The term otaku has several meanings, depending on who uses it and where. In Japan, it means one thing, in America or Russia - a little different. In addition, over time, concepts have changed - and continue to change.
History and Origin
Until the 1980s, otaku was a form of respectful treatment in the Japanese language, such as –sama, –kun, or –senpai. This word was often used as a pronoun for 2 persons, in this way, for example, it was used by the heroine of the anime "Macro", which first appeared on screens in 1982.
In the modern world, however, the word otaku is a slang term in Japanese, meaning several different concepts:
- a person who is very passionate about anything - a hobby can be anything from manga and anime to games and collecting;
- a person who is keen on anime or manga;
- there is also a third case - resulting from a confusion between the concepts of otaku and hikikomori.
So otaku - who is it? In the modern sense, this word was first used in the 1980s, in the works of comedian and writer Akio Nakamori. In 1983, he published the Otaku Research series in Manga Burikko, in which he used the term to refer to fans.
At the same time, animator artists Haruhiko Mikimoto and Shouji Kawamori used the word in communication with each other as a polite form of appeal (all the same personal pronoun 2 persons), starting in the late 1970s.
Presumably, some representatives of the subculture did the same (while the rest switched to less formal communication), and that's why Nakamori chose it (Morikawa Kaichiro indicated this reason, explaining the origin of the term).
The second version of the concept’s origin is the science fiction works of Motoko Arai, who used –otaku as a respectful form of treatment, and as a result, readers adopted this habit.
Modern japan
In the 90s of the last century, the negative coloring of this word was smoothed out, and the word otaku was used in a different way. Who is it now? The definition has become quite clear - “a fan of something, ” an enthusiast who is very keen on any particular business. Now this concept applies to fans of anything, it is also often associated with Akihabara and the fashion for "cuteness."
The Japanese dictionary offers a different interpretation of this word: according to it, otaku was originally used in the 80s among friends, denoting a person who is very informed in a certain issue.
In Japan, this word can be equated with concepts such as “fan, ” “specialist, ” “researcher, ” or even “obsessed.” All these terms express a different level of knowledge and interest.
What is the difference? Which word is best suited depends on what is considered normal in society and what is not.
An archaeologist keen on searching for ancient cities, or Dr. Alan Grant from the movie Jurassic Park, are therefore considered researchers. They look positive for society. And someone like Professor Brown from Back to the Future would be called an otaku - bearing in mind that his hobby, the time machine, does not fit into the “norm”.
USA
All these difficulties of Japanese society are perceived in a completely different way in the West. People in the States have a different meaning in the term otaku. Who it is here can be said unequivocally and definitely: a person who is passionate about anime and manga. Fans of Japanese animation themselves have nothing against - outside of Japan, this word does not carry a negative meaning.
What does modern otaku look like
Westerners do not think that being an anime fan is bad. On the contrary. Here, otaku is most often the person who "saw everything." A “walking encyclopedia” of anime or manga (it doesn’t matter if a person is watching one genre or everything), who can advise what to see based on the tastes of the person asking.
As a result of his hobby, willy-nilly, he becomes a specialist in anime genres, and also knows and watched or read most of the popular works - the last feature is typical of otaku. Who it is from the point of view of society is absolutely the same: with the same success there can be a schoolboy, office worker or athlete.
In addition, the otaku, without even studying anything on purpose, has an idea of Japanese culture and fashion, both modern and previous eras, and also knows a few words in the language of the Land of the Rising Sun.
At the same time, appearance, habits, degree of immersion in a hobby can vary greatly. Some otaku collect a collection of CDs with TV shows, images of their favorite characters, regularly attend meetings with like-minded people, play cosplay and know the famous seiyuu and manga authors.
Others are able to watch, without stopping, a 25-episode anime (for about 6 hours in a row). Still others go to Japanese courses to be able to read the original manga.
Among fans of anime, there are talented writers who create interesting enough stories - among them are Sergey Kim, Konstantin Khrabrykh, Coviello, Ander Tel Sash, and Otaku Felix. Samizdat with the participation of these and other authors attracts no less readers than the animes themselves.
Classification of Japanese Otaku
The Nomura Research Institute (NRI) conducted two in-depth studies, the first in 2004 and the second in 2005. As a result, scientists were able to identify 12 main areas of interest:
- for the largest group, 350 thousand otaku - manga;
- about 280 thousand were fans of pop idols and celebrities;
- 250 thousand considered traveling as their hobby;
- 190 thousand - computer fans;
- 160 thousand were fond of video games;
- 140 thousand - by cars;
- 110 thousand - anime.
The remaining five categories included mobile equipment, audio and video equipment, fans of cameras, fashion and trains.
If you look directly at anime lovers, you can highlight another interesting group - hentai.
Among the genres of Japanese animation, there is what other nations could call pornography - however, in the Land of the Rising Sun, the attitude to the issue is slightly different. Due to this, there is a rather specific group of otaku. Hentai is what interests and hobbies for these people.
Otaku celebrities
Anime is not just ordinary people who are fond of - among celebrities, there are also lovers of this genre. Among them are the popular Japanese singer Seko Nakagawa (directly calling herself manga and anime otaku), singer and actress Mari Yaguchi, actress Toshiki Kashu, Natsuki Kato and actress and model Tiyaki Kuriyama.
Fanfiction and samizdat
Where there is creativity, there is fanfiction too - it works the same way in relation to Western novels or series, and in relation to anime and manga. And in some cases it results in samizdat. Otaku create their own works, in the form of drawings, stories or novels, and most often publish them on the Internet or in specialized publications at their own expense.
However, sometimes as a result of such amateur performances a new “star” appears - and the circle begins in a new way: fan fiction is now created based on the works of a new popular author.
Samizdat otaku is popular, especially among fans of original works. Encountered plots - the main character - a fellow in the world of anime or manga-source, either the author introduces a new GG from the same world, or the author takes the main characters from the original work, completely changing the plot to your liking.
In the Russian "community" of freak writers (the largest number of which can be found on lib.ru) the most anime fanfiction. Not many people write about the "Japanese comics" - among them, for example, the famous otaku Felix in these circles, who has included works on the world "Bleach" and "Sekirei".
