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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Nekoewen (talk | contribs) at 00:46, 4 July 2005 (Female otaku in Japan - "Fujo"). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

I think Japanese loan words need it's separate page.

Maybe. But would "Loanwords from language X in the English language" articles be worthy of creating? I ask this because it seems like a majority of words in any language is a loanword, so such a task may be too daunting. Although I think it is quite odd for "Japanese loanwords" to be a subcategory of this article. Soysauce, tofu, tycoon, and rikshas, and karaoke are examples of Japanese loanwords, and they are not related to otakus. I also see a problem with what qualifications a word would need to fit in this list. An otaku in an English speaking country is pretty much an enthusiast of Japanese culture, hence such a person could grab any Japanese word and use it. In that case, should we have a list of all words in the Japanese language? See also: gairaigo. --68.77.117.197 01:22, 4 Oct 2004 (UTC)
I think for here, we can stick with loanwords that are part of otaku jargon. --Paul Soth 01:51, 4 Oct 2004 (UTC)
Couldn't an otaku use any word in the Japanese language? In which case, wouldn't the entire Japanese language be considered as part of otaku jargon? If the qualification is simply "any Japanese word an otaku likes," then the criteria is a very subjective one. Basically a quality control issue - a similar issue plagues Jargon file, IMHO. --68.77.117.197 02:16, 4 Oct 2004 (UTC)
Right, before we split hairs any more on the issue, let's figure out the boundaries then. Otakuisms are mostly words that are used for flavor (such as simple words or exclamations: "Hai,""Baka,""Sugoi"), terms for items and subjects that do not have proper equivalents in English, or are used to specify that the origins or style of an object or subject is Japanese in nature. For instance, when the word "manga" is used, it is inferred that the speaker is referring to comics from Japan, or the term "manga style," meaning that a comic borrows style and technique from Japanese comics. --Paul Soth 04:16, 4 Oct 2004 (UTC)
Don't misspell its. lysdexia 13:50, 2 Nov 2004 (UTC)

The previous editor dropped all of the following. I would have just dropped the last 2 sentences. Is the text incorrect or incomplete in some way? What's there now doesn't look any more complete. --Koyaanis Qatsi

Otaku are a Japanese cultural subgroup. The name has something of a double meaning. Outside of Japan, the word implies particular obsessiveness or geekiness. In Japan, the word has connotations of creep or stalker, though it retains its roots in extreme obsession or geekiness. For a better understanding, watch Otaku no Video
I await your edits, Max :)

Well, the information that was present is essentially incorrect as it is more of an opinion. Otaku doesn't have a negative connonation as far as I'm concerned, and I've never really heard it used that way. But, as always, I could be wrong. --Jzcool


Some people even call themself Otaku and are proud of it. :) --Taw


Ok then. Just wondering. --Koyaanis Qatsi


Well, in Japan it would be bad to be called "otaku", so shouldn't we mention this? As I was told, it implies just serious obsessiveness. My Japanese friends have corrorated this. I think its kind of like "Baka", in the sense that westerners don't realize how different the word is used in the country of origin to how its translation is used here. --Alan D

corroborated lysdexia 13:50, 2 Nov 2004 (UTC)

I wrote "American otaku culture" and someone changed it to "Otaku culture outside Japan". I chose that phrasing because I'm not familiar with the otaku culture (in the English sense of the word) outside of the USA. Can someone confirm that it's the same elsewhere? -- zw

Here's one of a household of two Canadian otaku telling you so :) - Montréalais

I added some information on the etymological history of the word, that I think clarifies the meaning of the bad connotations of the word. The paragraph ("The word is derived from ...") probably could be merged with the preceding paragraph. My primary source was [1] --hb

I've expanded (and, I think, corrected) the etymology, by removing the apparently spurious stuff about photographers - I can't find any references to support that, feel free to put it back if you can - and adding references to Nakamori Akio, who deserves some credit for apparently coining the word. My sources were the etymology in Sanseido's デイリー新語辞典 and the article on Nakamori at [2].

I think that the explanation is the best i've read yet. you might want to include references to the word mania as used in japan. frankly, making a lot of distinction between the varieties of non-japanese otaku useage is futile as it is, outside of japan, almost perfectly synonymous with geek, except by geeks who want to really emphasize that they are into manga and anime.

as far as the average response to the word in japan, i have had about 19 times out of 20 the following reaction/explanation:

"they wear black shirts, live at home until way longer than normal watching anime and reading manga and playing geimu, smell bad, are unkempt and often have pot bellies and carry around paper bags with books or manga inside."

honestly, this is the answer i got, while in japan, time after time. i think that's pretty empirically convincing that there is a bad connotation, even bordering on the stalker kind of theme. also, it should be pointed out that manga, if not anime and gaming, is a huge pastime among the general population that you could hardly call otaku, at least not in japan.

Plasticlax


Well, in any event, otaku is becoming more and more of a loanword itself in American English, and like most loanwords, the original meaning gets skewered or flat out ignored. The way I think, if you're going to argue with people that they're not using the word otaku 'right,' you might as well be chastising people who use the word "kamikaze" refer to suicide attackers, and not in reference to a divine wind.

In any event, perhaps it might be worth a mention the struggle between those who are proud to be fans against the cynical, overly self-conscious fans who endlessly argue about if the word should retain the negative connotations in its use in English.

Also, there's a article for Fanji, which repeats some of the stuff here. Honestly, I've never even seen that term before. Everyone I've ever come across calls them "otakuisms." --Paul Soth 03:26, 9 Jul 2004 (UTC)

What's with all the annoying -u endings? And does hentai really mean transformation (a noun) and still all of those adjectives? lysdexia 13:50, 2 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Well, Japanese only has 5 vowels, and with the exception of n, every word will end in a vowel, so expect a lot of u endings. Hentai means literally a "changed form," or basically, a perversion of the original form, hence the meaning. Dracil 02:38, 18 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Akibake -> Akiba-kei (アキバ系)--Outis 12:14, 16 Dec 2004 (UTC)

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Being obsessed with cartoons is just as bad as being obsessed with comics, videogames, celebrities, etc. You forget about yourself and start worshiping things that alienate you. You value yourself for what you posess of any given thing that is the object of your obsession. So, it's like Morgoth wanting to posess "Light". The desire destroys you and everything that's beautiful inside of you dies.

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i first came across the term in william gibsons idoru where he defines it as (im paraphrasing as i no longer have the book) some sort of technofetishist with an anarchicical bent, im wondering if maybe the origin was with electronics or computers instead of comics? (unlikely since comics were around long before i know) although its possible he was just wrong or imagined that the meaning would shift to be techno centric in the future. Also in the cyberpunk rpg it is used for children who live in the matrix, though this is probably taken straight from gibson, though it may predate idoru, im not sure.

so im wondering if a japanese person can clarify whether the term had or has technological implications (above others). Also maybe the cyberpunk definition as such is worthy of a mention.

It came out of photography circles, which is already discussed in the article. And no, the use of the word in Shadowrun doesn't need to be mentioned. It's too much of a minor detail. --Paul Soth 04:47, 21 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Female otaku in Japan - "Fujo"

I came across this article on the Mainichi Daily News website: http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/waiwai/archive/news/2005/06/20050620p2g00m0dm001000c.html

The gist of it is that female otaku, called "fujo" (腐女; "rotten girl"), are growing in numbers, but they're developing as a separate subculture from their male counterparts, and their main shopping district is Ikebukuro rather than Akihabara.