Anime (アニメ) is Japanese animation. In Japan the word covers all animation, foreign cartoons included. Outside Japan it means something narrower: shows and films made in Japan, with a look you can spot at once. Under that look lies a huge range of styles and stories.
A borrowed word, cut short
Anime is the Japanese way of saying the English word "animation," cut down to three syllables. Japanese studios made animated films as early as the 1910s. The modern industry, though, took shape after the Second World War. Artists like Osamu Tezuka, often called the "god of manga," borrowed tricks from comics and cinema. They found ways to make animation faster and cheaper for television. Expressive faces, big eyes and sparse but well-timed movement became a shared style that spread across the whole industry.
From kids' cartoons to a global industry
For a long time, people outside Japan thought anime was mostly for children. That changed as shows for teenagers and adults found wider audiences. Anime covers science fiction, horror, romance and sport. It also tells quiet stories about everyday life, where almost nothing happens. Streaming services now carry huge anime libraries with subtitles or dubbing in dozens of languages. New episodes often appear in Japan and abroad in the same week. Every series needs a large team: a director, a studio, and usually a manga or novel that came first.
Words & idioms to take away
Idioms & proverbs to carry away
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声優 (seiyū): a voice actor. In Japan this job brings its own fame and fan base, unlike voice acting in most other countries.
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原作 (gensaku): the "original work" behind an anime, usually a manga, a light novel or a video game.