What does mahou mean in Frieren?

魔法 (mahou) means magic. It's said 353 times in season 1, about 13 times an episode, more than any other magic or story word.

How many words are in Frieren season 1?

61,997 spoken words across 28 episodes, using 4,075 different words. Just 29 words make up half of everything said, and 206 make up 75%.

Is Frieren good for learning Japanese?

Yes. 29 words make up half of season 1's dialogue, and its magic words repeat every episode (魔法 about 13 times an episode), so a little study pays off fast.

Japanese Words in Frieren: 50 Magic and Story Words, Counted

I analyzed all 61,997 words spoken in season 1 of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, every one of its 28 episodes. Just 29 words make up half of everything said, and 206 make up 75%. That's the data-driven way to study: count every word, then learn exactly the ones the show says most. Below are 50 more: the magic and story words Frieren says far more than other anime, each in Furoma, with kana above and romaji below.

Season 1, by the numbers

Episodes	28
Words spoken	61,997
Different words	4,075
Words that make up half the dialogue	29
Words that make up 67%	103
Words that make up 75%	206

Most of those 29 are the small words every anime leans on: particles, grammar endings, and verbs like する. The 50 below are different. Together they're only 3.4% of the dialogue, but they're the words that make Frieren sound like Frieren, and you'll hear 魔法 (magic) about 13 times an episode.

The title: 葬送のフリーレン

Sousou no Frieren. 葬送 (sousou) means a funeral, seeing someone off to their rest, so the title is something like "Frieren at the funeral". The story opens at the funeral of Himmel, the hero she traveled with. For a word in the title, it's rare: it's said only four times in season 1.

The 50 words

Grouped by theme, most-said first within each group. Each card shows how many times the word is said in season 1, the episode where you first hear it, how much more Frieren says it than other anime, and a strip of all 28 episodes, so you can see when it comes up.

Spoiler note: the Mage Exam words start in episode 11, and the strips show when words come up, so they hint at what's coming.

Magic

魔法 (まほう), mahou: magic

353 times, about 13 an episode

First heard in episode 1. 7.7× more than other anime.

魔法使い (まほうつかい), mahoutsukai: mage

184 times, about seven an episode

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

魔力 (まりょく), maryoku: magic power, mana

149 times, about five an episode

First heard in episode 1. 10.1× more than other anime.

#21

結界 (けっかい), kekkai: barrier

28 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 4. 14.1× more than other anime.

#23

魔導書 (まどうしょ), madousho: grimoire

27 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

#30

ゾルトラーク, zorutoraaku: Zoltraak, the spell

21 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 3. almost only in Frieren.

#31

防御 (ぼうぎょ), bougyo: defense

20 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 3. 7.5× more than other anime.

#34

防御魔法 (ぼうぎょまほう), bougyomahou: defensive magic

19 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 3. almost only in Frieren.

#35

杖 (つえ), tsue: staff

16 times, about once every two episodes

First heard in episode 11. almost only in Frieren.

#39

呪い (のろい), noroi: curse

12 times, about once every two episodes

First heard in episode 15. 2.5× more than other anime.

#40

封印 (ふういん), fuuin: seal

11 times, about once every three episodes

First heard in episode 3. 4.7× more than other anime.

#45

鏡 (かがみ), kagami: mirror

9 times, about once every three episodes

First heard in episode 5. almost only in Frieren.

Demons and Battle

魔族 (まぞく), mazoku: demons

86 times, about three an episode

First heard in episode 3. 30.8× more than other anime.

戦う (たたかう), tatakau: to fight

66 times, about two an episode

First heard in episode 1. 3.2× more than other anime.

魔王 (まおう), maou: Demon King

57 times, about two an episode

First heard in episode 1. 6.8× more than other anime.

魔物 (まもの), mamono: monster

53 times, about two an episode

First heard in episode 2. 7.3× more than other anime.

#12

倒す (たおす), taosu: to defeat

46 times, about two an episode

First heard in episode 1. 3.6× more than other anime.

#14

竜 (りゅう), ryuu: dragon

40 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. 6.9× more than other anime.

#19

攻撃 (こうげき), kougeki: attack

30 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 3. 2.5× more than other anime.

#29

戦い (たたかい), tatakai: battle

23 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 7. 3.0× more than other anime.

#36

討伐 (とうばつ), toubatsu: slaying (a monster)

16 times, about once every two episodes

First heard in episode 3. 6.6× more than other anime.

#46

天秤 (てんびん), tenbin: scales

8 times, about once every four episodes

First heard in episode 9. almost only in Frieren.

#47

断頭台 (だんとうだい), dantoudai: guillotine

8 times, about once every four episodes

First heard in episode 7. almost only in Frieren.

#48

不死 (ふし), fushi: undying

7 times, about once every four episodes

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

#50

ミミック, mimikku: mimic

6 times, about once every five episodes

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

The Hero's Party

#10

勇者 (ゆうしゃ), yuusha: hero

49 times, about two an episode

First heard in episode 1. 4.1× more than other anime.

#13

戦士 (せんし), senshi: warrior

45 times, about two an episode

First heard in episode 1. 9.9× more than other anime.

#15

パーティー, paatii: party (the group)

40 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. 8.7× more than other anime.

#16

師匠 (ししょう), shishou: master, teacher

40 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 4. 8.0× more than other anime.

#18

僧侶 (そうりょ), souryo: priest

31 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

#24

弟子 (でし), deshi: apprentice

27 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. 10.6× more than other anime.

#25

エルフ, erufu: elf

27 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. 12.8× more than other anime.

#26

英雄 (えいゆう), eiyuu: hero (of legend)

26 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 4. 9.5× more than other anime.

#32

女神様 (めがみさま), megamisama: the Goddess

20 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

#37

天国 (てんごく), tengoku: heaven

15 times, about once every two episodes

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

#38

修行 (しゅぎょう), shugyou: training

14 times, about once every two episodes

First heard in episode 1. 3.9× more than other anime.

#41

勇者一行 (ゆうしゃいっこう), yuushaikkou: the hero's party

11 times, about once every three episodes

First heard in episode 1. almost only in Frieren.

The Journey

村 (むら), mura: village

88 times, about three an episode

First heard in episode 2. 7.4× more than other anime.

#11

旅 (たび), tabi: journey

49 times, about two an episode

First heard in episode 1. 11.0× more than other anime.

#22

冒険者 (ぼうけんしゃ), boukensha: adventurer

28 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 2. almost only in Frieren.

#27

人類 (じんるい), jinrui: humanity

26 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 3. 9.5× more than other anime.

#28

冒険 (ぼうけん), bouken: adventure

24 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 1. 3.9× more than other anime.

#33

大陸 (たいりく), tairiku: continent

20 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 2. almost only in Frieren.

#42

城 (しろ), shiro: castle

10 times, about once every three episodes

First heard in episode 1. 4.2× more than other anime.

#43

千年 (せんねん), sennen: a thousand years

10 times, about once every three episodes

First heard in episode 4. almost only in Frieren.

#49

北 (きた), kita: north

7 times, about once every four episodes

First heard in episode 4. 2.4× more than other anime.

The Mage Exam

試験 (しけん), shiken: exam

109 times, about four an episode

First heard in episode 11. 9.1× more than other anime.

#17

一級魔法使い (いっきゅうまほうつかい), ikkyuumahoutsukai: first-class mage

40 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 11. almost only in Frieren.

#20

ダンジョン, danjon: dungeon

29 times, about once an episode

First heard in episode 23. 10.4× more than other anime.

#44

一級 (いっきゅう), ikkyuu: first-class

10 times, about once every three episodes

First heard in episode 11. almost only in Frieren.

Read all 50 in Yomikit →

The names are German

Most of the cast is named with German words, and you'll hear their names constantly: together they're about 2% of the dialogue.

Name	German	Meaning	Times said
フリーレン Frieren	frieren	to freeze	345
フェルン Fern	fern	far, distant	131
シュタルク Stark	stark	strong	118
ヒンメル Himmel	Himmel	sky, heaven	92
ハイター Heiter	heiter	cheerful	53
ザイン Sein	sein	to be	40
デンケン Denken	denken	to think	37
アイゼン Eisen	Eisen	iron	31

If you like this, find the books

This page is my process on one show: count everything, then narrow in on exactly what to study. The books do the same for anime as a whole. I counted 3.3 million words across 120 anime to find the words worth learning first.

Watch Anime, Learn Japanese: the 210 words that make up 67% of the dialogue in 120 anime, as word cards, plus a top 1,000 list.
Top 200 Japanese Verbs in Anime: the 200 verbs that reach 80% of the verbs you'll hear, one page each.

Questions

What does Sousou no Frieren mean?: 葬送 (sousou) means a funeral, seeing someone off to their rest, so the title is something like "Frieren at the funeral". The English title is Frieren: Beyond Journey's End.
What does mahou mean?: 魔法 (mahou) means magic. It's said 353 times in season 1, about 13 times an episode.
How many words are in Frieren season 1?: 61,997 spoken words across 28 episodes, using 4,075 different words.
Is Frieren good for learning Japanese?: Yes. 29 words make up half of season 1's dialogue, and its magic words repeat every episode, so a little study pays off fast.

How I counted

I counted every word spoken in the Japanese subtitles of all 28 episodes of season 1, then compared each one with how often it's said across the 120 anime behind my books. The 50 here are the words Frieren says far more than other anime.

More: Japanese Words in Steins;Gate Learning Japanese with Anime How Many Words to Understand Anime Most Common Verbs in Anime