Ask John: What Does Chibi Mean?

Question:
What the heck is chibi?

Answer:
The Japanese word “chibi” literally means “small” or “undersized.” It can often be derogatory, implying “runt” or “puny.” In anime, the word is most relevant to the Chibi Maruko-chan TV series and the 1991 Chibi Character Go Nagai World OAV series. In Chibi Maruko-chan, the title refers to the show’s 9 year old protagonist. The “CB Chara Go Nagai World” OAV series was a “super deformed” comedy that mixed Go Nagai creations including Devilman and Mazinger. Part of the joke was that the formerly big and powerful monsters and robots of the Go Nagai cannon suddenly found themselves disproportionately tiny and weak, hence the name “chibi.”

“Chibi” also appears in Sailor Moon. Usagi (Sailor Moon) Tsukino’s daughter from the future is named Chibiusa, which is literally an abbreviation of “little Usagi.” And in the Sailor Moon Sailor Stars TV season, Chibi Chibi is a small magical girl.

Seemingly only a few years ago the American fan community at large stumbled across the term and adopted it in much the same way the American fan community adopted a corrupted, weakened version of the Japanese term “otaku.” In proper Japanese “chibi” may not always be exactly the same as “SD” (super deformed). In the case of Chibi Go Nagai World, “chibi” and Super Deformed are the same thing. But “chibi” doesn’t always necessitate squashed, out of proportion renditions. For example, Maruko-chan is chibi but not SD, and SD Gundams are Super Deformed but rarely ever called chibi. However, in the American fan community, the term “chibi” has been stripped of its original negative implications and its distinctions from “Super Deformed” and refers to any cute, tiny or squashed anime or manga character.