Yuri (term)

Yuri (百合, Yuri^?) and shōjo-ai are jargon terms amongst fans for lesbian content, possibly sexually explicit, in anime, manga, and related fan fiction.

Contents 1 Definition and semantic drift 1.1 Etymology 1.2 Use in Japan 1.3 Use in North America 2 Yuri as story 3 Examples of yuri pairings 4 Yuri or shōjo-ai series 4.1 Yuri or shōjo-ai as a central element 4.2 Yuri or shōjo-ai as an additional element 5 Yuri or shōjo-ai manga magazines 6 See also 7 Notes and references 8 External links

Definition and semantic drift

Much like the term otaku, yuri — although originally a Japanese loanword — has undergone significant semantic drift. The precise difference between "yuri" and "shōjo-ai" ranges from large to none, depending on the speaker and language.

Etymology

The word yuri literally means "lily", and is a relatively common Japanese feminine name, like many flower names. In 1976, Itō Bungaku, editor of Barazoku ("rose tribe"), a magazine geared primarily towards gay men, first used the term "yurizoku" ("lily tribe") in reference to female readers in the title of a column of letters called "Yurizoku no heya" (Lily tribe's room)^[1]. It is unclear whether this was the first instance of this usage of the term. Not all women whose letters appeared in this short-lived column were necessarily lesbians, but some were and gradually an association developed. From this, many dōjinshi circles incorporated the name "Yuri" or "Yuriko" into yuri hentai dōjinshi. The "-zoku" or "tribe" portion of this word was subsequently dropped.^[2] Lilies are sometimes used to symbolize same-sex love in manga.^[3] In 2005 at Yuricon in Tokyo, Itō Bungaku spoke about the creation of the term "yuri". He, and the mangaka and writers who attended as guests spoke of reclaiming the term from a primarily hentai, or pornographic, connotation to once again describing all media that represent love, desire, attraction, and intimate emotional connections between women.^[2]

Use in Japan

In Japanese, the term yuri (百合, yuri^?) is typically used to mean any attraction between girls in entertainment media, whether sexual or romantic, explicit or implied.^[2] For example, 2channel's "yuri" board includes both purely sexual and purely romantic content rather than separating them. The wasei-eigo construction is "Girls Love" (ガールズラブ, gāruzu rabu^?), but is often rendered as English; occasionally spelled "Girl's Love" or "Girls' Love", or abbreviated as "GL". The term shōjo-ai (少女愛, shōjo-ai^?) is scarcely, if ever, used with these meanings in Japan;^[2] instead, the terms shōnen-ai and shōjo-ai tend to denote pedophilia. Ironically, the English term "girllove" has this exact meaning and userbase, although the similar wasei-eigo Girls Love avoids both. They are a form of fanspeak amongst manga fans. Japanese lesbians generally refer to themself by the loanword "lez" (レズ, rezu^?) or "lesbian" (レスビアン, resubian^?), or by using more specific gay slang such as nabe for a butch lesbian, similar to the English dyke.

Use in North America

The American use of yuri has broadened in recent years, picking up connotations from the Japanese use, but the historical usage differed: in America, yuri has typically been used to denote only the most explicit end of the spectrum, being effectively a variety of hentai; shōjo-ai — an independently-coined term, following the pattern of its corresponding term shōnen-ai — described anything without explicit sex.^[2] The term shōnen-ai was borrowed into English before it acquired the later meaning. On the Internet, the spelling "shoujo-ai" is sometimes used instead of "yuri" solely because the latter produces too much unrelated material in search engines; the spelling "shōjo-ai" is less used, due to the difficulties involved in entering the "ō" character on most systems.

Yuri as story

Many fans enjoy yuri for its skewing of the classic gender roles in anime, which are often quite stereotyped in nature and sometimes have a female character take a slightly more submissive role if a significant other is introduced or appears. Conversely, yuri content is often criticized as never going anywhere, with the majority of the more dramatic stories ending tragically, even by comparison with the melodrama of romance in manga in general. This criticism is truer for older yuri works.^[4][5] Young same-sex affection is considered natural in real-life Japan to a much later age than in the West. The relationships may extend to infatuation complete with gift-giving, kissing (among girls) and other touches many Westerners would consider overtly romantic or sexual. That said, sociological studies conclude that this does not lead to widespread youthful sexual experimentation (especially compared with the United States or the United Kingdom.^[6] Homosexuality in Japan still faces social disapproval despite the relative abundance of representations of same sex relationships in mainstream media. Marrying someone of the opposite gender and having children is seen in Japan as the proof that the ones getting married have become responsible adults. Unmarried adults, homosexual or not, are seen as having character problems and face job discrimination.^[7] On the other hand, homosexuals who marry a person of the opposite gender even if they are out, even if they also have same sex lovers, are not discriminated against in any way.^[8][9] The level of social conformity in general in Japan is considered very high as well. In anime and manga sexual identity is often depicted as more related to people interaction than to actual orientation.^[10] Shōjo anime and manga in particular are known for frequently featuring bisexual characters without explicitly specifying their orientation.^[10] Other stories may involve characters with no previous romantic experience or who are depicted as straight, but are attracted to a single particular female, such as Chizuru Yoshida from Hen or Utena Tenjou from Revolutionary Girl Utena. Many archetypical stories exist, such as the schoolyard not-quite-romances between senpai and kōhai (senior and junior), where the former is an older looking, more sophisticated woman, and the latter is her younger, more awkward admirer. This is famously depicted in Maria-sama ga Miteru, which has a large yuri fandom. In other stories, some characters have bishōnen characteristics and are considered handsome rather than beautiful. These characters are inspired by the women who play male roles in the Takarazuka Revue.^[3] Lady Oscar from The Rose of Versailles^[3] and Rei Asaka from Oniisama e... are two examples, though Haruka Tenoh from Sailor Moon is one of the more well-known examples. Yuri in shōnen is stereotyped as more blunt or explicitly sexual in depiction than it is in shōjo, although some argue this is more according to males' tastes in relationships in general than to simple fanservice. Many critics of the sometimes evasive nature of shōjo in regard to sex suggest that yuri is more easily found in shōnen because it is depicted in a healthy, sexual manner. Generally, relationships are still depicted as between a junior and a senior, but these roles are often related to the age or maturity of a character rather than the appearance of the character. However, many of the design archetypes as in shōjo are used; most often, one character appeals to the bijin aspect, and the other to the moe aspect. This sometimes causes couplings from different series to strongly resemble each other. In recent times, the most notable example of this is the stunning similarities between Chikane Himemiya and Himeko Kurusugawa of Kannazuki no Miko and Hatsumi Azuma and Hazuki Azuma of Yami to Bōshi to Hon no Tabibito; Chikane and Hazuki in particular look and act almost exactly alike. Speaking about subtext, it is often difficult to discern whether yuri was intended by the author or not; character interaction that was not intended as romantic is some times interpreted otherwise by the audience.^[5] In addition, yuri may be used solely as fanservice, with scenes and imagery depicting suggestive interaction between women, but without any actual impact on characterization and storyline.^[11]

Examples of yuri pairings

While many series have had implied yuri, Sailor Moon has an "out" yuri pairing. Haruka Tenoh (Sailor Uranus) and Michiru Kaioh (Sailor Neptune) first appear in the third season, and it is almost immediately obvious that they are a couple.^[12] Haruka makes it a point to dress and act in a masculine manner in the anime; she has short sandy blonde hair and wears the boys' uniform at her school. By contrast, in the manga, Haruka was more gender-ambiguous, wearing the clothes of both sexes and even seeming to change appearance slightly depending on what she wore; Naoko Takeuchi, the original author of Sailor Moon, admitted that she drew Haruka's face as more masculine whenever Haruka cross-dressed. Haruka and Michiru were loosely based on the actors of the Takarazuka Revue.^[13] At first glance their relationship appears to be the traditional butch/femme dynamic, but neither one can be considered "dominant" over the other. Haruka and Michiru fan fiction is among the most searched-for fan fiction on the Internet.^[14] Haruka and Michiru's lesbian relationship was heavily censored in the English and French anime versions, although the lesbian subtext in the English version is still apparent. In English, their relationship is stated to be that of close cousins who had grown up together, but a later episode showing their first meeting is left intact, and some of their flirting is unchanged.^[15] The French version gave Haruka an ambiguous name, Frederique, and a male voice when in civilian form, although Sailor Uranus was voiced by a woman.^[16] Also in Italy, their relationship has been heavily censored, and they have been presented to the public as mere deep friends with the names of Heles (Haruka) and Milena (Michiru): a lot of dialogues have been changed and a lot of scenes have been modified for this purpose. In contrast, the Latin American Spanish version, made in Mexico, did not make any efforts to censor it and even correctly translated many of the double entendres in the dialogue. It is often speculated that one or the other of the pair is bisexual, but this is not clearly addressed in the series itself. In the fifth season of the anime, Michiru flirts heavily with the male Kou Seiya in one episode,^[17] even though she is clearly in a relationship with Haruka when this takes place. She states beforehand an intention to learn Seiya's motives, fearing that he may be a threat to the planet, but Haruka is no less jealous upon discovering them. Seiya himself is actually an alien who transforms from a female Sailor Senshi into a male civilian; he has a stated romantic interest in Usagi Tsukino and a link of some sort with the ruler of his people, Princess Kakyuu. In the original manga, Seiya is always female, yet still refers to her feelings for Usagi as "unrequited love".^[18] In general, the Sailor Moon anime contains more overt references to lesbianism than the Sailor Moon manga, partially due to the influence of director Kunihiko Ikuhara, who has stated on many occasions that he "prefers lesbians". Utena Tenjou and Anthy Himemiya from Revolutionary Girl Utena are another example of a well-known yuri couple. Similarly to Haruka and Michiru, Utena appears to be the more "masculine" of the two, also insisting on wearing the boys' uniform and participating in the surrealist duels at Ohtori Academy. However, she is naive and overly pure-hearted at times; Anthy's jaded, cynical worldview stands in sharp contrast to Utena. Like Michiru to Haruka, Anthy serves as a moderating and calming influence over Utena. It can be argued that Utena and Anthy show more of the dominant/submissive pattern, since it is in Anthy's character (superficially, at least) to be submissive.

Unrequited love also features notably in shōjo-ai and yuri. One of the most well-known examples is Sakura Kinomoto and Tomoyo Daidouji from Cardcaptor Sakura. In this case, there is what appears to be a one-sided love, that of Tomoyo for Sakura. There has been a trend toward yuri being more out in the open. Yami to Bōshi to Hon no Tabibito, or "YamiBou", was the most notable example of this; the main characters, Hazuki and Hatsumi, were quite obviously in love, and the story centers on Hazuki's journey through time and space to find Hatsumi after the latter departs her world on the midnight of her sixteenth birthday. The series can be thought of as an attempt to bridge the gap between shōjo and shōnen anime; its story is very deep and nearly entirely character-driven, yet it contains large amounts of fanservice and is based on an adult game. Yami to Bōshi to Hon no Tabibito's influence can be keenly felt in what many consider to be its spiritual successor, Kannazuki no Miko. This is another attempt to cross genres, featuring a plot-driven storyline. It makes heavy use of mecha (giant robots), but these and even the plot itself (saving the planet from the Orochi) are just a backdrop to the real story: the love between Chikane Himemiya and Himeko Kurusagawa, reincarnations of the Lunar Miko and Solar Miko, respectively, whose job it is to combat the Orochi. Chikane and Himeko resemble Hazuki and Hatsumi from YamiBou extremely closely, though Himeko is much more outgoing than Hatsumi. Kannazuki no Miko is considered difficult to watch by many shōjo-ai fans; the show features brutally melodramatic twists and turns, and no concrete conclusion is reached until after the end credits of the last episode. Though exceedingly brief, the final snippet is interpreted by many fans as vague confirmation of a happy ending for the pair.

Another notable example of shōjo-ai and yuri is Maria-sama ga Miteru, or "Marimite". Unlike Yami to Bōshi to Hon no Tabibito and Kannazuki no Miko, Marimite is an entirely character-driven shōjo anime with little to no action or drama in the plot. Marimite follows the students at Lillian Jogakuen, an all-girls Catholic school somewhere in Japan. It focuses on the relationships between the girls, set against the backdrop of the Student Council, known as the Yamayurikai. While most of the shōjo-ai is subtext, Sei Satō (Rosa Gigantea) is quite obviously a lesbian and two entire episodes of the first season are devoted to the story of her and a former lover, Shiori Kubō. Yoshino Shimazu and Rei Hasekura act in many ways as if they are already married, having known one another since early childhood, living next-door to each other, and being first cousins. Shimako Tōdō, mysterious and aloof, seems to be growing a romantic relationship with the small but fiery first-year Noriko in the second season as well. As of 2007, the most popular pairing in the fandom (Sachiko/Yumi) is still at the subtext level, and some fans, including Erica Friedman of Yuricon, believe it may never progress beyond that.^[19]

Yuri or shōjo-ai series

Yuri or shōjo-ai as a central element

12 Days[20] .hack//Sign[21] Akatsuki-iro no Senpuku Majo[22] Anata to Scandal[23] Avenger Best Student Council Binbō Shimai Monogatari[24] Blue[25] Blue Drop[26] Burst Angel Candy Boy[27] Chirality Claudine...![23] Devil Lady[28] El Cazador de la Bruja[29]

Girls' Life[30] Girls' Revolution[31] Hayate Cross Blade[22] Hen[32] Ice Kannazuki no Miko[33] Kashimashi[28][34] Kuchibiru Tameiki Sakurairo[35] Kurau Phantom Memory Love My Life[36] Maria-sama ga Miteru[28] Miyuki-chan in Wonderland[23] Noir Oniisama e...[23] Ragnarock City[37]

Read or Dream[28] Revolutionary Girl Utena[23] R.O.D the TV[28][38] Shiroi Heya no Futari[23] Simoun[28] Sisters of Wellber Steel Angel Kurumi 2[39] Strawberry Panic![34] Strawberry Shake Sweet[40] Tetragrammaton Labyrinth[34] The Last Uniform[34] The Sword of Paros[23] Yami to Bōshi to Hon no Tabibito[41]

Yuri or shōjo-ai as an additional element

Ace o Nerae![42] Air Master[43] Angel/Dust[23] Azumanga Daioh[44] Battle Athletes Victory[45] Bleach Boku no Futatsu no Tsubasa Bottle Fairy Bubblegum Crisis[46] Cardcaptor Sakura[23] Code Geass Confidential Confessions Cosplay Complex[47] Cutie Honey[48] Diebuster Doki Doki School Hours Dream Knocker Eat-Man El-Hazard[49] Elfen Lied Excel Saga[50] Family Complex Fate/stay night Fight! Iczer One[51] Fushigi Yūgi Futari wa Pretty Cure[52] Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! Galaxy Fraulein Yuna Gall Force Gals! Ghost in the Shell Girls Bravo[53] Godannar Hanaukyo Maid Team: La Verite[54]

Hayate the Combat Butler He is my Master Hidamari Sketch High School Girls Hitohira Ikki Tousen[55] Jubei-chan: The Ninja Girl Kaleido Star[56] Kaguyahime[23] Kodomo no Jikan Koi Koi Seven Kyoshiro and the Eternal Sky Lady Snowblood Love Hina Loveless Lucky Star Madlax[57] Magic Knight Rayearth Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Magikano Maico 2010 Maze Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch Mermaid Saga Murder Princess My-HiME[28] My-Otome[28] Myself ; Yourself Najica Blitz Tactics[58] Nana Negima!: Magister Negi Magi[59] Negima!?[59] Ninin Ga Shinobuden[60] Ojamajo Doremi Ouran High School Host Club Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru Pani Poni Dash! Petite Princess Yucie Plastic Little

Project A-ko[61] Puni Puni Poemy[62] Rakka Ryūsui[63] Red Garden Renkin 3-kyū Magical ? Pokān RG Veda[23] Sailor Moon[23] Samurai Deeper Kyo Sayonara Zetsubō Sensei Seraphim Call Serial Experiments Lain Sgt. Frog Shinshi Doumei Cross Silent Möbius Sol Bianca Sōkō no Strain St. Luminous Mission High School Steel Angel Kurumi Stellvia of the Universe[28] Stratos 4[64] Strawberry Marshmallow[28] Tactical Roar The Day of Revolution The Rose of Versailles[23] The Third ToHeart2 Touka Gettan Tsuyokiss Ultimate Girls Uta Kata Vandread Venus Versus Virus[65] Vulgar Ghost Daydream X[23] Xenosaga Yokohama Kaidashi Kikō[44] Yume Tsukai Zombie-Loan

Yuri or shōjo-ai manga magazines

Sun Magazine published the yuri manga anthology magazine Yuri Shimai between June 2003 and February 2005 in quarterly installments, ending with only five issues. Notabely, the magazine's cover illustrations were done by Reine Hibiki, the illustrator for the yuri light novel series Maria-sama ga Miteru. After the magazine's discontinuation, Comic Yuri Hime was launched by Ichijinsha in July 2005 as a revival of the magazine which contained manga by many of the authors who had had work serialized in Yuri Shimai. Like its predecessor, Yuri Hime is also published quarterly. A sister magazine to Yuri Hime named Comic Yuri Hime S was launched as a quarterly publication by Ichijinsha in June 2007. Unlike either Yuri Shimai or Yuri Hime, Comic Yuri Hime S is targeted towards a male audience.^[66]

See also

• Femslash
• Homosexuality in Japan
• Lesbianism in erotica
• Shōnen-ai

Notes and references

External links

• The Shōjo-ai Archive
• Yuricon
• Shōjo-ai Canada Canadian convention events, lesbian fiction, shōjo-ai database and more.