Cleo

“by until that moment and, by extension, her identity and the roots connecting her to her parents. Chihiro literally becomes “thousand,” a simple number among the innumerable employees at the bathhouse. Yet, in the world of Aburaya, a person cannot return home if they have forgotten their original name. Through the contraction of a name, Yubaba obtains immense control over her employees. The most striking example comes from Haku: he is the spirit of a river drained for urbanization, thus a damned soul, his original name forgotten, his identity obliterated. The Japanese title of the film, 千と千尋の神隠し Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi, easily expresses this difference of personality. “Kamikakushi” is a word used in Japan to speak of disappearances, with the implication that the missing person, especially a child, has been taken away by a god or spirit (as done by the Tengu when they began appearing in Japanese folklore). The original title takes on a very interesting meaning, since it also allows for a double meaning; the translation can be “The Disappearance of Sen and Chihiro” or “Sen and the Disappearance of Chihiro.” This second possibility illustrates further what is depicted on the screen. While passing through the bathhouse world, Chihiro is put to one side and the Sen part of her personality develops,”
― Gael Berton, The Works of Hayao Miyazaki: The Japanese Animation Master

“Furthermore, Chihiro and Alice share a key relationship with food: the lavish meal transforms the girl’s parents into pigs; Haku’s berry saves her from disappearing and his onigiri2 comfort her; the river spirit’s dumpling cures No-Face and Haku,”
― Gael Berton, The Works of Hayao Miyazaki: The Japanese Animation Master

“There is a level of insult I cannot overlook,’ Miriam announced, ‘in the way that men behave towards women.”
― Julia Armfield, Salt Slow

“A major theme in Spirited Away is the young girl’s deconstruction into a type of positive schizophrenia that enables her personal development. The pivotal moment is when Yubaba changes Chihiro’s name; the consequence of this act only fully reveals itself to those who have some knowledge of Japanese. In the Japanese language, the first name and surname are made up of characters called kanji that have one meaning but have several pronunciations depending on whether they are used alone or with other words. In the case of “Chihiro,” the name is formed by the kanji “sen” (for “thousand”) and “jin” (meaning “search” or “question”).”
― Gael Berton, The Works of Hayao Miyazaki: The Japanese Animation Master