Waifu is a slang used by anime fans (Japanese animations) to refer to characters they feel attracted to and would like to marry them. The word is a derivation of English wife, which means "wife".
This adaptation of English words into the Japanese language is called engrish.
So, to say that a character is a waifu is equivalent to saying that the character is beautiful and that fans would marry her.
The term waifu has a male equivalent, husbando. Husbando comes from the term also in English husband, which means husband.
These slangs are widely used by otakus and otomes, names given in the West to boys and girls (respectively) fans of Japanese animations, and serves to show admiration for their favorite characters.
Waifu origin
The term waifu had its origins in the anime Azumanga Daioh. In it, one of the characters (the perverted teacher, Mr. Kimura) drops a photo of a woman and his students admire her beauty. When asked, Mr. Kimura replies: mai waifu (“my wife”) and everyone says it's impossible.
Since then, waifu is used to talk about a character who has admiration and would like to be together, even though it may seem impossible that this love is returned.
most famous waifus
The video below shows the most popular waifus according to Google searches between 2004 and 2020:
Some of the most famous waifus are:
- Bulma - Dragon Ball
- Nami - One Piece
- Sakura Haruno - Naruto
- Asuna Yuuki - Sword Art Online
- Rem - Re: Zero
- Zero Two - Darling in The Franxx
See also the meanings of:
- anime
- otaku
- ottome
- Mango