I've been looking into the semantics of American anime fandom. I think I've got a pretty good definition for the word "otaku" that even people with no knowledge of Japanese culture could understand. Please correct me if I make any mistakes in this description.

In America, "otaku" has come to mean someone who likes anime and manga and enjoys different facets of Japanese popular culture. This group believes that the Japanese meaning is "fanatic". Some of the Americans who use this word have heard that it has negative connotations in Japan, but few know the origin of the word.

The word "otaku" is an old Japanese word that once meant "one's house" or "one's husband". It was used to mean "you" in common speech among people who did not know each other well. It had the feeling of "I don't know you or how I should act towards you, so I will stay distant from you".

Recently, a large subgroup of the youth of Japan became known as "Otaku-zoku", (lit. "'Otaku'-tribe"). This term was coined in response to the awkward way in which they stay distant from everyone around them. Instead of allowing themselves to get close to other people, they hide from real social interaction by talking only about their hobbies and never revealing any part of their real selves. In the place of friends, they have internet message boards. In place of lovers, they have ero-anime and ero-games. (In America, these are known as "hentai", another word that has a different meaning in Japan. Essentially, they are animations and games with erotic content primarily aimed at a male audience.) They will meet up in real life, but only under the guise of doing something related to their hobby.

Among otaku-zoku, there is a subgroup of people who cannot even bring themselves to leave their houses for fear of having to deal with other people and society. This group is known as "hikkikomori" or "komori-zoku". This extreme subgroup is thought not to exist outside of Japan, as it is a phenomenon mostly caused and exclusively allowed by the Japanese social system, particularly the Japanese school system. There are, however, a large amount of otaku in and outside of Japan who can be classified as one of the groups known as "NEET"; "Not in Employment, Education, or Training". Many in this group want something more out of life, but cannot figure out how to get the kind of enjoyment the receive from their hobbies in "real life". They are afraid to allow themselves to become attached to other people and therefore cannot find themselves a place in society; society being the "world of other people".

Otaku-zoku have been called "non-humans" by the mainstream media. Like androids, they consume data relevant to their hobbies, regardless of its usefulness. Because of their fragile perceptions of themselves and the world around them, some otaku-zoku have become violent towards people in the outside world. Although this trend is rare, the media is quick to report on such outbursts of violence and label all otaku-zoku as dangerous. "Otaku" is to some people in Japan a word synonymous to "serial-killer" and "child molester".

Many otaku view themselves as victims of society. They tend to define themselves primarily by their hobbies and their status among fan communities based upon their knowledge of (mostly useless) facts and trivia related to their hobby. Instead of communicating openly with other people, otaku tend to hide behind their hobby when interacting with others. Many are lonely as a result of their self-chosen seclusion and view themselves as a different breed of human, incapable of being understood.

It seems to me that "otaku" means someone who has closed off their heart.

> In America, "otaku" has come to mean someone who likes anime and manga and enjoys different facets of Japanese popular culture. This group believes that the Japanese meaning is "fanatic".

The American fans are correct. You are wrong. You are some sort of idiot.

This term was coined by the media originally; it was not made by the fans themselves. Its meaning comes from the way the group behaved. Since a lot of them used the word "otaku" to refer to other people around them (regardless of class, social status, or familiarity) they became known as the "otaku tribe". Most of them -are- obsessive fans of one sort or another, but they all have different interests. The one thing that ties them together is that they cannot interact with people beyond their hobbies. This is why a simple term like "fanatic" cannot encompass what it is to be an "otaku".

　　　　　　　　　　　　　 ∧∧
　　　　　　　　　　　　　( ﾟ∀ﾟ)　～Jeepers, a bunch of weeaboos!
　　　　　　　　　　　　 ⊂　　つ
　　　　　　　　　　　　　(つ ﾉ
　　　　　　　　　　　　　 (ノ
　　　　　＼　　　　　　☆
　　　　　　　　　　　　　|　　　　　☆
　　　　　　　　　　(⌒ ⌒ヽ　　　/
　　　　＼　　（´⌒　　⌒　　⌒ヾ　　　／
　　　　　 （'⌒　;　⌒　　　::⌒　　）
　　　　　（´　　　　　）　　　　　:::　）　／
　　☆─　（´⌒;:　　　　::⌒`）　:;　　）
　　　　　（⌒::　　　::　　　　　::⌒　）

　　　　　　　　　( ﾟ∀ﾟ)　～Jeepers, >>4 is an idiot!　　　　　　　　　　　　 ⊂　　つ　　　　　　　　　　　　　(つ ﾉ　　　　　　　　　　　　　 (ノ　　　　　＼　　　　　　☆　　　　　　　　　　　　　|　　　　　☆　　　　　　　　　　(⌒ ⌒ヽ　　　/　　　　＼　　（´⌒　　⌒　　⌒ヾ　　　／　　　　　 （'⌒　;　⌒　　　::⌒　　）　　　　　（´　　　　　）　　　　　:::　）　／　　☆─　（´⌒;:　　　　::⌒`）　:;　　）　　　　　（⌒::　　　::　　　　　::⌒　）

Otaku literally means home. It was this really old-fashioned upperclass way to refer to someone. It was used in anime a lot and nerds started imitating it. And so they are now known as otaku.

>>1
"nerd" or "freak" in English

>>7
geek may be 3-4% more accurate

Everyone comes up with such long explanations on how to describe otaku, otaku culture, this and that.

Otaku are just the Japanese version of the comic book guy from Simpsons XD (more or less)

>>9
Agree