's fight with Luffy. Others, like Don Krieg and Crocodile, don't have any respect for their crewmates/associates. One would say that out of all the pirate crews in One Piece, the Straw Hat Pirates are definitely the closest.

Although "nakama" can be heard quite often during the original Japanese material, it is almost non-existent in the English anime and manga. However, fans, while doing fansubs, feel that, since the word has such an impact on the show, the word nakama should remain as it is, and not be translated to something like "shipmate" or "crewmate". In a sense, it is mostly a fan-term".