Quote:
Originally Posted by kamikari
Here in Europe people who are interested in anime/manga/etc are called otakus and it doesn't seem to be a negative word. But when I went to Japan a while back, it seemed as if otaku is a pretty negative word in Japan, describing someone who is overly obsessed in that kind of stuff. I know the girl otakus are called fujoshis and I can only imagine it has similar connotations.
So I was thinking, how would I call myself (or a friend) in a positive way but still so that it makes the other party to understand that me/they are into anime/manga/computers/technology/etc?
At least in my university circles (be it Japan related or not) "nerdy girl" is taken as a slight compliment by many girls and in any case nerd is a rather neutral word (because more or less everyone in my university are nerds).
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I don't think there is such a word. You have to understand that once you get into this type of slang, there isn't always going to be a "word" that translates. The closest word for "nerd" I know is ガリ勉 (someone who studies often), but it doesn't have the same positive connotation.
It's like asking "can you give a word for fjord in English that isn't 'fjord'?" The only thing I could give you there is "a long narrow inlet of the sea between steep cliffs," which isn't even a single word.
And yeah, 腐女子 (fujoshi) is not at all a positive thing. It literally means "decaying female."