Glossary of Hentai Manga and Doujinshi Terms (A–Z)
This glossary collects terms that appear across this wiki and in stores, events and fan discussion. Japanese words are given in a common romanised form; spellings vary, and long vowels are sometimes written with macrons or doubled letters (for example tankōbon or tankoubon). Definitions are brief; follow the links for more detail.
A–C
- 18-kin (18禁) – “Prohibited under 18”. A label marking adult publications.
- Akihabara – A district of Tokyo known for electronics, anime and manga shops, including many doujinshi retailers.
- Anthology – A book containing works by several artists, usually around a shared theme or source.
- Archetype – A recurring character type such as tsundere or onee-san. See character archetypes.
- Beta (ベタ) – Solid black fill used in manga inking, for hair, clothing or shadow.
- BL (boys’ love) – Stories centred on relationships between men; overlaps with yaoi.
- Catalogue – The listing of all circles published for a doujin event.
- Chibi – A small, simplified, super-deformed drawing style used for comic effect.
- Circle (サークル) – The publishing identity of an individual or group producing doujinshi.
- Colophon (okuzuke) – The publication details printed at the back of a book: title, circle, date, printer.
- Comiket – Comic Market, the largest doujin event, held twice a year at Tokyo Big Sight.
- Comitia – A doujin event for original works only.
- Consignment (itaku) – Arrangement whereby a shop sells a circle’s books and pays it a share.
D–G
- Dandere – A shy, quiet archetype who gradually opens up.
- Deredere – Openly affectionate; also the root of the “-dere” archetype names.
- DLsite – A large digital store for doujin works, including adult works.
- Doujin – The self-publishing scene in general, including comics, games and music.
- Doujinshi (同人誌) – A self-published work, typically a comic. See what is doujinshi.
- Ecchi – Suggestive but non-explicit content; from the letter “H”.
- Ero-gekiga – Realistic-style erotic comics popular in 1970s Japan.
- Ero manga – The everyday Japanese term for erotic manga.
- FAKKU – A US-based publisher licensing adult manga in English.
- Fanza – The adult content brand of DMM, selling doujin and commercial works.
- Full colour – A work with all pages in colour.
- Futanari – A term used in adult manga for characters depicted with both male and female sexual characteristics; listed here as a definition only.
- Gekiga – “Dramatic pictures”, a realistic, adult-oriented style of post-war manga.
- Giongo / gitaigo – Onomatopoeia for real sounds / mimetic words for states and feelings.
- Gyaru – A fashion-led, outgoing character archetype.
H–M
- Hentai – Japanese for “pervert”; used abroad as a genre name for explicit anime and manga. See what is hentai manga.
- Honorific – Suffixes such as -san, -kun and -chan indicating relationships.
- Isekai – A story in which a character is transported to or reborn in another world.
- Josei – Manga aimed at adult women.
- Kemonomimi – Characters with animal ears and sometimes tails.
- Koma-wari – Panel layout.
- Kuudere – A calm, outwardly cool archetype with hidden warmth.
- Melonbooks – A major chain of doujinshi and anime shops.
- Monster girl – A character with partly non-human, mythological or animal features.
- Mosaic – Pixelated obscuring used to comply with Japanese obscenity law. See censorship and mosaics.
N–R
- Name (ネーム) – Thumbnail layouts for a manga page.
- Niji sousaku (二次創作) – Derivative fan works based on existing media.
- NTR (netorare) – A tag for stories about a partner’s infidelity from the perspective of the one left behind.
- Onee-san – A mature, confident adult woman archetype.
- Oni – An ogre or demon figure from Japanese folklore.
- Oneshot – A single, self-contained story.
- Only event – A doujin event devoted to a single series or theme.
- Original (soushaku) – A doujinshi featuring characters invented by the circle.
- Print run – The number of copies printed.
- R-18 – A rating mark for adult-only content.
- Raw – An untranslated Japanese original, in fan terminology.
S–Z
- Sakuhin (作品) – “Work”; used for any creative work, including a doujinshi or game.
- Scanlation – Unauthorised fan scanning and translation of manga.
- Screentone – Dot or pattern sheets used to create grey shading.
- Seijin manga – Formal term for adult manga.
- Seinen – Manga aimed at adult men; a demographic, not a content rating.
- Shunga – Erotic woodblock prints and books of the Edo period.
- Space – A circle’s assigned table at an event.
- Splash page – A full-page single image.
- Tag – A label describing a work’s genre, setting or content.
- Tankoubon (単行本) – A collected volume, typically gathering magazine chapters.
- Toranoana – A major chain of doujinshi and anime shops.
- Tsundere – A prickly archetype who gradually shows affection.
- Typesetting – Placing text in speech bubbles.
- Uncensored – An edition without mosaics, typically a licensed foreign release.
- Vanilla – Consensual, affectionate content without extreme themes.
- Yaoi – Stories centred on relationships between men.
- Yuri – Stories centred on relationships between women.