I thought that this would be a great place for people to learn some of the words that I'll be using in my posts. Think of it as 'Anime 101'... Naturally since anime is Japanese, there are going to be some words used in these that aren't found in your everyday American household (unless you're in mine in which case they are used every 3 seconds or so). So with that in mind, and in no particular order, I've compiled some words for you to become familiar with:
Anime (Ann-uh-may or Ah-knee-may, depending on who you're talking to, I prefer the first because I'm lazy): any animation that comes from Japan though it's also become a blanket term for anything that vaguely resembles anime no matter what country it's from.
Otaku (Oh-tah-koo): A really big fan of anime. It can technically be applied to anyone who is a huge fan of anything but it's usually only applied to anime.
Fandom (fan-dumb): The overall fan population of anything.
Fanboy/girl: A person who is a huge fan of a particular person, character, series, etc. I personally claim to be the fanboy of a couple of authors and voice actors, some of which have nothing to do with anime.
Con: Short for convention.
Cosplay: Short for costume play or dressing up as someone or something. When used in the context of anime, it's someone dressing up like a particular character.
Bishonen/Bishojo: (Beh-sho-nun and Beh-sho-joe) Litterally they translate into 'pretty boy' and 'pretty girl' though the first is usually shortened to bishie by fans. These just refer to any character or person who is strikingly beautiful. In men, it also usually implies very feminine features such as long hair and slender builds (though muscle bound men can also be bishies). Usually they are young as well.
Fan Service: When a character in a series (usually female) shows off skin or walks around in provocative clothing or nothing at all.
Hentai: Japanese animated pornography. Hentai literally translates into 'pervert'
J-Pop/Rock/Rap: The "J" stands for Japanese and the word afterwards is the genre of music. Not entirely sure where it comes from but Anime News Network says it's from a DJ in Tokyo who originally coined the term.
Kawaii: (pronounced just like Hawaii but with a K sound at the start) literally "cute"
Fansubs: The underground (now digital) movement of fans who record anime as it airs in Japan and then release it to the rest of the world on the internet with subtitles for free. Yes it is pirating and yes it is a big problem.
Nani (Nah-knee): Literally translates into 'what', even I am guilty of occasionally answering 'nani?' to someone who is trying to get my attention. It's infectious but I try not to do it.
Baka (Bah-kuh): A blanket insult. It can translate into any number of things but I believe (please correct me if I am wrong) it translates into 'fool' though I've also heard it translated into 'idiot', 'jerk', etc, etc.
OST: Short for 'official sound track'
Ero Game: Another way to refer to a hentai video game on any gaming system.
Manga (Mon-ga): Japanese comic books.
This is by no means a definitive list, I'm not even attempting such a list because new words are coins on an almost yearly basis but this should at least give you a little bit of a head start when you read more about anime and anime related topics in the future.
|
Contributor's Note
The anime community can use all sorts of confusing words if you're not prepared. Best to brush up now before you have to ask questions later. ETA: I've added a couple of words and will probably continue to do so as I think of more that people need to know.
|
