Goku, born Kakarot, is the main protagonist of the Dragon Ball metaseries created by Akira Toriyama. He is the adoptive grandson of Grandpa Gohan, the husband of Chi-Chi, the father of Gohan and Goten, the grandfather of Pan and later the great-great-grandfather of Goku Jr.

Cheerful, courageous and also quite naive, Goku is a Saiyan originally sent to Earth as an infant with the mission to destroy it. However, an accident alters this, causing him to later become Earth's greatest defender and the informal leader of the Z Fighters. Throughout his life, he trains hard and strives to be the greatest warrior possible, while at the same time using his amazing strength and skills to uphold peace.

Concept and creation
The name "Goku" means "awakened to emptiness"; the Go syllable means Enlightenment, and the Ku syllable means Sky or Emptiness. In the Namek Saga, while training in the Capsule Corporation spaceship, it is seen that his name is written with a "h", Gokuh, when he has to go to repair the ship. Goku's full name, Son Goku, is the Japanese name for Sun Wukong, the main protagonist in the Chinese legend Journey to the West, on whom Goku is loosely based. The Dragon Ball universe began as a loose adaptation of the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, with Goku starting off as more or less a parody of Sun Wukong the Monkey King. Similarities between the two include Goku's prone for mischief as a child (due to his innocence), possession of Nyoibo (Sun Wukong's staff that can fill the entire universe), and Flying Nimbus (the magical cloud the Great Sage rode on in Journey to the West). As the Dragon Ball manga continued its run, he was able to develop differently, eventually turning out to have similar origins.

Goku's design was based on Tanton, of Toriyama's prototype manga Dragon Boy and Tongpoo, from his other manga The Adventures of Tongpoo. When Akira Toriyama started his first draft of Dragon Ball he originally planned on making Goku full monkey to make it faithful to Journey to the West. During Toriyama's second draft he wanted to make Goku a full human dressed in sailor clothes that rode a flight mecha instead of the Flying Nimbus. Toriyama's 3rd and final draft of Goku was to have him human looking with a monkey tail.

Goku's Saiyan birth name, Kakarot, is a pun on "carrot". Likewise, all pure-blood Saiyans that appear in the series are named using puns on various vegetables, or the word "vegetable" itself. Goku's family are all named after root vegetables (burdock, radish, and carrot). Comically, in Dragon Ball, Goku says he hates carrots when fighting against Monster Carrot.

Appearance
Goku is the main character of the entire Dragon Ball series. He has spiky black hair that never changes throughout the franchise. He is most commonly seen wearing his trademark orange/red/golden gi over a dark blue undershirt. The gi has featured Master Roshi's, Kami's, and King Kai's kanji on its left side (over the heart). It is also featured on the back. After the Frieza Saga, no symbols appear and Goku's gi turns a darker orange. He wears dark blue wristbands, along with dark blue boots that are outfitted with yellow/beige laces. He originally wore a blue obi over his waist, although after the Frieza Saga this was changed to a blue sash. As a kid, he has a tail due to his Saiyan heritage and also wields the Power Pole. He did not wear the blue undershirt and boots until his teenage years, instead wearing simple shoes.

At times, Goku has been seen wearing different clothing, such as a grey business suit and tie. Most notably, after training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber and in the nine days before the Cell Games, he wears casual Earth clothing consisting of a orange-and-black long-sleeved jacket, a white undershirt, lime green pants, and brown boots.

Goku's skin tone changes in Dragon Ball GT, from a pale tone to a darker, almost tan tone. Goku wears a blue gi with ochre pants in the GT series. He also has a white sash going over his waist and sports pink wristbands. He wears black shoes with white shin coverings. As a Super Saiyan 4, he completely loses his gi and his body is covered with scarlet fur. His tail returns, although it changes from brown to the more reddish color. His trademark hairstyle is gone, making his hair longer and even more wild. His eyes change to golden-yellow and has a red-lining around them. His wristbands and shin covers turn blue while his sash changes to a stone blue color.

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