Character Relationship Map: Spirited Away

Characters

• Chihiro (played by Rumi Hiiragi) — protagonist

  Ten-year-old girl trapped in a spirit world who must work to save her parents.

• Haku (played by Miyu Irino) — protagonist

  River spirit who becomes Chihiro's ally and love interest.

• Yubaba / Zeniba (played by Mari Natsuki) — supporting

  Twin witches who run the bathhouse and control spirits.

• Boh (played by Ryunosuke Kamiki) — supporting

  Yubaba's spoiled giant baby son.

• River Spirit (played by Koba Hayashi) — supporting

  Polluted spirit who visits the bathhouse for cleansing.

• Rin (played by Yumi Tamai) — supporting

  Bathhouse worker who initially mocks Chihiro but later helps her.

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Rin → Haku (Professional Coworker) — Rin and Haku belong to the same bathhouse working environment.

  Rin works in the same bathhouse where Haku operates under Yubaba's authority.

• Yubaba / Zeniba → River Spirit (Professional Host) — Yubaba's bathhouse provides the setting and service for the River Spirit's cleansing.

  The polluted River Spirit arrives at Yubaba's bathhouse as a customer seeking cleansing.

• Yubaba / Zeniba → Rin (Professional Employer) — Rin works within Yubaba's bathhouse hierarchy.

  Rin is a bathhouse worker, while Yubaba is identified as the witch who runs the bathhouse.

• Yubaba / Zeniba → Boh (Family Mother) — Yubaba's relationship with Boh is both familial and protective.

  Boh is identified in the character profile as Yubaba's son, and Yubaba reacts when he goes missing.

• Haku → Yubaba / Zeniba (Professional Servant) — Haku is caught between Yubaba's authority and Zeniba's stolen object.

  Haku works for Yubaba and steals Zeniba's golden seal while acting within the bathhouse's power structure.

• Chihiro → River Spirit (Professional Healer) — Chihiro serves the River Spirit and receives an important magical aid.

  Chihiro cleans the polluted River Spirit, who gives her a magic emetic dumpling in gratitude.

• Chihiro → Rin (Professional Coworker) — Rin becomes Chihiro's practical ally at work.

  Rin brings Chihiro to Yubaba and later helps Chihiro and the silent spirit leave the bathhouse.

• Chihiro → Yubaba / Zeniba (Professional Employer) — Chihiro becomes an unwilling worker under Yubaba's authority.

  Chihiro asks Yubaba for a job, signs a contract, and works in the bathhouse.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Haku → River Spirit (Unknown Spirit Kin) — Both characters are connected to the film's river-spirit mythology.

  Haku is revealed to be the spirit of the Kohaku River, while the River Spirit is another river-associated spirit who visits the bathhouse.

• Rin → Boh (Social Bathhouse Associate) — Their connection is established through the bathhouse household.

  Rin works in the bathhouse where Boh lives under Yubaba's protection.

• Haku → Boh (Alliance Rescuer) — Haku uses Boh's disappearance to negotiate Chihiro's freedom.

  Haku tells Yubaba that Boh is missing and offers to retrieve him in exchange for Chihiro's release.

• Chihiro → Boh (Alliance Caretaker) — Chihiro protects and transports Boh during her journey away from the bathhouse.

  Chihiro travels with Boh after he is transformed into a mouse and brings him to Zeniba.

• Chihiro → Haku (Alliance Ally) — Haku repeatedly protects and guides Chihiro through the spirit world.

  Haku warns Chihiro to cross the riverbed before sunset and later instructs her to seek work in the bathhouse.

Story Analysis

A frightened child survives a spirit-world bathhouse, preserves her identity, and rescues the people connected to her.

Plot Progression

1. Through the Forgotten Tunnel — Chihiro enters an abandoned resort town with her parents and discovers a mysterious bathhouse. After sunset, her parents become pigs and the river cuts off the escape route.
2. A Name Bound to Work — Haku helps Chihiro obtain employment in the bathhouse, where Yubaba takes part of her name and renames her Sen. Chihiro begins working despite hostility from the other workers.
3. Spirits and Hidden Curses — Chihiro cleans the polluted River Spirit and receives a powerful dumpling. Haku is injured as a dragon, and the conflict surrounding a stolen golden seal is exposed.
4. Across the Sea of Spirits — Chihiro forces the silent spirit to release the swallowed workers and leaves the bathhouse with Boh. She travels by train to return the seal and seek Zeniba's help.
5. Remembering the River — Zeniba gives Chihiro protection, while Haku carries her back toward the bathhouse. Chihiro remembers Haku's river identity, passes Yubaba's final test, and returns to the human world.