Japanophilia

A Japanophile is a person with an unusually strong interest in Japan or its culture. Although Japanophile can be used to refer to people with intellectual interests in Japan, such as historians, linguists or sociologists, the term is typically used outside of Japan in a derisive manner to refer to animanga fans, or otaku. It is most often aimed at fans who profress a great deal of knowledge of Japanese culture (the majority being superficial), despite being unable to even understand the language. Many hold an idealised image of Japan.

Unlike the terms otaku or fanboy, which in some circles have been co-opted by the group they intend to deride, Japanophile remains offensive. The term implies fans who have a warped perception of real Japan or revere it due to a lack of identity within their native country or culture (i.e., the sterotypical anime fan in the west is white and male).

Japanophiles are stigmatised as being nerdy, socially maladept and obsessive. Stereotypically, it is believed that Japanophiles exhibit the following qualities:

• a strong preference for Japanese pop culture (comics, animated series, music) over western equivalents, even in cases where by most objective standards the Japanese product is inferior
• an interest in rhythm games such as Dance Dance Revolution or Beatmania; these games are popular in Japan and feature predominantly Japanese music, so they allow the player some ability to role play
• a tendency to use words from Japanese, otakuisms, in normal conversation for no apparent reason, furthering their alienation from the mainstream culture of their native countries
• a fetish towards underage girls; many different mangas feature underage girls as sexualised idols, which gives the impression that Japanophiles are pedophiles as well, worsening the stigma around them

Those labelled as Japanophiles counter that the average fan inevitably learns about the basics of Japanese culture through their interest in animanga and this knowledge is simply a reflection of what they feel is necessary to understand quirks that would be missed otherwise. Some call the term Japanophile flamebait or even racist, as it is usually used by people who are not fans of animanga or themselves admit they do not understand its draw to its fans nor anything about Japanese culture at all.

See also: trekkie, trekker.