View source for Hentai

{{short description|Anime and manga pornography}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Distinguish|Hentaigana}}
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{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2025}}

[[File:Akihabara August 2014 07.JPG|thumb|A wide variety of hentai merchandise is commonly sold in specialized stores in Japan.]]

'''Hentai''' ({{langx|ja|ヘンタイ}}) is a style of [[Pornography in Japan|Japanese pornographic]] [[anime]] and [[manga]]. In addition to anime and manga, hentai works exist in a variety of media, including artwork and video games (commonly known as ''[[eroge]]'').

{{Anime and manga}}

The development of hentai has been influenced by Japanese cultural and historical attitudes toward [[sexuality]]. Hentai works, which are often self-published, form a significant portion of the market for ''[[doujin]]'' works, including ''[[doujinshi]]''. Numerous subgenres exist depicting a variety of [[Human sexual activity|sexual acts]] and relationships, as well as novel [[Sexual fetishism|fetishes]].

== Terminology ==
In sexual contexts, ''hentai'' carries additional meanings of "[[perversion]]" or "[[Abnormality (behavior)|abnormality]]", especially when used as an adjective;<ref name="Livia">{{cite book | title=Queerly Phrased: Language, Gender, and Sexuality | publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] | year=1997 | last1=Livia | first1=Anna | last2=Kira | first2=Hall}}</ref>{{rp|99}} in these uses, it is the shortened form of the phrase {{Nihongo3||変態性欲|hentai seiyoku}} which means "sexual perversion".<ref name="Short History">{{Cite journal |url=http://wwwsshe.murdoch.edu.au/intersections/issue12/mclelland.html |title=A Short History of ''Hentai'' |first=Mark |last=McLelland |journal=Intersections: Gender, History and Culture in the Asian Context |issue=12 |date=January 2006 |access-date=14 July 2014 |hdl=1885/8673 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170622163120/http://intersections.anu.edu.au/issue12/mclelland.html |archive-date=22 June 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> The character {{lang|ja-latn|hen}} is a catch-all for queerness as a peculiarity—it does not carry an explicit sexual reference.<ref name="Livia" />{{rp|99}} While the term has expanded in use to cover a range of publications including homosexual publications,<ref name="Livia" />{{rp|107}} it remains primarily a heterosexual term, as terms indicating homosexuality entered Japan as [[Wasei-eigo|foreign words]].<ref name="Livia" />{{rp|100}}<ref name="Short History" /> [[Pornography in Japan|Japanese pornographic works]] are often simply tagged as {{Nihongo3||18禁|18-kin|extra='18-prohibited'}}, meaning "prohibited to those not yet 18 years old", and {{Nihongo3||成人漫画|seijin manga|extra="adult manga"}}.<ref name="Short History" /> Less official terms also in use include {{nihongo|[[erotic|ero]] anime|エロアニメ}}, {{nihongo|ero manga|エロ漫画}}, and the English initialism AV (for "adult video"). Usage of the term ''hentai'' does not define a genre in Japan.
[[File:The kanji for Hentai.svg|thumb|154x154px|The word ''hentai'' written in [[kanji]]|left]]
''Hentai'' is defined differently in English. The ''[[Oxford English Dictionary|Oxford Dictionary Online]]'' defines it as "a subgenre of the Japanese genres of manga and anime, characterized by overtly sexualized characters and sexually explicit images and plots."<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/hentai |title=hentai |encyclopedia=[[Oxford English Dictionary|Oxford Dictionary Online]] |publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=25 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130806121703/http://oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/hentai |archive-date=6 August 2013 }}</ref> The origin of the word in English is unknown, but [[AnimeNation]]'s John Oppliger points to the early 1990s, when a ''[[Dirty Pair]]'' erotic ''[[doujinshi]]'' (self-published work) titled ''H-Bomb'' was released, and when many websites sold access to images culled from Japanese erotic [[visual novel]]s and games.<ref>{{cite web|first=John |last=Oppliger |url=http://www.animenation.net/blog/2007/10/19/ask-john-how-did-the-word-hentai-get-adopted-into-english/ |title=Ask John: How Did the Word 'Hentai' Get Adopted Into English? |publisher=[[AnimeNation]] |access-date=25 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006164915/http://www.animenation.net/blog/2007/10/19/ask-john-how-did-the-word-hentai-get-adopted-into-english/ |archive-date=6 October 2013 }}</ref> The earliest English use of the term traces back to the rec.arts.anime boards, with a 1990 post concerning [[Happosai]] of ''[[Ranma ½]]'' and the first discussion of the meaning in 1991.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rec.arts.anime/DUwhE32RLN4/D_OGfPXqd_0J | title=Ranma 1/2 | date=8 February 1990 | access-date=29 April 2013 | author=Newton, Mark}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rec.arts.anime/TSxYG7Zo5pk/discussion | title=Some little questions | date=12 April 1991 | access-date=29 April 2013}}</ref> A 1995 glossary on the rec.arts.anime boards contained reference to the Japanese usage and the evolving definition of hentai as "pervert" or "perverted sex".<ref>{{cite web | url=https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rec.arts.anime/P-b8LL4ZYiA/vZVc_7gqwrwJ | title=rec.arts.manga Glossary | date=17 March 1995 | access-date=29 April 2013 | author=Sinclair, Iain}}</ref> ''The Anime Movie Guide'', published in 1997, defines {{Nihongo|"[[ecchi]]"|エッチ|etchi}} as the initial sound of hentai (i.e., [[Ecchi#H|the name of the letter ''H'']], as pronounced in Japanese); it included that ecchi was "milder than hentai".<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LTtDAQAAIAAJ&q=hentai | title=The Anime Movie Guide | publisher=Overlook Press | author=McCarthy, Helen | date=27 October 1997 | isbn=978-0-87951-781-6 | access-date=22 December 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221122801/https://books.google.com/books?id=LTtDAQAAIAAJ&q=hentai | archive-date=21 February 2019 | url-status=live}}</ref> A year later it was defined as a genre in ''Good Vibrations Guide to Sex''.<ref>{{cite book | title=Good Vibrations Guide to Sex: The Most Complete Sex Manual Ever Written | publisher=Cleis Press | author=Winks, Cathy | date=7 November 1998}}</ref> At the beginning of 2000, "hentai" was listed as the 41st most-popular search term of the internet, while "anime" ranked 99th.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.questia.com/read/1P2-5045822/forget-sex-and-drugs-surfers-are-searching-for-rock-n-roll | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630055044/http://www.questia.com/read/1P2-5045822/forget-sex-and-drugs-surfers-are-searching-for-rock-n-roll | archive-date=30 June 2013 | title=Forget Sex and Drugs. Surfers Are Searching for Rock'n'roll as the Net Finally Grows Up | work=[[The Independent]] | location=London | date=18 January 2000 | access-date=25 April 2013}}</ref> The attribution has been applied retroactively to works such as ''[[Urotsukidōji]]'', ''[[La Blue Girl]]'', and ''[[Cool Devices]]''. ''Urotsukidōji'' had previously been described with terms such as "Japornimation",<ref>{{cite journal | url=https://www.questia.com/library/1G1-17165499/holy-akira-it-s-aeon-flux | title=Holy Akira! It's Aeon Flux | last=Marin | first=Cheech | journal=[[Newsweek]] | volume=107 | issue=7 | access-date=29 August 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140505125057/http://www.questia.com/library/1G1-17165499/holy-akira-it-s-aeon-flux | archive-date=5 May 2014 | url-status=live }}</ref> and "[[Ero guro|erotic grotesque]]",<ref name="wp">{{cite news | url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-943760.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140611135351/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-943760.html | archive-date=11 June 2014 | title=Movies; 'Overfiend': Cyber Sadism | newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | date=26 April 1993 | access-date=25 April 2013 | last=Harrington|first= Richard}}</ref> prior to being identified as hentai.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/80213/Urotsukidoji-I-Legend-of-the-Overfiend/overview | title=Urotsukidoji I: Legend of the Overfiend (1989) | access-date=25 April 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090227003431/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/80213/Urotsukidoji-I-Legend-of-the-Overfiend/overview | archive-date=27 February 2009 | department=Movies & TV Dept. | work=[[The New York Times]] | author=Clarke Fountain | date=2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Paula |last=Span | url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-728801.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140611135356/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-728801.html | archive-date=11 June 2014 | title=Cross-Cultural Cartoon Cult; Japan's Animated Futuristic Features Move From College Clubs to Video Stores | newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | date=15 May 1997 | access-date=1 May 2013}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!
! Development of the term "Hentai"<ref>{{Cite web |last=Josephy-Hernández |first=Daniel E |date=January 2017 |title=Fansubbing Hentai Anime: Users, Distribution, Censorship and Ethics |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283860753 |website=Researchgate |page=175}}</ref>
|-
| [[Meiji era|Meiji period]] (1868–1912)
| [[Hysteria]]
|-
| 1917s
| Abnormal sexual desire.
|-
| 1920s–1930s
| Perverted sexuality. Topics related to homosexual relationships.
|-
| 1940s–1950s
| Hentai seiyoku or "perverted desires". Homosexual relationships are still a major theme.
|-
| 1960s
| The term becomes increasingly heterosexualised. The word "ecchi/etchi" appears for the first time.
|-
| 1970s and afterwards
| Development into a loanword in English with its own meaning, referring to a specific pornographic genre.
|-
| 2000s
| In Japan, refers to male heterosexual perversion rather than a wide range of sexual practices and identities. Also refers to the cartoon genre.
|}

== Etymology ==
[[File:Male homosexual couple Hentai shiryō.jpg|thumb|upright|A depiction of a male homosexual couple from the January 1928 edition of ''Hentai shiryō'']]

{{lang|ja|変態}} (''hentai''; [[shinjitai]]; {{pronunciation|Ja-Hentai.oga|listen|(|help=no}}) derives from {{lang|ja|變態}} ([[classical Chinese]], also [[kyūjitai]]), which is attested in [[classical Chinese]] texts.<ref name="hannom">{{cite web|url=https://hvdic.thivien.net/whv/%E8%AE%8A%E6%85%8B|title=變態|website=Từ điển Hán Nôm}}</ref> It functioned as a verbal phrase, from its two component [[morpheme]]s, {{lang|ja|變}} meaning "to change" and {{lang|ja|態}} meaning "state" or "condition," hence "to change from one state to another." Literal one-to-one English translations for this would be ''[[wikt:transform#English|transform]]'' and ''[[wikt:metamorph#English|metamorph]]'', wherein ''[[wikt:trans-#English|trans-]]'' and ''[[wikt:meta-#English|meta-]]'' correspond to 變, while ''[[wikt:form#English|form]]'' and ''[[wikt:morph#English|morph]]'' to 態. This meaning is attested in [[early Middle Japanese]] and later texts.<ref name="kotobank">{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%A4%89%E6%85%8B-131270#w-1252996|title=変態|website=kotobank.jp}}</ref>

In Chinese, {{lang|ja|變}} is primarily a verb meaning to "change," and secondarily a noun meaning "troublesome event,"<ref name="hannom" /> but in Japanese, it was extended to an [[Adjectival noun (Japanese)|adjectival noun]] meaning "different," "unusual" or "strange"<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%A4%89-171168#w-1412813|title=変|website=kotobank.jp}}</ref> (compare other compounds such as {{nihongo||變體|hentai|{{lit|unusual form}}}} as in {{nihongo||變體假名|[[hentaigana]]}}, and {{nihongo||變格|henkaku|{{lit|unusual style}}}} as in {{nihongo||變格活用|[[Japanese irregular verbs|henkaku katsuyō]]}}). This led {{lang|ja|變態}} to become a noun phrase meaning "strange state," thus "abnormality,"<ref name="kotobank" /><ref name="kenkyusha">{{cite book |title=研究社新和英大辞典 |trans-title=[[Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary]] |language=ja |publisher=[[Kenkyūsha]]}}</ref> instead of the original "to change to another state," in modern Japanese<ref name="kotobank" /> and Chinese<ref name="hannom" /> publications, particularly in psychology and physiology. A psychological application of this meaning is found in the phrase {{lang|ja|変態性欲}} (''hentai seiyoku'' {{lit|abnormal sexual desire}}<ref name="kenkyusha" />), which has been cited as being shortened (by [[Ellipsis (linguistics)|ellipsis]]) back to just {{lang|ja|変態}}.<ref name="kotobank" />

Yet another meaning, [[metamorphosis]], which resembles the original one, was first adopted by the [[Entomological Society of Japan]]<ref name="kotobank" /> and reintroduced into Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese. This meaning is used in the English translation of the light novel ''[[Perfect Blue|Perfect Blue: Complete Metamorphosis]]'', although it is not directly entomological, and it may also reference the semi-sexual portions of the work.

It is worth noting that {{lang|ja|変態}} is further shortened to ''H'' (''etchi''), the first letter of its romanization. Both ''hentai'' and ''etchi'' (or ''[[ecchi]]'' in English parlance) are used to refer to sexual perversion/deviance, or people therewith, as well as smut. A person accused of sexual perversion may be derogatorily called ''hentai'', while a sex scene in a film, TV show or [[Eroge|erotic game]] is called {{lang|ja|Hシーン}} (''etchi shīn'' {{lit|H-scene}}).<ref>{{cite book|first=Mitsuru|last=Adachi|author-link=Mitsuru Adachi|title=[[Short Program (manga)|Short Program]]|location=Tokyo|publisher=Shogakukan|date=23 July 2007|isbn=978-4-09-127873-9|volume=3|page=36|chapter=ja:下駄とダイヤモンド|trans-chapter=Geta and Diamonds|quote=話は面白いけどな。——しかし大事なのは'''エッチシーン'''。|trans-quote=Story's good, but it needs some sex scenes.}}</ref><!-- Ideally there should be some kind of encyclopedic entry, but my Goolge results are full of smut, and frankly this term is oververifiable. If you can find one better, feel free to replace this quote. --> The distinction outside of Japanese contexts between "hardcore" ''hentai'' and "softcore" ''etchi'' is entirely artificial.

The history of the word ''hentai'' has its origins in science and psychology.<ref name="Short History" /> By the middle of the [[Meiji era]], the term appeared in publications to describe unusual or abnormal traits, including paranormal abilities and psychological disorders.<ref name="Short History" /> A translation of German sexologist [[Richard von Krafft-Ebing]]'s text {{Lang|de|[[Psychopathia Sexualis]]}} originated the concept of ''hentai seiyoku'', as a "perverse or abnormal sexual desire",<ref name="Short History" /> though it was popularized outside psychology, as in the case of [[Mori Ōgai]]'s 1909 novel ''[[Vita Sexualis]]''.<ref name="Short History" /> Continued interest in ''hentai seiyoku'' resulted in numerous journals and publications on sexual advice which circulated in the public, served to establish the sexual connotation of ''hentai'' as perverse.<ref name="Short History" /> Any perverse or abnormal act could be hentai, such as committing {{lang|ja-latn|[[shinjū]]}} (love suicide).<ref name="Short History" /> It was Nakamura Kokyo's journal ''Abnormal Psychology'' which started the popular [[sexology]] boom in Japan which would see the rise of other popular journals like ''Sexuality and Human Nature'', ''Sex Research'' and ''Sex''.<ref name="Driscoll" /> Originally, Tanaka Kogai wrote articles for ''Abnormal Psychology'', but it would be Tanaka's own journal ''Modern Sexuality'' which would become one of the most popular sources of information about erotic and neurotic expression.<ref name="Driscoll" /> ''Modern Sexuality'' was created to promote [[fetishism]], [[Sadomasochism|S&M]], and [[necrophilia]] as a facet of modern life.<ref name="Driscoll">{{cite book| title=Absolute Erotic, Absolute Grotesque: The Living, Dead, and Undead in Japan's Imperialism, 1895–1945 |location=Durham/London| publisher=[[Duke University Press]] | date=13 July 2010 | last=Driscoll | first= Mark | pages=140–160 | isbn=978-0-8223-4740-8}}</ref> The [[ero-guro|ero guro]] movement and depiction of perverse, abnormal and often erotic undertones were a response to interest in ''hentai seiyoku''.<ref name="Short History" />

Following [[World War II]], Japan took a new interest in sexualization and public sexuality.<ref name="Short History" /> Mark McLelland puts forth the observation that the term ''hentai'' found itself shortened to "H" and that the English pronunciation was "[[etchi]]", referring to lewdness and which did not carry the stronger connotation of abnormality or perversion.<ref name="Short History" /> By the 1950s, the "hentai seiyoku" publications became their own genre and included fetish and homosexual topics.<ref name="Short History" /> By the 1960s, the homosexual content was dropped in favor of subjects like sadomasochism and stories of lesbianism targeted to male readers.<ref name="Short History" /> The late 1960s brought a sexual revolution which expanded and solidified the normalizing of the term's identity in Japan that continues to exist today through publications such as ''Bessatsu Takarajima''{{'}}s ''Hentai-san ga iku'' series.<ref name="Short History" />

== History ==
With the usage of ''hentai'' as any erotic depiction, the history of these depictions is split into their media. Japanese artwork and comics serve as the first example of hentai material, coming to represent the iconic style after the publication of [[Azuma Hideo]]'s ''{{ill|Cybele (doujinshi)|lt=Cybele|ja|シベール (同人誌)}}'' in 1979.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pFQmCAAAQBAJ&q=cybele+hideo+azuma&pg=PT81|title=Debating Otaku in Contemporary Japan: Historical Perspectives and New Horizons|last1=Galbraith|first1=Patrick W.|last2=Kam|first2=Thiam Huat|last3=Kamm|first3=Björn-Ole|date=21 May 2015|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=978-1-4725-9498-3|language=en}}</ref> Hentai first appeared in animation in the 1932 film {{ill|Suzumi-bune|ja|すヾみ舟}} by {{ill|Hakusan Kimura|ja|木村白山}}, which was seized by police when it was half complete. The remnants of the film were donated to the [[National Film Archive of Japan|National Film Center]] in the early 21st century.<ref name=":1" /> The film has never been viewed by the public.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Clements |first=Jonathan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=inWpe4hhc0IC&pg=PA75 |title=Schoolgirl Milky Crisis: Adventures in the Anime and Manga Trade |publisher=A-Net Digital LLC |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-9845937-4-3 |page=75 |author-link=Jonathan Clements}}</ref> However, the 1984 release of Wonderkid's ''[[Lolita Anime]]'' was the first hentai to get a general release,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FM9Y5EKSOakC&q=loloita+anime+1984&pg=PA49|title=Mechademia 3: Limits of the Human|last=Lunning|first=Frenchy|date=1 November 2014|publisher=U of Minnesota Press|isbn=978-1-4529-1417-6|page=49|language=en}}</ref> overlooking the erotic and sexual depictions in 1969's ''[[A Thousand and One Nights (1969 film)|A Thousand and One Nights]]'' and the bare-breasted Cleopatra in 1970's ''[[Cleopatra (1970 film)|Cleopatra]]'' film. Erotic games, another area of contention, has its first case of the art style depicting sexual acts in 1985's ''[[Tenshitachi no Gogo]]''. In each of these mediums, the broad definition and usage of the term complicates its historic examination.<ref name=":0" />

=== Origin of erotic manga ===
[[File:The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife, British Museum, version 1 (cropped).jpg|thumbnail|''[[The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife]]'' (1814), a well-known example of Japanese erotic art (''[[shunga]]'')]]
Depictions of sex and abnormal sex can be traced back through the ages, predating the term "hentai". ''[[Shunga]]'', a Japanese term for erotic art, is thought to have existed in some form since the [[Heian period]]. From the 16th to the 19th centuries, ''shunga'' works were suppressed by the [[shōgun|shogunate]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Bowman, John |year=2000 |title=Columbia Chronologies of Asian History and Culture |url=https://www.questia.com/library/99910501/columbia-chronologies-of-asian-history-and-culture |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130716085313/http://www.questia.com/library/99910501/columbia-chronologies-of-asian-history-and-culture |archive-date=16 July 2013 |access-date=26 April 2013 |publisher=[[Columbia University Press]] }}</ref> A well-known example is ''[[The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife]]'' by [[Hokusai]], which depicts a woman being stimulated by two octopuses. ''Shunga'' production fell with the introduction of pornographic photographs in the late 19th century.

To define erotic [[manga]], a definition for manga is needed. While the ''[[Hokusai Manga]]'' uses the term "manga" in its title, it does not depict the storytelling aspect common to modern manga, as the images are unrelated. Due to the influence of pornographic photographs in the 19th and 20th centuries, the manga artwork was depicted by realistic characters. [[Osamu Tezuka]] helped define the modern look and form of manga, and was later proclaimed as the "God of Manga".<ref name="history">{{cite web|url=http://www.matt-thorn.com/mangagaku/history.html |title=A History of Manga |access-date=26 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130415042305/http://www.matt-thorn.com/mangagaku/history.html |archive-date=15 April 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://hentaiweeb.com/what-is-hentai/ | title=History of Manga and Hentai | access-date=20 July 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170810030827/http://hentaiweeb.com/what-is-hentai | archive-date=10 August 2017 }}</ref> His debut work ''[[Shin Takarajima (manga)|New Treasure Island]]'' was released in 1947 as a comic book through Ikuei Publishing and sold over 400,000 copies,<ref name="history" /> though it was the popularity of Tezuka's ''[[Astro Boy]]'', ''[[Metropolis (manga)|Metropolis]]'', and ''[[Kimba the White Lion|Jungle Emperor]]'' manga that came to define the media. This story-driven manga style is distinctly unique from comic strips like ''[[Sazae-san]]'', and story-driven works came to dominate {{lang|ja-latn|[[shōjo]]}} and ''[[Shōnen manga|shōnen]]'' magazines.<ref name="history" />

Adult themes in manga have existed since the 1940s, but some of these depictions were more realistic than the cartoon-cute characters popularized by Tezuka.<ref name="Galbraith">{{cite journal |author=Galbraith, Patrick |year=2011 |title=Lolicon: The Reality of 'Virtual Child Pornography' in Japan |url=http://www.imageandnarrative.be/index.php/imagenarrative/article/viewFile/127/98 |journal=Image & Narrative |publisher=The University of Tokyo |volume=12 |issue=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806212344/http://www.imageandnarrative.be/index.php/imagenarrative/article/viewFile/127/98 |archive-date=6 August 2017 |access-date=26 April 2013 }}</ref> In 1973, ''Manga Bestseller'' (later known as ''Manga Erotopia''), which is considered to be the first hentai manga magazine published in Japan, was responsible for creating a new genre known as {{lang|ja-latn|ero-gekiga}}, where {{lang|ja-latn|[[gekiga]]}} was taken, and the sexual and violent content was intensified.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|last=Kimi|first=Rito|title=The History of Hentai Manga: An Expressionist Examination of Eromanga|publisher=[[FAKKU]]|year=2021|isbn=978-1-63442-253-6|pages=24, 25}}</ref> Other well-known "{{lang|ja-latn|ero-gekiga}}" magazines were ''Erogenica'' (1975), and ''Alice'' (1977).<ref>{{cite book |author=Gravett, Paul |url=https://archive.org/details/mangasixtyyearso0000grav |title=Manga: Sixty Years of Japanese Comics |publisher=Laurence King Publishing and Harper Design International |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-85669-391-2 |location=New York |page=135 |oclc=935609782 |url-access=registration}}</ref> The circulation of {{lang|ja-latn|ero-gekiga}} magazines peaked in 1978, and it is believed that somewhere between eighty and one hundred different {{lang|ja-latn|ero-gekiga}} magazines were being published annually.

The 1980s saw the decline of {{lang|ja-latn|ero-gekiga}} in favor of the rising popularity of ''[[lolicon]]'' and {{lang|ja-latn|[[bishōjo]]}} magazines, which grew from ''[[otaku]]'' fan culture. It has been theorized that the decline of {{lang|ja-latn|ero-gekiga}} was due to the baby boomer readership beginning to start their own families, as well as migrating to [[Seinen manga|''seinen'']] magazines such as ''[[Weekly Young Magazine]]'', and when it came to sexual material, the readership was stolen by [[Gravure idol|gravure]] and [[pornographic magazine]]s.<ref name=":3" /> The distinct shift in the style of Japanese pornographic comics from realistic to cartoon-cute characters is accredited to [[Hideo Azuma]], "The Father of ''Lolicon''".<ref name="Galbraith" /> In 1979, he penned ''{{interlanguage link|Cybele (doujinshi)|lt=Cybele|ja|シベール (同人誌)}}'', which offered the first depictions of sexual acts between cute, unrealistic Tezuka-style characters. This started a pornographic manga movement.<ref name="Galbraith" /> The ''lolicon'' boom of the 1980s saw the rise of magazines such as the anthologies ''[[Lemon People]]'' and ''[[Petit Apple Pie]]''. As the ''lolicon'' boom waned in the mid-1980s, the dominant form of representation for female characters became "baby faced and big chested" women.<ref name="nagayama">{{Cite book|last=Nagayama|first=Kaoru|title=[[Erotic Comics in Japan: An Introduction to Eromanga]]|date=2020|publisher=[[Amsterdam University Press]]|isbn=978-94-6372-712-9|location=Amsterdam|pages=27, 137–139, 223–224|translator-last=Galbraith|translator-first=Patrick W.|oclc=1160012499|translator-last2=Bauwens-Sugimoto|translator-first2=Jessica}}</ref> The shift in popularity from ''lolicon'' to {{lang|ja-latn|bishōjo}} has been credited to [[Naoki Yamamoto (manga artist)|Naoki Yamamoto]] (who wrote under the pen name of Tō Moriyama). Moriyama's manga had a style that had not been seen before at the time, and was different from the {{lang|ja-latn|ero-gekiga}} and ''lolicon'' styles, and used {{lang|ja-latn|bishōjo}} designs as a base to build upon. Moriyama's books sold well upon publication, creating even more fans for the genre. These new artists then wrote for magazines such as ''Monthly Penguin Club Magazine'' (1986) and ''Manga Hot Milk'' (1986) which became popular with their readership, drawing in new fans.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Kimi|first=Rito|title=The History of Hentai Manga: An Expressionist Examination of Eromanga|publisher=[[FAKKU]]|year=2021|isbn=978-1-63442-253-6|pages=37, 38}}</ref>

The publication of erotic materials in the United States can be traced back to at least 1990, when [[IANVS Publications]] printed its first ''Anime Shower Special''.<ref name="john2" /> In March 1994, [[Antarctic Press]] released ''[[Bondage Fairies]]'', an English translation of ''Insect Hunter'', an "insect rape" manga which became popular in the American market, while it apparently had a poor showing in Japan.<ref name="john2" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Kimi|first=Rito|title=The History of Hentai: An Expressionist Examination of Eromanga|publisher=[[FAKKU]]|year=2021|isbn=978-1-63442-253-6|page=333}}</ref> During this time, the one American publisher translating and publishing hentai was Fantagraphics on their adult comic imprint, Eros Comix, which was established around 1990.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Kimi|first=Rito|title=The History of Hentai Manga: An Expressionist Examination of Eromanga|publisher=[[FAKKU]]|year=2021|isbn=978-1-63442-253-6|page=331}}</ref>

=== Origin of erotic anime ===
[[File:Anime girl at beach.jpg|thumb|A woman drawn in erotic anime style at the beach.]]
''Hentai'' is typically defined as consisting of excessive nudity, and graphic sexual intercourse whether or not it is perverse. The term "[[ecchi]]" is typically related to [[fanservice]], with no sexual intercourse being depicted.

The earliest pornographic anime was ''{{ill|Suzumi-bune|ja|すヾみ舟}}'', created in 1932 by {{ill|Hakusan Kimura|ja|木村白山}}. It was the first part of a two-reeler film, which was half complete before it was seized by the police. The remnants of the film were donated to the [[National Film Archive of Japan|National Film Center]] in the early 21st century by the Tokyo police, who were removing all silver nitrate film in their possession, as it is extremely flammable.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last1=Clements |first1=Jonathan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E03KBgAAQBAJ |title=The Anime Encyclopedia: A Century of Japanese Animation |last2=McCarthy |first2=Helen |publisher=Stone Bridge Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-61172-909-2 |edition=3rd Revised |chapter=Erotica and pornography |author-link=Jonathan Clements |author-link2=Helen McCarthy}}</ref> The film has never been viewed by the public.<ref name=":2" />

Two early works escape being defined as hentai, but contain erotic themes. This is likely due to the obscurity and unfamiliarity of the works, arriving in the United States and fading from public focus a full 20 years before importation and surging interests coined the Americanized term ''hentai''. The first is the 1969 film ''[[A Thousand and One Nights (1969 film)|A Thousand and One Nights]]'', which faithfully includes erotic elements of the original story.<ref name="AE" />{{rp|27}} In 1970, ''[[Cleopatra: Queen of Sex]]'', was the first animated film to carry an [[X rating]], but it was mislabeled as erotica in the United States.<ref name="AE">{{cite book |last1=Clements |first1=Jonathan | author-link1=Clements, Jonathan |last2=McCarthy |first2=Helen |author-link2=Helen McCarthy | title=[[The Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917]] |edition=Revised and Expanded | publisher=Stone Bridge Press | year=2006}}</ref>{{rp|104}}

The ''[[Lolita Anime]]'' series is typically identified as the first erotic [[anime]] and [[original video animation]] (OVA); it was released in 1984 by Wonder Kids. Containing six episodes, the series focused on underage sex and rape, and included one episode containing [[BDSM]] bondage.<ref name="AE" />{{rp|376}} Several sub-series were released in response, including a second ''Lolita Anime'' series released by [[Nikkatsu]].<ref name="AE" />{{rp|376}} It has not been officially licensed or distributed outside of its original release.

The ''[[Cream Lemon]]'' franchise of works ran from 1984 to 2005, with a number of them entering the American market in various forms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.animenation.net/blog/2003/07/22/ask-john-how-much-cream-lemon-is-there/ |title=Ask John: How Much Cream Lemon is There? |publisher=animenation.net |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090505172501/http://www.animenation.net/blog/2003/07/22/ask-john-how-much-cream-lemon-is-there/ |archive-date=5 May 2009}}</ref> ''The Brothers Grime'' series released by Excalibur Films contained ''Cream Lemon'' works as early as 1986.<ref name="Anime Porn Market">{{cite web |url=http://www.awn.com/mag/issue3.4/3.4pages/3.4patten.html |title=The Anime 'Porn' Market |publisher=awn.com |access-date=6 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170428102208/http://www.awn.com/mag/issue3.4/3.4pages/3.4patten.html |archive-date=28 April 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> However, they were not billed as anime and were introduced during the same time that the first underground distribution of erotic works began.<ref name="john2">{{cite web|url=http://www.animenation.net/blog/2008/03/26/ask-john-how-did-hentai-become-popular-in-america/ |title=Ask John: How Did Hentai Become Popular in America? |publisher=AnimeNation |access-date=26 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130925211808/http://www.animenation.net/blog/2008/03/26/ask-john-how-did-hentai-become-popular-in-america/ |archive-date=25 September 2013 }}</ref>

The American release of licensed erotic anime was first attempted in 1991 by [[Central Park Media]], with ''I Give My All'', but it never occurred.<ref name="john2" /> In December 1992, ''[[Devil Hunter Yohko]]'' was the first risque (''ecchi'') title that was released by [[A.D. Vision]].<ref name="john2" /> While it contains no sexual intercourse, it pushes the limits of the ''ecchi'' category with sexual dialogue, nudity and one scene in which the heroine is about to be raped.

It was Central Park Media's 1993 release of ''[[Urotsukidoji|Urotsukidōji]]'' which brought the first hentai film to American viewers.<ref name="john2" /> Often cited for inventing the [[tentacle rape]] subgenre, it contains extreme depictions of violence and monster sex.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://metanorn.net/2011/08/not-fit-to-fap-to-urotsukidoji-birth-of-the-overfiend-nsfw | title=Not Fit to Fap To: Urotsukidoji: Birth of the Overfiend (NSFW) | publisher=Metanorn | access-date=25 April 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160823032050/http://metanorn.net/2011/08/not-fit-to-fap-to-urotsukidoji-birth-of-the-overfiend-nsfw | archive-date=23 August 2016 }}</ref> As such, it is acknowledged for being the first to depict tentacle sex on screen.<ref name="wp" /> When the film premiered in the United States, it was described as being "drenched in graphic scenes of perverse sex and ultra-violence".<ref>Richard Harrington. "Movies; 'Overfiend': Cyber Sadism". ''[[The Washington Post]]''. Washingtonpost Newsweek Interactive. 1993. {{Cite web |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-943760.html |title=Movies; 'Overfiend': Cyber Sadism – the Washington Post &#124; HighBeam Research |access-date=25 April 2013 |archive-date=11 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140611135351/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-943760.html }}</ref>

Following this release, a wealth of pornographic content began to arrive in the United States, with companies such as A.D. Vision, Central Park Media and [[Media Blasters]] releasing licensed titles under various labels.<ref name="Anime Porn Market" /> A.D. Vision's label SoftCel Pictures released 19 titles in 1995 alone.<ref name="Anime Porn Market" /> Another label, [[The Right Stuf International|Critical Mass]], was created in 1996 to release an unedited edition of ''[[Violence Jack]]''.<ref name="Anime Porn Market" /> When A.D. Vision's hentai label SoftCel Pictures shut down in 2005, most of its titles were acquired by Critical Mass. Following the bankruptcy of Central Park Media in 2009, the licenses for all Anime 18-related products and movies were transferred to Critical Mass.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-06-08/central-park-media-licenses-offered-by-liquidator |title=Central Park Media's Licenses Offered by Liquidator |publisher=[[Anime News Network]] |date=8 June 2009 |access-date=30 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222050850/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-06-08/central-park-media-licenses-offered-by-liquidator |archive-date=22 December 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Origin of erotic games ===
[[File:Eroge.jpg|thumb|Image of an [[eroge]] (Japanese-style adult video game)]]
The term ''[[eroge]]'' (erotic game) literally defines any erotic game, but has become synonymous with video games depicting the artistic styles of anime and manga. The origins of ''eroge'' began in the early 1980s, while the computer industry in Japan was struggling to define a computer standard with makers like [[NEC]], [[Sharp Corporation|Sharp]], and [[Fujitsu]] competing against one another.<ref name="eroge1">{{cite web|url=http://www.shii.org/geekstories/eroge.html |title=A History of Eroge |access-date=28 April 2013 |author=Todome, Satoshi |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205102947/http://www.shii.org/geekstories/eroge.html |archive-date=5 December 2012 }}</ref> The [[NEC PC-9801|PC98]] series, despite lacking in processing power, [[CD drive]]s and limited graphics, came to dominate the market, with the popularity of ''eroge'' games contributing to its success.<ref name="eroge1" /><ref name="hcg" />

Because of vague definitions of what constitutes an "erotic game", there are several possible candidates for the first ''eroge''. If the definition applies to adult themes, the first game was ''[[Softporn Adventure]]''. Released in America in 1981 for the [[Apple II]], this was a text-based comedic game from [[Sierra Entertainment|On-Line Systems]]. If ''eroge'' is defined as the first graphical depictions of Japanese adult themes, it would be [[Koei]]'s 1982 release of ''[[Night Life (video game)|Night Life]]''.<ref name="hcg">{{cite web | url=http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/JPNcomputers/Japanesecomputers3.htm | title=Hardcore gaming 101: Japanese computers | publisher=Hardcoregaming101 | access-date=28 April 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930174030/http://hardcoregaming101.net/JPNcomputers/Japanesecomputers3.htm | archive-date=30 September 2017 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Jones|first1=Matthew T.|date=December 2005|title=The Impact of Telepresence on Cultural Transmission through Bishoujo Games|journal=PsychNology Journal|volume=3|issue=3|pages=292–311|url=http://www.psychnology.org/File/PNJ3(3)/PSYCHNOLOGY_JOURNAL_3_3_JONES.pdf|issn=1720-7525|access-date=16 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120620120235/http://www.psychnology.org/File/PNJ3%283%29/PSYCHNOLOGY_JOURNAL_3_3_JONES.pdf|archive-date=20 June 2012}}</ref> Sexual intercourse is depicted through simple graphic outlines. Notably, ''Night Life'' was not intended to be erotic so much as an instructional guide "to support married life". A series of "undressing" games appeared as early as 1983, such as "Strip Mahjong". The first [[anime]]-styled erotic game was {{lang|ja-latn|[[Tenshitachi no Gogo]]}}, released in 1985 by [[JAST]]. In 1988, [[ASCII Corporation|ASCII]] released the first erotic [[role-playing game]], ''Chaos Angel''.<ref name="eroge1" /> In 1989, [[AliceSoft]] released the turn-based role-playing game ''[[Rance (series)|Rance]]'' and [[ELF Corporation|ELF]] released ''[[Dragon Knight (series)|Dragon Knight]]''.<ref name="eroge1" />

In the late 1980s, ''eroge'' began to stagnate under high prices and the majority of games containing uninteresting plots and mindless sex.<ref name="eroge1" /> ELF's 1992 release of {{lang|ja-latn|[[Dōkyūsei (video game)|Dōkyūsei]]}} came as customer frustration with ''eroge'' was mounting and spawned a new genre of games called [[dating sim]]s.<ref name="eroge1" /> {{lang|ja-latn|Dōkyūsei}} was unique because it had no defined plot and required the player to build a relationship with different girls in order to advance the story.<ref name="eroge1" /> Each girl had her own story, but the prospect of consummating a relationship required the girl growing to love the player; there was no easy sex.<ref name="eroge1" />

The term "[[visual novel]]" is vague, with Japanese and English definitions classifying the genre as a type of interactive fiction game driven by narration and limited player interaction. While the term is often retroactively applied to many games, it was [[Leaf (Japanese company)|Leaf]] that coined the term with their "Leaf Visual Novel Series" (LVNS) and the 1996 release of {{lang|ja-latn|[[Shizuku (video game)|Shizuku]]}} and {{lang|ja-latn|[[Kizuato]]}}.<ref name="eroge1" /> The success of these two dark ''eroge'' games would be followed by the third and final installment of the LVNS, the 1997 romantic ''eroge'' ''[[To Heart]]''.<ref name="eroge1" /> ''Eroge'' visual novels took a new emotional turn with [[Tactics (brand)|Tactics]]' 1998 release {{lang|ja-latn|[[One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e]]}}.<ref name="eroge1" /> [[Key (company)|Key]]'s 1999 release of ''[[Kanon (visual novel)|Kanon]]'' proved to be a major success and would go on to have numerous console ports, two manga series and two anime series.

== Censorship ==
{{see also|Censorship in Japan|Pornography laws by region}}

Japanese laws have impacted depictions of works since the [[Meiji Restoration]], but these predate the common definition of hentai material. Since becoming law in 1907, Article 175 of the [[Criminal Code of Japan]] forbids the publication of obscene materials. Specifically, depictions of male–female sexual intercourse and [[pubic hair]] are considered obscene, but bare genitalia is not.{{citation needed|date=July 2023}} As censorship is required for published works, the most common representations are the blurring dots on pornographic videos and "bars" or "lights" on still images. In 1986, [[Toshio Maeda]] sought to get past censorship on depictions of sexual intercourse, by creating [[Tentacle erotica|tentacle sex]].<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.urotsukidoji.jp/en/profile.html | title=Hentai Comics | publisher=Maeda, Toshio | access-date=25 April 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170721003554/http://www.urotsukidoji.jp/en/profile.html | archive-date=21 July 2017 | url-status=live }}</ref> This led to the large number of works containing sexual intercourse with monsters, demons, robots, and aliens, whose genitals look different from men's. While Western views attribute hentai to any explicit work, it was the products of this censorship which became not only the first titles legally imported to America and Europe, but the first successful ones. While uncut for American release, the United Kingdom's release of ''[[Urotsukidoji|Urotsukidōji]]'' removed many scenes of the violence and tentacle rape scenes.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=389419 | title=Urotsukidoji III – The Return of the Overfiend | publisher=Move Censorship.com | access-date=25 April 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180216084735/https://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=389419 | archive-date=16 February 2018 | url-status=live }}</ref> Another technique used to evade regulation was the "sexual intercourse cross-section view", an imaginary view of intercourse resembling an anatomic drawing or an [[Magnetic resonance imaging|MRI]], which would eventually evolve as a prevalent expression in hentai for its erotic appeal. This expression is known in the Western world as the "x-ray view".<ref>{{Cite book|last=Kimi|first=Rito|title=The History of Hentai: An Expressionist Examination of Eromanga|publisher=[[FAKKU]]|year=2021|isbn=978-1-63442-253-6|pages=177, 325, 326, 327}}</ref>

It was also because of this law that the artists began to depict the characters with a minimum of anatomical details and without pubic hair, by law, prior to 1991. Part of the ban was lifted when [[Nagisa Oshima]] prevailed over the obscenity charges at his trial for his film ''[[In the Realm of the Senses]]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://faculty.upj.pitt.edu/jalexander/Research%20archive/Japanese%20obscenity%20law/Oshima%20article.pdf | title=Obscenity, Pornography, and the Law in Japan: Reconsidering Oshima's In the Realm of the Senses | access-date=26 April 2013 | author=Alexander, James | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118071249/http://faculty.upj.pitt.edu/jalexander/Research%20archive/Japanese%20obscenity%20law/Oshima%20article.pdf | archive-date=18 January 2017 | url-status=live }}</ref> Though not enforced, the lifting of this ban did not apply to anime and manga as they were not deemed artistic exceptions.<ref name="Galbraith" />

Alterations of material or censorship and banning of works are common. The US release of ''[[La Blue Girl]]'' altered the age of the heroine from 16 to 18, removed sex scenes with a dwarf ninja named Nin-nin, and removed the Japanese blurring dots.<ref name="AE" /> ''La Blue Girl'' was outright rejected by UK censors who refused to classify it and prohibited its distribution.<ref name="AE" /><ref>''[http://www.bbfc.co.uk/general/index.php bbfc] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100701112841/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/general/index.php |date=1 July 2010}}'' (30 December 1996). "[http://www.bbfc.co.uk/website/Classified.nsf/ClassifiedWorks/06F862821A46D9C8802566C00033C26C?OpenDocument LA BLUE GIRL Rejected by the BBFC] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140505130255/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/website/Classified.nsf/ClassifiedWorks/06F862821A46D9C8802566C00033C26C?OpenDocument |date=5 May 2014}}". Retrieved 27 November 2009.</ref> In 2011, members of the [[Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)|Liberal Democratic Party of Japan]] sought a ban on the subgenre ''[[lolicon]]'' but were unsuccessful.<ref>{{cite web|title=請願：参議院ホームページ|url=http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/seigan/177/yousi/yo1771775.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024043059/http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/kousei/seigan/177/yousi/yo1771775.htm|archive-date=24 October 2017|access-date=14 May 2013|publisher=Sangiin.go.jp}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Hodgkins|first=Crystalyn|date=30 September 2011|title=LDP Petition: Japan's Child Porn Laws Should Apply to Manga/Anime/Games|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-09-30/ldp-petition/japan-child-porn-laws-should-apply-to-manga/anime/games|access-date=12 February 2021|website=Anime News Network|language=en}}</ref> The last law proposed against it was introduced on 27 May 2013 by the Liberal Democratic Party, the [[New Komei Party]] and the [[Japan Restoration Party]] that would have made possession of sexual images of individuals under 18 illegal with a fine of 1&nbsp;million yen (about US$10,437) and less than a year in jail.<ref>{{cite web|last=Loveridge|first=Lynzee|date=27 May 2013|title=Japan's Ruling Party to Reintroduce Child Pornography Law Revision|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-05-27/japan-ruling-party-to-reintroduce-child-pornography-law-revision|access-date=17 June 2013|work=Anime News Network}}</ref> The Japanese Democratic Party, along with several industry associations involved in anime and manga protested against the bill saying "while they appreciate that the bill protects children, it will also restrict freedom of expression".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://taruiyoshikazu.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/MX-2600FN_20130613_194327.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130703181021/http://taruiyoshikazu.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/MX-2600FN_20130613_194327.pdf |archive-date=3 July 2013 |title=JDP formally opposes the 2013 child pornography law |work=taruiyoshikazu.com |language=ja |access-date=17 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Torres|first=Ida|date=30 May 2013|title=Anime and manga associations protest proposed revision to child pornography bill|url=http://japandailypress.com/anime-and-manga-associations-protest-proposed-revision-to-child-pornography-bill-3029742|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322043416/http://japandailypress.com/anime-and-manga-associations-protest-proposed-revision-to-child-pornography-bill-3029742/|archive-date=22 March 2017|access-date=17 June 2013|work=Japan Daily Press}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Yoshida|first=Reiji|date=29 June 2013|title=Opposition slams ruling bloc on jobs deregulation|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/06/29/national/opposition-hits-ruling-blocs-employment-deregulation-plan-in-online-debate/|access-date=4 July 2013|work=The Japan Times|archive-date=24 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024101137/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/06/29/national/opposition-hits-ruling-blocs-employment-deregulation-plan-in-online-debate/}}</ref> The law was ultimately passed in June 2014 after the regulation of ''lolicon'' anime and manga was removed from the bill. This new law went into full effect in 2015 banning real life child pornography.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/japan-ban-child-pornograpy-1451724|title=Japan to Ban Child Pornography|work=www.ibtimes.co.uk|author=Tom Porter|date=7 June 2014|access-date=9 June 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Demetriou|first=Danielle|date=16 July 2015|title=Japan finally bans possession of child porn|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/11743004/Japan-finally-bans-possession-of-child-porn.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/11743004/Japan-finally-bans-possession-of-child-porn.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=12 August 2015|work=The Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

== Societal effects of hentai ==
{{See also|Feminist views on pornography|3=Stereotypes of East Asians in the United States}}
There is existing research on the social implications of pornography, in general, as it pertains to the sexualized and objectified image of women. In regards to how hentai particularly contributes to the conversation of the image of women, recent research identifies evidence in which hentai promotes rape myth acceptance, sexual violence, and racialization of women.

=== Rape myths ===
Recent studies have illustrated a correlation between the consumption of hentai and the promotion of [[rape myth]]s. In particular, studies have shown how viewing hentai can lead to an increase in prejudiced and stereotypical perspectives on rape and sexual assault.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Azevedo Almeida |first=Beatriz |date=2023 |title=The Mediating Role of Rape Myths in the Relationship Between the Use of Hentai Pornography and Sexually Aggressive Strategies: A Study With College Students |url=https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/150710/2/632838.pdf |journal=UPorto}}</ref> Increased consumption can also lead to an increase in the normalization of sexual violence, rape, victim blaming, and further stereotypes associated with sexual violence and sexually aggressive behaviors.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal |last=Marujo Costa |first=Vera Alzira |date=2023 |title=Evidence on the Predicting Role of Rape Myth Endorsement on Hentai Pornography Consumption Frequency |url=https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/155237/2/650094.pdf |journal=UPorto}}</ref> The origin and culture of hentai as "abnormal" pornography, as highlighted through research studies, is also described to perpetuate a desensitized view of sexual violence and rape play.<ref name=":03">{{Cite journal |last=Marujo Costa |first=Vera Alzira |date=2023 |title=Evidence on the Predicting Role of Rape Myth Endorsement on Hentai Pornography Consumption Frequency |url=https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/155237/2/650094.pdf |journal=UPorto}}</ref> The distinction between rape myth acceptance and sexually violent or aggressive behaviors has also been outlined in various research studies.<ref name="O'Connor 2021 321–330">{{Cite journal |last=O'Connor |first=Julia |date=2021 |title=The Longitudinal Effects of Rape Myth Beliefs and Rape Proclivity |journal=Psychology of Men & Masculinity |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=321–330 |doi=10.1037/men0000324 |issn=1524-9220 |pmc=9380434 |pmid=35979223}}</ref> Recent studies highlight how a rise in the acceptance of rape myths is causally linked to rape proclivity and sexually violent behaviors.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bohner |first1=Gerd |last2=Jarvis |first2=Christopher I. |last3=Eyssel |first3=Friederike |last4=Siebler |first4=Frank |date=November 2005 |title=The causal impact of rape myth acceptance on men's rape proclivity: comparing sexually coercive and noncoercive men |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ejsp.284 |journal=European Journal of Social Psychology |language=en |volume=35 |issue=6 |pages=819–828 |doi=10.1002/ejsp.284 |issn=0046-2772|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

=== Racial fetishization of Asian women in hentai ===
==== History ====
The racial fetishization of Asian women can be traced back to Western colonialism and imperialism where Asian women were portrayed as "exotic" or submissive and such traits were in turn romanticized.<ref name=":14">{{Cite web |last=Ishikawa |first=Hinako |date=May 2024 |title="Negotiating Hentai: Racial Fetishization of Japanese Women and Reclamation of Sexual Agency" |url=https://scholarworks.calstate.edu/downloads/5x21tp90t |access-date=8 October 2024}}</ref>

Classic media such as ''Madame Butterfly'' and ''Miss Saigon'' also portray Asian women having intimate relations with white men, ultimately to their demise. Critics say this perpetuates the notion that value of Asian women is tied to their white lovers.<ref name=":22">{{Cite journal |last=Pires |first=Isabel |date=2 February 2024 |title=A Lotus or a Dragon? – The orientalization and fetishization of Asian women's bodies |url=https://www.scielosp.org/article/csc/2024.v29n2/e03592023/en/ |journal=Ciência & Saúde Coletiva |language=en |volume=29 |issue=2 |article-number=e03592023 |doi=10.1590/1413-81232024292.03592023 |pmid=38324824 |issn=1413-8123|hdl=10451/63741 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

A popular trope in hentai places the woman in a more submissive role, playing into the "lotus blossom" stereotype where Asian women are thought to be more docile.<ref name=":22" /> The increasing Western audience of hentai exacerbates this portrayal of Asian women.

==== Portrayals of Japanese women ====
Since hentai is a broad genre of erotic media the portrayal of women varies greatly, however, almost always is the girl slim and with large breasts. A paper by Hinako Ishikawa on the racialization of Japanese women in hentai concluded that this portrayal directly plays into the sexual objectification and stereotyping of Japanese women.<ref name=":14"/>

==== Racial fetishization of Japanese women ====
Although the race of the female protagonists in hentai is not always clear, the film will often highlight the character's "Japanese-ness".<ref name=":33">{{Cite journal |last=Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė |first=Kristina |date=2013 |title=Construction of Gender Images in Japanese Pornographic Anime |url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=224617 |journal=Regioninės studijos |language=English |issue=7 |pages=9–29 |issn=2029-2074}}</ref> This is done either through her clothes (wearing traditional dress like [[Kimono|kimonos]]), the setting of the film, or her mannerisms (eating with chopsticks) that imply the character's race.<ref name=":33"/>

According to Ishikawa, this portrayal of Japanese women plays into the increasingly popularized Asian fetish in the Western world, specifically citing 2022's Pornhub statistics world wide trendy terms put "hentai" and "Japanese" as top two most searched words.<ref name=":14"/>

== Demographics ==
[[File:Powell's Hentai Sign.jpg|thumbnail|Hentai is often age-restricted.]]
According to data from [[Pornhub]] in 2017, the most prolific consumers of hentai are men.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.inverse.com/article/40054-pornhub-2017-porn-stats-minecraft-hentai|title=Pornhub's Stats for 2017 Reveal How Much We Love Hentai and Minecraft|last=Scott|first=Grace Lisa|date=9 January 2019|website=Inverse|language=en|access-date=10 November 2019}}</ref> However, Patrick W. Galbraith and Jessica Bauwens-Sugimoto note that hentai manga attracts "a diverse readership, which of course includes women."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nagayama|first=Kaoru|title=Erotic Comics in Japan: An Introduction to Eromanga|date=2020|publisher=Amsterdam University Press|isbn=978-94-6372-712-9|location=Amsterdam|page=27|translator-last=Galbraith|translator-first=Patrick W.|chapter=Translators' Introduction: Eromanga in the Global Now|oclc=1160012499|translator-last2=Bauwens-Sugimoto|translator-first2=Jessica|chapter-url=https://assets.ctfassets.net/4wrp2um278k7/6jQ7IoEGhDnuMstGoiV0UY/16b9d794267d366e5382408e97919100/9789463727129_ToC_Intro.pdf}}</ref> Kathryn Hemmann also writes that "self-identified female otaku [...] readily admit to enjoying [hentai] ''dōjinshi'' catering to a male erotic gaze".<ref>{{cite book|author=Hemmann|first=Kathryn|title=Manga Cultures and the Female Gaze|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|year=2020|isbn=978-3-030-18094-2|page=98|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4VDaDwAAQBAJ&q=d%C5%8Djinshi+catering+to+a+male+erotic+gaze}}</ref> When it comes to mediums of hentai, ''eroge'' games in particular combine three favored media—cartoons, pornography and gaming—into an experience. The hentai genre engages a wide audience that expands yearly, and desires better quality and storylines, or works which push the creative envelope.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Bennett|first=Dan|title=Anime erotica potential growing strong.(Animated erotica).|magazine=Video Store|publisher=Questex Media Group, Inc.|date=18 April 2004|access-date=2 May 2013|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-116341275.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140611135353/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-116341275.html|archive-date=11 June 2014}}</ref> Nobuhiro Komiya, a manga censor, states that the unusual and extreme depictions in hentai are not about perversion so much as they are an example of the profit-oriented industry.<ref name="censor1">{{cite news|title=Bizarre sex sells in weird world of manga|newspaper=New Zealand Herald|location=Auckland, New Zealand|publisher=Independent Print Ltd.|date=5 February 2011|access-date=2 May 2013|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-248344423.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140611135348/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-248344423.html|archive-date=11 June 2014}}</ref> Anime depicting normal sexual situations enjoy less market success than those that break social norms, such as sex at schools or bondage.<ref name="censor1" />

According to clinical psychologist Megha Hazuria Gorem, "Because toons are a kind of final fantasy, you can make the person look the way you want him or her to look. Every fetish can be fulfilled."<ref name="india">{{cite news|title=Oooh Game Boy|newspaper=Hindustan Times|location=New Delhi, India|publisher=McClatchy-Tribune Information Services|date=30 June 2007|access-date=2 May 2013|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P3-1298294031.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140611135357/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P3-1298294031.html|archive-date=11 June 2014}}</ref> Sexologist Narayan Reddy noted of ''eroge'', "Animators make new games because there is a demand for them, and because they depict things that the gamers do not have the courage to do in real life, or that might just be illegal, these games are an outlet for suppressed desire."<ref name="india" />

== Classification ==
{{Multiple image
| image1            = JackXArik.png
| image2            = CroesusXIncarna.jpg
| footer            = Left - A ''yaoi'' inspired artwork, Right -  A ''yuri'' inspired artwork
}}
The hentai genre can be divided into numerous subgenres, the broadest of which encompasses heterosexual and homosexual acts. Hentai that features mainly heterosexual interactions occur in both male-targeted (''ero'' or ''dansei-muke'') and female-targeted ("ladies' comics") form. Those that feature mainly homosexual interactions are known as ''[[yaoi]]'' or ''Boys' Love'' (male–male) and ''[[Yuri (genre)|yuri]]'' or ''Girls' Love'' (female–female). Both ''yaoi'' and, to a lesser extent, ''yuri'', are generally aimed at members of the opposite sex from the persons depicted. While ''yaoi'' and ''yuri'' are not always explicit, their pornographic history and association remain.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.guidemag.com/temp/yaoi/a/mcharry_yaoi.html |title=Yaoi: Redrawing Male Love |publisher=The Guide |date=November 2003 |access-date=23 August 2013 |author=McHarry, Mark |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080417001927/http://www.guidemag.com/temp/yaoi/a/mcharry_yaoi.html |archive-date=17 April 2008}}</ref> ''Yaoi''{{'s}} pornographic usage has remained strong in textual form through [[fanfiction]].<ref>Kee, Tan Bee. "Rewriting Gender and Sexuality in English-Language Yaoi Fanfiction". ''Boys' Love Manga: Essays on the Sexual Ambiguity and Cross-Cultural Fandom of the Genre'' (2010): 126.</ref> The definition of ''yuri'' has begun to be replaced by the broader definitions of "lesbian-themed animation or comics".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.yuricon.com/what-is-yuricon/#whatisyuri | title=Yuricon What is Yuricon? | date=28 March 2011 | publisher=Yuricon | access-date=23 August 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201035708/http://www.yuricon.com/what-is-yuricon/#whatisyuri | archive-date=1 December 2017 | url-status=live }}</ref>

Hentai is perceived as "dwelling" on [[sexual fetishism|sexual fetishes]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Peek-a-boo, I See You: Watching Japanese Hard-core Animation |doi=10.1007/s12119-008-9039-5 |volume=13 |journal=Sexuality |year=2009 |pages=17–31|last1=Ortega-Brena |first1=Mariana |s2cid=143481005}}</ref> These include dozens of [[Sexual fetishism|fetish]] and [[paraphilia]] related subgenres, which can be further classified with additional terms, such as heterosexual or homosexual types.

Many works are focused on depicting the mundane and the impossible across every conceivable act and situation, no matter how fantastical. One subgenre of hentai is ''[[futanari]]'' ([[hermaphroditism]]), which features a woman with a [[Human penis|penis]] or penis-like appendage in addition to a [[Human vulva|vulva]].<ref name="john3">{{cite web | first=John | last=Oppliger | date=12 March 2008 | url=http://www.animenation.net/ask-john-what-is-futanari-and-why-is-it-popular/ | title=Ask John: What Is Futanari and Why Is It Popular? | publisher=[[AnimeNation]] | access-date=1 May 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180215122237/http://www.animenation.net/ask-john-what-is-futanari-and-why-is-it-popular/ | archive-date=15 February 2018 | url-status=live }}</ref> Futanari characters are often depicted as having sex with other women,<ref name="john3" /> but many other works feature sex with men or, as in ''Anal Justice'', with both genders.<ref name="nagayama" /> Futanari can be dominant, submissive, or switch between the two roles in a single work.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nagayama|first=Kaoru|title=Erotic Comics in Japan: An Introduction to Eromanga|date=2020|publisher=Amsterdam University Press|isbn=978-94-6372-712-9|location=Amsterdam|page=221|translator-last=Galbraith|translator-first=Patrick W.|oclc=1160012499|quote=In sexual situations, the "shemale" can appear male, female and something distinctly other as "shemale." Roles as attacker or "top" (seme) and receiver or "bottom" (uke) can shift throughout the work. The same "shemale" character can be in the role of a sadistic female top in one scene, and in another play a masochistic male bottom who enjoys being disgraced by women. Top and bottom roles are not necessarily based on appearance. It is not rare to depict a "shemale" character who is actually the dominant one, but shivers in ecstasy while being whipped by a brawny man and brutally raped. Furthermore, each character has their own "gender identity" (sei jinin), which can impact reader identification and self-projection.|translator-last2=Bauwens-Sugimoto|translator-first2=Jessica}}</ref>

=== Genres ===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Common English terms !! Common Japanese terms !! Type !! Description
|-
| ''[[Yaoi]]'' / ''shōnen-ai'' / Boys' Love || {{lang|ja|やおい}} / {{lang|ja|ボーイズ ラブ}} / {{lang|ja|ビーエル}} || Same-sex relationship || Male homosexuality
|-
| ''[[Yuri (genre)|Yuri]]'' / ''shōjo-ai'' / Girls' Love|| {{lang|ja|百合}} || Same-sex relationship || Female homosexuality
|-
| ''[[Lolicon]]'' || {{lang|ja|ロリコン}} || Gender and age || Centered on prepubescent, pubescent, or post-pubescent underage girls, whether solo (one girl), heterosexual (man/girl or boy/girl) or homosexual (woman/girl or girl/girl)
|-
| ''[[Shotacon]]'' || {{lang|ja|ショタコン}} || Gender and age || Centered on prepubescent, pubescent, or post-pubescent underage boys, whether solo (one boy), heterosexual (woman/boy or girl/boy) or homosexual (man/boy or boy/boy)
|-
| ''Bakunyū'' / ''Hinnyuū''
| {{lang|ja|爆乳}}
|
| A genre of pornographic media focusing on the depiction of women's contrasting breast sizes, with emphasis on large [[breasts]] and flat-chested breasts, respectively.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.studlife.com/scene/2008/08/29/internet-of-hentai/|title=Internet of hentai|last=Moore|first=Lucy|date=29 August 2008|work=[[Student Life (newspaper)|Student Life]]|access-date=10 February 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100402001527/http://www.studlife.com/scene/2008/08/29/internet-of-hentai/|archive-date=2 April 2010}}</ref> The word can be literally translated to "exploding breasts".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/cgi-bin/wwwjdic.cgi?1MUJ爆乳 |title=Word Display |publisher=[[WWWJDIC]] |access-date=10 November 2010 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120630231015/http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/cgi-bin/wwwjdic.cgi?1MUJ%E7%88%86%E4%B9%B3 |archive-date=30 June 2012 }}</ref> ''Bakunyū'' is a subgenre within the genre of hentai anime.<ref>{{cite book | title=Manga: The Complete Guide | first=Jason | last=Thompson | publisher=Ballantine Books/Del Rey | year=2007 | isbn=978-0-345-48590-8}}</ref>
|-
| [[Catgirl]] / ''nekomimi''
| {{lang|ja|猫耳}}
|
| Human females with cat characteristics, such as cat ears, cat tails and whiskers
|-
| ''[[Futanari]]''
| {{lang|ja|ふたなり}}
|
| Depictions of women that have both phallic genitalia (penis either with or without scrotum) and a vulva
|-
| [[Incest]]
| {{lang|ja|近親相姦}}
|
| Sexual activity with family members
|-
| ''Netorare'' / ''Netorase'' / ''Netori''
| {{lang|ja|寝取られ}} / {{lang|ja|ネトラセーゼ}} / {{lang|ja|寝取り}}
|
| Related to [[Swinging (sexual practice)|swinging]], [[infidelity]] and/or [[cuckolding]], abbreviated '''NTR'''; variations of being masochistically aroused by seeing or knowing that one's spouse or lover is having sexual intercourse with another person, whether they do so voluntarily or not, {{abbr|lit.|literally}} "being snatched away".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mangabookshelf.com/51846/bookshelf-briefs-92616/|title=Bookshelf Briefs 9/26/16|publisher=Manga Bookshelf|author=Sean Gaffney|date=26 September 2016|access-date=12 October 2016}}</ref> In ''netorare'', the protagonist's [[adultery|adulterous]] partner wants to deceive and/or break up with the protagonist to be with the cheater. In ''netorase'', the protagonist enjoys, actively encourages or even causes the partner to have sex with others, often with their informed knowledge and consent. In ''netori'', the protagonist finds a cheater in a marriage or relationship and [[Manipulation (psychology)|manipulate]]s/[[blackmail]]s them away from their cucked partner.
|-
| ''[[Hiyake Ato]]'' / After sunburn
| {{lang|ja|日焼け後}}
|
| Depictions of fetish revolves around [[tan line]]s, ''[[Gyaru]]'' and [[bimbo]]fication
|-
| ''[[Futomomo]]'' / Mae Kara Mieru Oshiri
| {{lang|ja|太もも}}
|
| Depictions of fetish revolves around thick thighs and large buttocks, respectively, that protrude to the front, making them visible from any angle; especially between the thighs when viewed from the front. Common in hentai and anime.
|-
| ''[[Mekosuji]]'' / [[Camel toe]]
| {{lang|ja|メコスジ}}
|
| Depictions of fetish revolves around silhouette of women's vulva and men's penis and scrotum, from tight or see-through underwear
|-
| ''[[Omorashi]]''
| {{lang|ja|おもらし}} / {{lang|ja|お漏らし}}
|
| A form of [[urolagnia]]
|-
| ''[[Ryona]]'' / ''Gyaku-ryona'' / ''Onna Zako''
| {{lang|ja|リョナ}} / {{lang|ja|逆リョナ}} / {{lang|ja|女ザコ}}
|
| Depictions of fetish revolves around a victim being physically assaulted or psychologically abused by an offender;
|-
| [[Tentacle erotica]]
| {{lang|ja|触手責め}}
|
| Depictions of tentacled creatures and sometimes monsters (fictional or otherwise) engaging in sex or rape with women and, less often, men
|-
| ''Josō-seme'' / cross-dressing attack
| {{lang|ja|女装攻め}}
|
| Depictions of a ''[[kathoey]]'', [[Cross-dressing|male-crossdresser]] or [[sissy|tomgirl]] taking the lead (i.e. the "''[[Seme and uke|seme]]''") or exhibiting [[Dominance and submission|dominance]] over a sexual partner
|}

== See also ==
{{Portal|Erotica and pornography}}
* [[Cartoon pornography]]
* ''[[Dōjinshi]]''
* [[Fakku]]
* [[List of hentai anime]]
* [[List of hentai authors]] (groups, studios, production companies, circles)
* [[List of hentai manga]]
* [[Nijikon]]
* ''[[Panchira]]''
* [[Uniform fetishism]]
* [[:ja:アダルトアニメ|アダルトアニメ]] ("Adult anime [animation]")

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{Cite journal |last=Aquila |first=Meredith |year=2007 |url=http://www.upress.umn.edu/Books/L/lunning_mechademia2.html |title=Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction Writers: New Narrative Themes or the Same Old Story? |journal=[[Mechademia]] |volume=2 |isbn=978-0-8166-5266-2 |access-date=4 January 2010 |archive-date=15 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215165131/http://www.upress.umn.edu/Books/L/lunning_mechademia2.html }}
* Buckley, Sandra (1991). {{"'}}Penguin in Bondage': A Graphic Tale of Japanese Comic Books", pp.&nbsp;163–196, In ''Technoculture''. C. Penley and A. Ross, eds. Minneapolis: [[University of Minnesota]]. {{ISBN|0-8166-1932-8}}.
* McCarthy, Helen, and [[Jonathan Clements]] (1998). ''The Erotic Anime Movie Guide''. London: Titan. {{ISBN|1-85286-946-1}}.
* {{Cite book | last = Napier | first = Susan J. |author-link=Susan J. Napier | year = 2000 | title = [[Anime from Akira to Princess Mononoke: Experiencing Contemporary Japanese Animation|Anime: From ''Akira'' to ''Princess Mononoke'']] | location = New York | publisher = Palgrave | isbn = 0-312-23863-0}}
* {{Cite journal | last1 = Perper |first1=Timothy |last2=Cornog |first2=Martha |date=March 2002|title=Eroticism for the masses: Japanese manga comics and their assimilation into the U.S. |journal=Sexuality & Culture |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=3–126 |doi=10.1007/s12119-002-1000-4|s2cid=143692243 }}

== External links ==
{{Wiktionary|hentai}}
* {{Commons category-inline}}

{{Japanese Erotic Cinema}}
{{Animation industry in Japan}}
{{Pornography}}
{{Film genres}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Hentai| ]]
[[Category:Hentai anime and manga| ]]
[[Category:Anime and manga genres]]
[[Category:Anime and manga terminology]]
[[Category:Pornography in Japan]]
[[Category:Japanese sex terms]]
[[Category:Pornographic animation]]
[[Category:Pornography by genre]]
[[Category:Anime and manga about sexuality]]
[[Category:Sexuality in Japan]]
[[Category:Tentacles/tentacle monsters in fiction]]