Beginner’s Guide to the Terminology

I know many of you readers out there are wondering “What the heck is Anime? First of all, you’re most likely not pronouncing the word correctly. Anime is pronounced “Annie-may”. Here in America, the terms Manga and Anime are sometimes used interchangeably. Manga is actually a Japanese word that translates into “random pictures”. In his book “Anime: Eye on Art” Hal Marcovitz explains that “Manga is the genre of graphic novels and comic books that essentially tell the same stories on the printed page that Anime tells on the screen.” Marcovitz also notes that “There is no Japanese word for animation, so the early Japanese animators borrowed the French term animẻ and incorporated it into their language.”

As I stated in my introduction, the word Otaku by the American definition is a person who is a fan of Anime. In Japan, the definition of Otaku means someone who is passionate in their field of expertise. Otaku’s use slang a lot for fun, or to identify with each other. Learning some basic terminology of Anime can help you understand what the heck we’re talking about when you meet some Anime fans.

Many Anime fans use slang from the Japanese culture itself.
Some Anime fans learn Japanese language by watching Anime that hasn’t been translated into English. On the the California State University website, Jean Leek Ping provides a list of Anime terms that are frequently used, such as Senshi which means warrior or soldier and Mecha which is a generic term for anything mechanized or technological, especially Anime series with giant robots.

In his book “The Rough Guide to Anime: Japan’s finest from Ghibli to Gankutsuō”, Simon Richmond offers a glossary of terms to help Anime fans understand the true meaning of the slang terms. He explains the terms fans commonly use, such as chara, short for character, and con, short for convention. AMV is the term used for fans who create Anime Music Videos using clips from the anime played to music. Cosplay is a contraction for Costume playing, in which a fan dresses up as their favorite character.

Richmond also explains terms that animators use like fan service, in which animators insert a particular scene or image to please certain fans. Richmond clarifies the meaning of fillers, in which anime series create episodes not based on the original manga to allow time for the manga to catch up with the on screen action, or to fully develop a new story arc. Dōjinshi are self published manga created by fans, which can be originals or works using fan’s favorite characters.

As part of my research for this blog, I had taken the time to look up words I heard frequently in Anime on Japanese language sites. Baka (bah-ka), for example, means stupid or idiot. It’s a term that is common in Anime, and is one of the basics which one should know. Some others are Kawaii (kuh-why-ee) which means cute or adorable in Japanese and Sumimasen (sue-me-ma-sen) which means excuse me, or pardon.

There are also animals which are commonly referenced in anime as some of the character’s personality traits or abilities originated from animals. Inu, (ee-new) means dog, and neko (knee-ko) means cat. Shika (She-ka) means Deer and Chou (Cho) means butterfly. Kitsune (Kit-sue-nay) means fox and Hebi (Heb-ee) means snake.

Some of the more fun slang I learned by attending Anime conventions. For example, Glomping is, simply put, an enormous tackle hug. Always expect to be glomped at an Anime convention, especially if you dress up as a popular male character.

Also, Anime fans that Cosplay at conventions, tend to refer to each other in character, addressing each other as the characters would. But in order to know ranks of status, or how familiar a character is with one another, you will know by the suffix they add at the end of the name. If someone calls each other without the use of a suffix, they may see each other as equals, or perhaps they think little of the other person. If a person were to call me “Cassie-chan”, the use of the suffix “-chan” means that the speaker is referring to someone younger than themselves, or is referring to someone affectionately. Girls use the suffix “-kun” to speak about boys they think of affectionately, or someone they care for. Suffixes are also used in terms of position or respect. “-san” refers to someone with honor or respect, while “-sama” means someone of high authority. A teacher is always addressed as “-sensei”.

In order to understand how anime has come of age in recent years, it is important to understand the basic concepts and vocabulary. The growth of the Anime sub-culture in America can be better understood when one understands all of the complex terminology that has evolved among the fans and writers. And it can be even better understood by learning about the history of the subject, which will be the topic of my next post.