is a Japanese

Japanese language

is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...

 slang word meaning "short person" or "small child". The word has gained currency amongst fans of manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 and anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

. Its meaning is of someone or some animal that is small. It can be translated as "little", but is not used the same way as chiisana [小さな] (tiny, small, little in Japanese) but rather cute. A prototypical example of the former usage in the original Japanese which brought the term to the attention of Western fans is Chibiusa, a pet name

Hypocoristic

A hypocorism is a shorter form of a word or given name, for example, when used in more intimate situations as a nickname or term of endearment.- Derivation :Hypocorisms are often generated as:...

 for the diminutive daughter of Sailor Moon formed from Chibi Usagi ("Little Rabbit").

In English-speaking anime and manga fandom

Anime and manga fandom

Anime and manga fandom is a worldwide community of fans of anime and manga.- Otaku :Otaku is a Japanese term for people with obsessive interests, including anime, manga, or video games. In its original context, the term otaku is mildly offensive, implying that a person is somewhat socially inept...

 (otaku

Otaku

is a Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests, particularly anime, manga or video games.- Etymology :Otaku is derived from a Japanese term for another's house or family , which is also used as an honorific second-person pronoun...

), the term chibi has mostly been conflated

Conflation

Conflation occurs when the identities of two or more individuals, concepts, or places, sharing some characteristics of one another, become confused until there seems to be only a single identity — the differences appear to become lost...

 with the 'super deformed

Super deformed

Super deformed or SD is a specific style of Japanese caricature where characters are drawn in an exaggerated way, typically small and chubby, with stubby limbs and oversized heads, to make them resemble small children...

' style of drawing characters with oversized heads or it can be used to describe child versions of characters.

Chibi style is usually used in depicting scenes which are cute and/or humorous, and it is extremely rare for it to be used for an entire anime series. It is quite popular in manga, however.

External links

• Chibi Land Sailor Moon site devoted to Chibis and Super deformed