Waifu

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Cosplayer disguised as a garbage can at the Anime Expo 2016 with a waifu by Chitoge Kirisaki from Nisekoi .
Dakimakura to Garakowa: Restore the World

A waifu is a female fictional character with whom a special relationship or fan love is cultivated.

Most of these characters come from anime , manga or Japanese computer games . Some of these figures are also depicted on a side sleeper pillow (so-called "waifu pillows" or Dakimakuras ) or other objects. The degree of clothing and the style elements of manga and anime of the characters can vary greatly and some objects are also printed on several sides. The motives of waifu followers range from just having fun to a serious relationship or sexual fantasies. The male counterpart is known as a Husbando .

The term is used more by western fans - in Japan itself the term ore no yome ( 俺 の 嫁, my wife ” ) is common under otaku .

etymology

The term originally comes from the anime series Azumanga Daioh , where the figure Kimura tried "my wife" (to German: My Wife ) say what, however, as mai waifu sounds. But since there is no final consonants in Japanese, except n , is in for foreign words used syllabary katakana the term as waifu ( ワイフ ) and not waif written.

Husbando is a word formation based on Japanese - the correct transcription in Japanese would be hasubando ( ハ ズ バ ド .).

Network culture

The term is also often used outside of the anime scene, for example in the form of Internet memes on social networks , forums and image boards . The Online - Database MyWaifuList deals with female characters and offers background information, photos and community functions.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Waifu: What does that mean in the anime and Co.? Simply explained . In: GIGA . June 14, 2017 ( giga.de [accessed October 29, 2017]).
  2. ↑ Why Adults Fall In Love With (And Spend Big Money On) Cartoon Characters - Forbes. June 21, 2015. Retrieved October 29, 2017 .
  3. ↑ Japan has taken hologram girlfriends to the next level. Retrieved October 29, 2017 (American English).
  4. ↑ Japan: Gatebox's smart virtual reality 'companion' receives mixed responses . In: Tech Wire Asia . December 19, 2016 ( techwireasia.com [accessed October 29, 2017]).
  5. ↑ My best friend is a robot - how automatons are infiltrating the family . In: The Irish Times . ( irishtimes.com [accessed October 29, 2017]).
  6. ↑ »MyWaifuList« started: character database and waifu voting platform . In: Anime2You - your anime-news source . ( anime2you.de [accessed October 29, 2017]).
  7. ↑ MyWaifuList: Waifu Database. Retrieved October 29, 2017 .