UlasanAnime.com – The practice of abbreviating anime titles, particularly for series with lengthy names, has become a common phenomenon within the fan community. This article delves into the motivations and implications behind these abbreviations, focusing on the case of “Haganai” and its alternative abbreviation, “Bokutomo.”
The author presents several perspectives on why fans resort to abbreviating titles. Primarily, it’s a matter of convenience and saving time. This is especially true in the context of “uber-geek sort of things,” where efficiency in communication is valued.
A secondary factor is the inherent challenge of compressing Japanese romanized text into shorter forms. While this might be academically interesting, it’s often driven by practical needs rather than scholarly pursuit. The article also touches upon the linguistic quirks of Japanese, such as the “wa vs. ha vs. wahahahahaha” phenomenon, which adds another layer of complexity to titling and its abbreviations.
The concept of “weeabooism” is introduced as a potential fourth layer influencing these abbreviations. The author suggests that the overseas fandom is becoming increasingly aligned with Japan’s fan scene, leading to a rise in the use of four-syllable acronyms. This trend is exacerbated by the increasing prevalence of anime with extremely long titles, making traditional first-letter abbreviations unwieldy and difficult to remember.
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The author expresses a personal dislike for the first-letter abbreviation method, citing instances where it leads to confusion due to the lack of uniform romanization of Japanese. Furthermore, the inconsistency in how titles are shortened can be problematic, as demonstrated by the difficulty in abbreviating titles like “Utawarerumono.” The article also critiques this practice as being distinctly Western-fan driven, drawing a parallel to how companies localize anime titles for convenience and marketing, sometimes deviating significantly from the original.
The article then brings up the example of “FLCL” and how its abbreviation is understood within the fandom. The focus shifts to “Bokutomo,” an abbreviation for “Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai.” The author finds “Bokutomo” to sound less appealing than “Haganai” or “Waganai.” However, the article acknowledges that there is a rationale behind these abbreviations, often stemming from otaku culture or general human/nerd tendencies to perpetuate truncated names through a formula.
The phonological nature of Japanese lettering is highlighted as a reason why these types of abbreviations are often superior to older methods that relied on unpronounceable letters. The author uses the example of “Rakkyo” being preferred over “KnK” because it is pronounceable and distinctive.
The core argument regarding “weeabooishness” is that these abbreviations are often adopted by fans who are eager to emulate Japanese fan culture without fully understanding its nuances. The author posits that instead of following a “majority consensus” in Japan, fans are creating terms based on perceived rules. The article contrasts this with official abbreviations that are sanctioned by production committees, original authors, and widely used by the Japanese populace.
The author questions why “BokuTomo” is chosen, suggesting it’s a manifestation of “weeabooism”—the act of embracing something Japanese simply because it is perceived as such, without deep comprehension. The article proposes that fans who adopt “BokuTomo” should instead use the abbreviated romanized name or “BwTgS,” which is significantly shorter than other potential abbreviations like “AHMHnNwBwMS.”
In a concluding thought, the author revisits the idea of “BokuTomo” as a competitive alternative. While expressing a preference for the current state if the English-speaking anime fandom insists on shortening names in a “retarded” manner, the author humorously questions why “Haganai,” which is deemed even more “weeaboo-y,” isn’t adopted by everyone.
A postscript mentions the author’s regret and a subsequent note about technical difficulties with character encoding on the hosting platform.
