Kakarot

Kakarot is the birth name of the Dragon Ball character more widely known as Son Goku. Created by Akira Toriyama, he is a Saiyan fighter who becomes the central figure of the Dragon Ball series. The name Kakarot is used by Saiyans and some characters to address him, while many Earth residents simply call him Goku.

Kakarot was born on Planet Vegeta to Bardock and Gine. As part of the Saiyan habit of sending infants to other worlds, he is dispatched to Earth in a small spacecraft. The vessel crash-lands, and he is found and raised by a rural man named Grandpa Gohan, who renames him Son Goku after mishearing his Saiyan name.

Raised on Earth, Goku trains in martial arts under various teachers and forms deep friendships with allies such as Bulma and Krillin. He participates in multiple World Martial Arts Tournaments and faces a succession of galactic threats, including Frieza, Cell, and Majin Buu. His Saiyan biology grants him extraordinary combat potential, enabling several transformative states such as Super Saiyan.

Goku's personal life centers on his wife Chi-Chi and their son Gohan, with his ongoing quest to grow stronger a recurring theme. In the wider Dragon Ball canon, Kakarot's alien origin and Saiyan identity are referenced regularly by his foes and allies. The name Kakarot also appears in popular culture as the title of the 2020 video game Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, which retells much of his early story.