HISTORY

The brief  history of manga is said to originate from scrolls dating back to the 12th century, and it is believed they represent the basis for the right-to-left reading style. The word first came into common usage in the late 18th century. Manga is a Japanese term that can be translated as "comic"; Historians and writers on manga history have described two broad and complementary processes shaping modern manga. Their views differ in the relative importance they attribute to the role of cultural and historical events following World War II versus the role of pre-war, Meiji, and pre-Meiji Japanese culture and art.

One view represented by other writers such as Frederik L. Schodt, Kinko Ito, and Adam L. Kern, stress continuity of Japanese cultural and aesthetic traditions. The other view, emphasizes events occurring during and after the Allied occupation of Japan (1945–1952), and stresses that manga was strongly shaped by United States cultural influences, including US comics brought to Japan by the GIs and by images and themes from US television, film, and cartoons (especially Disney). According to Sharon Kinsella, the booming Japanese publishing industry helped create a consumer-oriented society in which publishing giants like Kodansha could shape popular taste.

​SEE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR VIDEOS AND BOOKS ABOUT MORE MANGA HISTORY

Manga Styles

There is really no specific way to identify "manga" as one specific style. Manga is an overall industry that has 5 main styles with each consisting of many sub-styles. However there are a handful of recognizable features that cross almost all of manga; strong sense of expression, exaggerated anatomy, a mix of realism/stylization, and heightened emotions

5 Main Manga Styles
​

Shonen
Literally meaning “few years,” “shonen” (少年) typically refers to young boys under the age of fifteen. Thus, shonen anime and manga are aimed at that demographic. A lot of these anime and manga have a young male hero and are focused on action, adventure, and fighting. and the narrative is often fast paced. However, comedies and series with female protagonists are becoming more and more common. Shonen works often have more than a fair share of fanservice as well. Due to the success of many of the Shonen Manga and Anime this style is what most people associate to Manga

Some popular examples of shonen anime and manga are Dragon Ball, Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, Watamote and Attack on Titan.
Shojo
“Shojo” (少女), which is often translated as “young girl,” is the female counterpart to shonen, and anime and manga of this type are aimed at girls between the ages of ten and eighteen. These tend to focus on romance and interpersonal relationships—though this does not mean they are necessarily without action or adventure. Shojo works almost always have a female lead; however, many male homosexual love stories fall into the shojo category as well. Popular Shojo works include NANA, Sailor Moon, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Fushigi Yuugi, and Ouran High School Host Club.
Seinen
“Seinen” (青年), on the other hand, refers to young men between the ages of 15-24. Seinen anime and manga tend to be of a more violent and/or psychological nature than shonen series—though, of course, there are seinen comedies as well. They can also have content of a pornographic nature (though this is not the focus of the work). Famous seinen anime and manga include such titles such as Berserk, Ghost in the Shell, Akira, Hellsing, and Gantz.
Kodomomuke
Literally meaning “directed at children,” “Kodomomuke” (子供向け) anime and manga are exactly that. Kodomomuke works tend to be simple, imaginative stories that teach morals and other core values to young readers. Sometimes they are original stories while other times they are adaptations of Western classical literature. Popular children’s series include Doraemon, Hello Kitty, Chibi Maruko-chan, Heidi, Girl of the Alps, Anne of Green Gables, and Anpanman.
Josei
Anime and manga of the “josei” (女性) variety are aimed at adult women. Josei series are often slice-of-life or romantic tales featuring adult women, though, in recent years, shonen-like action-adventures have become popular as well. In general, these works tend to contain more realistic interpersonal relationships (as opposed to shojo’s often idealized ones) and can cover darker subjects like rape and infidelity. While many josei anime and manga have female main characters, many others have male characters. Male leads are usually of the pretty-boy variety and stories featuring them often have homosexual undertones. Popular josei series include Loveless, Paradise Kiss, Honey and Clover, 07-Ghost, and Makai Ouji: Devils and Realist.
Sub-Styles
It would be impossible to list every single sub style but here are some of the more popular ones
  • Bishonen - Portray men as being very handsome and beautiful
  • Maho Shojo - Usually magical and fantasy themes like Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura. Typically main character is a young boy or girl and is directed toward female audiences.
  • Spokon - Most commonly used with sports based manga. Spokon anime is not only related to sports, but also sportsmanship, competition and ambition for victory. Slam Dunk and Cross Game
  • Kemono - Animals with Human characteristics usually cute with simple designs. Aimed at children. Kemonomimi is a sub section of his which is more human with animal characteristics like cat ears.
  • Mecha - Sci-fi themed with giant robots
  • Jidaimono - Used to depict historic events or stories of the past. Ronin, samurai, and a lot of Epic battle. Jidaimono can have more of a realistic style. Lone Wolf and Cub
  • Super Deformed - Giant heads. Chibi  falls into this category with its super cute, small and humorous characters
  • Horror - More suspense, supernatural, and folklore than the gore of the western cannon. Shojo, Tsubaki, and Dragon Head. NELSON LOVES ALMOST EVERYTHING by Junji Ito!
  • Gakuen -  Tend to be set in schools and deal with the drama of teenager relationships and life in general. Kimagure Orange Road and Harench Gakuen