the history of cosplay in west countries
Posted By admin on January 2, 2010
The word cosplay was coined by journalist Nobuyuki Takahashi and first appeared in print in an article he wrote in a June 1983 article in the magazine “My Anime.”" Takahashi shortened the word to “cosplay” after hearing that “costume play” was not actually an English word. The history of cosplay is intertwined with the West — it was not developed in a vacuum! A direct Japanese translation of masquerade, with its aristocratic nuances, would not suffice. “Costume” and “play,”" both borrowed words in Japanese, became “cosplay,” In the early 1980s, attendees at doujin manga show Comic Market, or Comiket, began drawing pictures of their favorite manga and anime characters on their shirts. This evolved into a handful of individuals dressing up as actual characters.
While Japanese fandom was trying to find its footing in expressing itself, its American counterparts had been dressed up at science fiction conventions for decades. Takahashi was surprised to see Trekkies in full Star Trek gear at the 1984 Worldcon (The World Science Fiction Convention) in Los Angeles. Takahashi hoped that the trend would catch on in his native Japan, and now had the newly minted term he needed to sell it. Geek culture is largely universal. The idea of dressing as one’s favorite characters — whether that be from Star Trek or Mobile Suit Gundam — has undeniable appeal.
“Cosplay” is Japanese for “costume play” — individuals dressing up in costume. In Japan, it is not restricted to video game, manga or anime characters, but can encompass dressing in all sorts of outfits: maid, nurse, schoolgirl, etc. The term is a shortened form of borrowed English, yet cosplay is viewed as something uniquely for and by the Japanese.
In the West, dressing up in costumes has a myriad of meanings — all different. There is a rich and long history of masquerade in European aristocracy, which was centuries later appropriated by the sci-fi expos as “costume contests” with participants dressing up as characters from domestic movies or TV shows. The West gave birth to Halloween, a holiday in which children don typically monster costumes. Finally, there is cosplay.
Leave a Reply