Anime and Manga Terminology - Y

Y

Yamato Nadeshiko (大和撫子?)

The Japanese ideal for a woman, being humble and skilled in domestic matters.

Yandere (ヤンデレ?)

a Japanese term for a person who is initially very loving, caring, and gentle to someone (or at least innocent) they really, truly like and care for a lot before their romantic devotion becomes mentally destructive in nature, often through violence and/or brutality. The term is derived from the words yanderu (病んでる?) meaning a mental or emotional illness, and deredere (でれでれ?) meaning to show affection. Yandere characters are mentally unstable, and sometimes are incredibly deranged and are not mentally sane, often using extreme violence and/or brutality as an outlet for their emotions. The usage of the character type has led to criticism over the amount of violence in works such as School Days. Although the character type has been used in anime and manga since Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam in 1985, conscious use of the term only began to be around the turn of the millennium. A classical (and rather extreme) example of yandere is Yuno Gasai, from the manga/anime Future Diary, who is prone to kill anyone who may interfere with her obsessive passion for the series protagonist Yukiteru Amano (or just even be near him without any romantic contact). Yandere are usually, but not always, female characters, and are usually depicted as villains, making them anti-heroes at best but often the only evil teammate when on the good guys' team. For example Rolo Lamperouge from the Code Geass series can be considered a yandere for his ruthless devotion to the series protagonist Lelouch (who himself rises in arms against his father and his empire to create a better world for his little sister), as his affection grows to the point he will attempt to kill even those who are close to Lelouch in order to not be replaced. More good (and otherwise Anti-heroic) examples would be Belarus from Axis Powers Hetalia, or Hatsune Miku and Megurine Luka in the song "Scissorloid". Yandere can also be shown in movies such as Hedra Carlson in Single White Female. Sometimes, they can just be played in a comedic, usually exaggerated, context.

Yankii (ヤンキー?)

Since the late 1970s, the term Yankī has been used to refer to a type of delinquent youth. Yankī—a subculture popularized in Japan consists of secondary school delinquents who attained notoriety due to violent and reckless behaviour. They are characterized by punch perms or pompadours, shaved eyebrows, bleach blonde hair and altered school uniforms. Yanki is a unisex term as it can that apply to both men and women.

Yangire (ヤンギレ?)

originated in Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Strikers and refers to a character who is mentally ill and snaps instantly without showing affection for the victim of their outbursts. It is a portmanteau of yandere (see above) and kireru (切れる?) meaning to snap or lose one's temper.

Yaoi (やおい?)

Japanese acronym for "yama nashi, ochi nashi, imi nashi" (no climax, no point, no meaning). Also known as boys love. Sometimes male-on-male sexual content; usually created by women for women.

Yōni (ヨニ?)

Originally meaning "vagina" in Sanskirt, "yoni" meaning "two-way love", is a term for bisexual content. Denoting explicit romantic or sexual attraction toward men and women in certain anime, manga, and doujinshi (fanfiction).

Yuri (百合?)

Lit. "Lily". Jargon term for lesbian content or girl love. Sometimes typically used to denote only the most sexually explicit end of the spectrum in media outside of Japan. Inside Japan, the term denotes a broader spectrum of attraction between women. (Used like the term "yaoi" for men.)