Boh is the biological child of Yubaba.
Character Description
Boh is a large baby that belongs to Yubaba and, up until meeting Chihiro (Sen), has remained within his nursery for fear of germs. He is treated as an infant by his doting mother Yubaba. Although Boh is a baby, he is able to talk surprisingly fluently for his apparent young age. While in his baby form, he is seen only wearing a full, one-piece bib.
During the events of the story, he is changed by his aunt Zeniba into a small grey rat. While this must have been a traumatizing experience for such a seemingly young child, a great deal of character development in his personality can be observed.
Prior to meeting Chihiro, Boh is a selfish and spoiled child. He was used to getting all the attention, gifts, and food he wanted from Yubaba. He also developed a fear of germs, demonstrated by his initial hindrance in leaving his nursery. However, his personality quickly changes during his adventures with Chihiro. He develops a strong affiliation with Yubaba's bird, who was turned into a fly-like creature and would often carry him around when they were not riding on Chihiro's shoulder. By the end of these adventures, we see him literally standing up to his mother to help Chihiro.
It is also suggested that, prior to meeting Chihiro, Boh had not walked or even stood up on his own. This is seen through Yubaba's surprise at seeing Boh standing after his return to her with Chihiro and Haku. It can be assumed that either his small size as a rat helped him practice standing, or he simply became less lazy after the adventure.
Trivia
- On his bib, it says the kanji for his Japanese name (坊 Bō)
- He is the only thing in the world that Yubaba loves, apart from gold.
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