Nakama

"Nakama" (仲間) is a Japanese word that directly translates to friend, comrades, and under some context such as One Piece, crewmates. Some fans of the series believes the word means "people who are considered closer than family", though that is not a part of the official dictionary definition of the word.

The apparent "Special Bond" the word has come to represent to the fans comes from the way Luffy's crew in particular treat each other. However, Luffy and his crew are simply good to each other. This is shown often as most other pirates don't treat their so-called "nakama" with as much respect. There are some exceptions, like the Arlong Pirates and Buggy's crew, before Buggy's fight with Luffy. Others, like Don Krieg and Crocodile, don't have any respect for their crewmates/associates (but still know that they are essential for maximum success) while some pirates even willingly kill their own "nakama" like Kuro.

One would say that "good" pirates in One Piece treat each other with respect; the Straw Hat Pirates are the obvious example, but this is also exhibited by the Red-Haired, Whitebeard, Rumbar Pirates, and, oddly enough, Blackbeard's crew. Foxy however, treats his crew differently. He has a rather massive crew of 500, and is perfectly willing to risk his crewmates in several games known as the Davy Back Fight. In these games, one can be forced to become someone's "Nakama" against their will.

Conversely, one of the tightest knit crews in the entire series, the Whitebeard Pirates don't often refer to each other as "Nakama", but act as though they are Family, referring to their captain as "Father" (Oyaji). Implying that in the context of Oda's story, "Family" has more credence than "Nakama".

However, many fans, while doing fansubs, feel that the word has such an impact on the show, and thus the word nakama should remain as it is, and not be translated to something like "shipmate" or "crewmate". However, there is nothing in the Japanese language that suggests the word has this special meaning, so it is basically a fan-term to the English speaking fanbase, as Oda has never made any comments in interviews or SBS answers that would lead credence to it.

"Nakama" was first left untranslated by a fan group known as Kaizoku Fansubs, during the Arlong Arc. It has been confirmed that Kaizoku Fansubs left it translated because they didn't know how to translate the line "Nami, You Are OUR FRIEND" and make it sound "cool".