Kawaii, and other words we've taken from Japanese

In case you were wondering after seeing that this is the second Japanese/anime post, and not only that, but it directly follows another anime post, I’ll just tell you: I’m an anime otaku. I find shows like Princess Jellyfish to be kawaii, and I love to cosplay at conventions. I even have a waifu of my favorite characters from Death Note. Do something stupid and I’ll call you baka, just like they do in the shows.

Does it seem like I was changing languages a bit? Well, that’s because I was. Allow me to explain. In the mid 1980s in Japan, a company called Studio Ghibli opened and they made some anime movies that are considered classics today. Ever heard of Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, My Neighbor Totoro, or Kiki’s Delivery Service? If so, then you already know a little about Ghibli. It was a little bit after that when anime started to become more famous in the US.

What is anime? It’s a Japanese style of drawn animation, not to be confused with manga, which is similar in that it’s drawn, but in book form. Manga are like graphic novels, but usually read from right to left, top to bottom. The reason for this (even after translation) is that a lot of the artists find that in being switched to the standard left to right of English, the drawings and the story lose something.

But what are the other words? Otaku is when someone is a huge fan of something. Kawaii is something that is super cute (like kitties!). Cosplaying is (a wonderful thing) really fun to do! It’s where someone picks a character that they really like, and dresses up like that character. A waifu is great. It’s not as dirty as some people make it. In general it’s a body pillow that is a NORMAL PILLOW, and in a pillow case that has a character printed onto it. Do yourself a favor and do NOT Google it! Some waifu can be a bit…naked. Others can have things inside the pillows…that make noises… HOWEVER, A LOT OF THEM DON’T. So don’t judge a waifu by the others. Calling someone baka is calling them an idiot. Somehow, it’s just a lot more fun to say it in Japanese.

(380 words)