is a Japanese privately held publishing company headquartered in

Bunkyō is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. Situated in the middle of the ward area, Bunkyō is a residential and educational center. Beginning in the Meiji period, literati like Natsume Sōseki, as well as ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. Kodansha publishes

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

magazines which include ''

Nakayoshi is a monthly Shōjo manga, ''shōjo'' manga List of manga magazines, magazine published by Kodansha in Japan. First issued in December 1954, it is a long-running magazine with over 60 years of manga publication history. Notable titles serialized ...

'', ''

Morning Morning is either the period from sunrise to noon, or the period from midnight to noon. In the first definition it is preceded by the twilight period of dawn, and there are no exact times for when morning begins (also true of evening and nigh ...

'', ''

Afternoon Afternoon is the time between noon and sunset or evening. It is the time when the sun is descending from its peak in the sky to somewhat before its terminus at the horizon in the west. In human life, it occupies roughly the latter half of the s ...

'', ''

Evening Evening is the period of a day that begins at the end of daylight and overlaps with the beginning of night. It generally indicates the period of time when the sun is close to the horizon and comprises the periods of civil, nautical and astronom ...

'', ''

Weekly Young Magazine is a Japanese weekly anthology magazine published in Tokyo each Monday by Kodansha. The magazine started on June 16, 1980, and is targeted at the adult male () demographic. It was published bimonthly (under the title ), on the second and fourth ...

'', ''

Weekly Shōnen Magazine is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga magazine published on Wednesdays in Japan by Kodansha, first published on March 17, 1959. The magazine is mainly read by an older audience, with a significant portion of its readership falling under the male high ...

'', and ''

Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine is a Japanese monthly manga magazine published by Kōdansha. The magazine was started in September 2009 as a spin-off of another Kōdansha magazine, '' Weekly Shōnen Magazine''. Currently running manga series Past series * '' ×××Hol ...

'', as well as the more literary magazines ''

Gunzō is a Japanese language, Japanese monthly literary magazine published in Japan. History and profile ''Gunzō'' was first published in October 1946 as oriented publication. The magazine is published by Kodansha. The past contributors for the mag ...

'', ''

Shūkan Gendai is a general-interest weekly magazine published by Kodansha in Tokyo, Japan. History and profile ''Shūkan Gendai'' was started in 1959. The magazine has its headquarters in Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital o ...

'', and the

Japanese dictionary have a history that began over 1300 years ago when Japanese Buddhist priests, who wanted to understand Chinese sutras, adapted Chinese character dictionaries. Present-day Japanese lexicographers are exploring computerized editing and electronic d ...

, ''

Nihongo Daijiten The is a color-illustrated Japanese dictionary edited by Tadao Umesao and published by Kodansha in 1989 and 1995 (2nd edition). History The ''Nihongo daijiten'' was one of three Japanese dictionaries specifically published to compet ...

''. Kodansha was founded by Seiji Noma in 1909, and members of his family continue as its owners either directly or through the Noma Cultural Foundation.

History

Seiji Noma was a Japanese writer and publisher who was the founder of Kodansha, a leading publishing company, which his family still wholly own today. He was the founder and publisher of many well-known newspapers and magazines. Early life and education N ...

founded Kodansha in 1909 as a spin-off of the ''Dai-Nippon Yūbenkai'' (, "Greater Japan Oratorical Society") and produced the literary magazine, '' Yūben,'' () as its first publication. The name ''Kodansha'' (taken from '' Kōdan Club'' (), a now-defunct magazine published by the company) originated in 1911 when the publisher formally merged with the ''Dai-Nippon Yūbenkai''. The company has used its current legal name since 1958. It uses the motto . Kodansha Limited owns the Otowa Group, which manages subsidiary companies such as King Records (official name: King Record Co., Ltd.) and

Kobunsha is a Japanese publishing company. It publishes literature, manga novels, and women's magazines. Company history Kobunsha was established on October 1, 1945, and belongs to the Kodansha group. The company has published Japanese authors such a ...

, and publishes ''Nikkan Gendai,'' a daily tabloid. It also has close ties with

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

and officially sponsors

Tokyo Disneyland is a theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Disney park t ...

. Kodansha is the largest publisher in Japan. Revenues dropped due to the 2002 recession in Japan and an accompanying downturn in the

publishing industry Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...

: the company posted a loss in the 2002 financial year for the first time since the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. (The second-largest publisher,

Shogakukan is a Japanese publisher of comics, magazines, light novels, dictionaries, literature, non-fiction, home media, and other media in Japan. Shogakukan founded Shueisha, which also founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but ...

, has done relatively better. In the 2003 financial year, Kodansha had revenues of ¥167 billion compared to ¥150 billion for Shogakukan. Kodansha, at its peak, led Shogakukan by over ¥50 billion in revenue.) Kodansha sponsors the

Kodansha Manga Award is one of Japan's major manga awards. The event is sponsored by publisher Kodansha. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga in its third iteration since 1977. Categories The award was originally called the until 1968. In 1970, it was ...

which has run since 1977 (and since 1960 under other names). Kodansha's headquarters in Tokyo once housed

Noma Dōjō Noma Dōjō (野間道場) is a privately owned kendo training hall, or ''dōjō'', located in Tokyo's Bunkyo ward close to Gokoku-ji. The original Noma Dojo was established in 1925 by Seiji Noma, founder of the Kodansha publishing house, but d ...

, a

kendo is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords ( shinai) as well as protective armor ( bōgu). It began as samurai warriors' customary swordsmanship ex ...

practice-hall established by Seiji Noma in 1925. However, the hall was demolished in November 2007 and replaced with a dōjō in a new building nearby. The company announced that it was closing its English-language publishing house, Kodansha International, at the end of April 2011. Their American publishing house,

Kodansha USA Kodansha USA Publishing, LLC is a publishing company based in New York, US, and a subsidiary of Japan's largest publishing company Kodansha. Established in July 1st 2008, Kodansha USA publishes books relating to Japan, Japanese culture, and man ...

, will remain in operation. Kodansha USA began issuing new publications under the head administrator of the international branch, Kentaro Tsugumi, starting in September 2012 with a hardcover release of ''The Spirit of Aikido.'' Many of Kodansha USA's older titles have been reprinted. According to Daniel Mani of Kodansha USA, Inc., "Though we did publishing new books for about a year starting from late 2011, we did continue to sell most of our older title throughout that period (so Kodansha USA never actually closed)." In October 2016, Kodansha acquired publisher

Ichijinsha is a Japanese publishing company focused on manga-related publication, including magazines and books. The company was first established in August 1992 as a limited company under the name Studio DNA whose main purpose was to edit shōnen manga ...

and turned the company into its wholly-owned subsidiary. On November 30, 2022, Kodansha announced an extended partnership with

to release anime originals based on its manga exclusively on video streaming service

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

starting with the second season of ''

Tokyo Revengers is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ken Wakui. It was serialized in Kodansha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from March 2017 to November 2022, with its chapters collected in 31 volumes. The story ...

''.

On March 21, 2023, Kodansha announced a manga distribution service called "K Manga" which was initially launched exclusively in the United States on May 10, 2023. It started approximately with 400 titles, of which 70 were simultaneous publications of ongoing series. On October 21, 2024, it was announced that the service became available in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore; on February 4, 2025, it was announced that the service had expanded to the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, Mexico, and Brazil. On May 24, 2024, Kodansha announced that they acquired publisher

Wani Books is a Japanese publishing company focused on manga-related publication, including magazines and books. The company was established in November 1979. It publishes a manga magazine called ''Comic Gum''. In March 2007, Yoshimoto Books Co., Ltd. was ...

and turned it into a wholly-owned subsidiary.

Relationships with other organizations

The Kodansha company holds ownership in various broadcasting companies in Japan. It also owns shares in

Nippon Cultural Broadcasting is a Japanese radio station in Tokyo which broadcasts to the Kanto area. It is one of the two flagship radio stations of National Radio Network (NRN) (the other station is ) and is a member of the Fujisankei Communications Group. History The ...

and Kobunsha. In the 2005 takeover-war for

Nippon Broadcasting System , or JOLF, is a Japanese radio station based in Yurakucho, Chiyoda ward, Tokyo, headquartered near the Tokyo Imperial Palace. It is also the main company of the Nippon Broadcasting Group. Nippon Broadcasting System is a subsidiary of Fu ...

between

Livedoor was a Japanese company that functioned as an Internet service provider and operator of a web portal and blog platform before being brought down by a scandal in 2006. The company was founded and led in its first 10 years by Takafumi Horie, known ...

and

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...

, Kodansha supported Fuji TV by selling its stock to Fuji TV.

NHK

Kodansha has a somewhat complicated relationship with

NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...

(Nippon Housou Kyoukai), Japan's

public broadcaster Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...

. Many of the manga and novels published by Kodansha have spawned anime adaptations. Animation such as ''

Cardcaptor Sakura , abbreviated as ''CCS'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by the manga group Clamp. Serialized monthly in the ''shōjo'' manga magazine '' Nakayoshi'' from the June 1996 to August 2000 issues, it was also published in ...

'', aired in NHK's ''Eisei Anime Gekijō'' time-slot, and Kodansha published a companion magazine to the NHK children's show '' Okāsan to Issho''. The two companies often clash editorially, however. The October 2000 issue of ''Gendai'' accused NHK of staging footage used in a news report in 1997 on dynamite fishing in Indonesia. NHK sued Kodansha in the Tokyo District Court, which ordered Kodansha to publish a retraction and pay ¥4 million in damages. Kodansha appealed the decision and reached a settlement whereby it had to issue only a partial retraction and to pay no damages. ''Gendai''s sister magazine ''Shūkan Gendai'' nonetheless published an article probing further into the staged-footage controversy that has dogged NHK.

Honors

Japan Foundation The is a Japanese foundation that spreads Japanese culture around the world. Based in Tokyo, it was established in 1972 by an Act of the National Diet as a special legal entity to undertake international dissemination of Japanese culture. I ...

: Japan Foundation Special Prize, 1994.

List of magazines

Manga magazines

This is a list of manga magazines published by Kodansha.

Male-oriented manga magazines

''Kodomo'' (children's) manga magazines *''

Comic BomBom was a monthly Japanese children's manga magazine published by Kodansha and aimed at elementary school boys. It was first published on October 15, 1981, and ceased publication in 2007. A web version of the magazine has been published on Pixiv Com ...

'' (1981–2007) ''Shōnen'' manga magazines *''

'' (since 1959) *''

Monthly Shōnen Magazine is a monthly shōnen manga magazine published in Japan by Kodansha. It was launched in 1964 under the name . In 1969 it was retitled as and its publication frequency increased from quarterly to monthly. After suspension in 1974 it started ...

'' (since 1975) *'' Shōnen Sirius'' (monthly since 2005) *''

'' (monthly since 2009) *''Suiyōbi no Sirius'' (website, since 2013) *''Magazine Pocket'' (app/website, since 2015) *''Monthly Maga Kichi'' (website since 2023) :Discontinued *''

Shōnen Club ''Shōnen Club'' (''Shōnen Kurabu'' / 少年倶楽部, later 少年クラブ in 1946) was a monthly boys' magazine begun by Kodansha in November 1914. The magazine initially featured articles, poetry and serialized novels, but it began to focus ...

'' (1914–1962) *''Monthly Manga Shōnen'' (1947–1955) *''Bokura'' (1954-1969) *''

Magazine Special was a Japanese shōnen manga magazine published by Kodansha and first launched with a cover date of September 5, 1983. Its audience demographic is geared toward younger teenage boys, and contents tend to be predominantly sports stories and high ...

'' (1983–2017) *''Monthly Shōnen Magazine GREAT'' (1993–2009) *''

Monthly Shōnen Rival was a Japanese monthly '' shōnen'' manga magazine by Kodansha that ran from April 4, 2008 to June 4, 2014. It was issued on the 4th of every month. As with Shueisha's '' Jump SQ.'' and Shogakukan is a Japanese publisher of comics, magaz ...

'' (2008–2014) *''Magazine E-no'' (2009–2011) *''Monthly Shonen Magazine+'' (2011–2014) *''Shōnen Magazine R'' (2015–2023) *''Shōnen Magazine Edge'' (2015–2023) ''Seinen'' manga magazines *''

'' (since 1980) *''Monthly Young Magazine'' (since 2009) *''

'' (weekly since 1982; originally called ''Comic Morning'') *''

'' (monthly, since 1986) *''

Good! Afternoon is a Japanese seinen manga magazine anthology published by Kodansha. Initially published bimonthly, it switched to a monthly publication schedule starting with the 25th issue in late 2012. Each issue typically has around twenty-five stories by v ...

'' (monthly since 2012; bi-monthly from 2008 to 2012) *''Comic Days'' (app/website, since 2018) *''Yanmaga Web'' (website, since 2020) *''Morning Two Web'' (website, since 2022) :Discontinued * (1986–1995) *''Mr. Magazine'' (1991–2000) *''

Monthly Magazine Z was a Japanese seinen mixed-media magazine published by Kodansha, aimed at adult men, but particularly at hardcore anime and manga fans, featuring articles as well as manga tied into popular franchises. Original manga were also featured in the ma ...

'' (1999–2009) *'' Young Magazine Uppers'' (1998–2004) *''Morning Two'' (2006–2022) *''Nemesis'' (2010–2018) *''Young Magazine the 3rd'' (2014–2021) *''

'' (2001-2023)

Female-oriented manga magazines

''Shōjo'' manga magazines *''

'' (monthly since 1954) *''

Bessatsu Friend , formerly known as , is a Japanese manga magazine published by Kodansha. It was originally conceived as a , or companion magazine, to '' Shōjo Friend'', which is no longer published. ''Bessatsu Friend'' is commonly known by the abbreviated na ...

'' (monthly since 1965) *''

Dessert Dessert is a course (food), course that concludes a meal; the course consists of sweet foods, such as cake, biscuit, ice cream, and possibly a beverage, such as dessert wine or liqueur. Some cultures sweeten foods that are more commonly umami, ...

'' (monthly since 1996) *''Nakayoshi Lovely'' (5 issues per year, since ????) *''The Dessert'' (monthly, since ????) :Discontinued *''

Shōjo Club was a monthly Japanese (girls) magazine. Founded by the publishing company Kodansha in 1923 as a sister publication to its magazine '' Shōnen Club'', the magazine published articles, short stories, illustrations, poems, and manga. ''Shōjo Cl ...

'' (monthly, 1923–1962) *''

Shōjo Friend was a shōjo manga magazine formerly published by Kodansha, beginning in 1962. Kodansha used the knowledge gained from publishing magazines aimed at young girls, including ''Nakayoshi'' and '' Shōjo Club'', as well as the experience from publish ...

'' (1962–1996) *''

Monthly Carol ''Monthly Carol'', was a shōjo manga magazine published by Kodansha starting in March 1983 and discontinued in 1984. Overview ''Carol'' was a sister magazine to ''Nakayoshi'', a girls' manga magazine also published by Kodansha. ''Carols c ...

'' (1983-1984) *'' Mimi'' (1975–1996) * Suspense & Horror (1988-1998) *''

Aria In music, an aria (, ; : , ; ''arias'' in common usage; diminutive form: arietta, ; : ariette; in English simply air (music), air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrument (music), instrumental or orchestral accompan ...

'' (monthly, 2010–2018) ''Josei'' manga magazines *''

Be Love ''Be Love'' is a Japanese monthly (bimonthly May 1982 – 2018) manga magazine targeting women published by Kodansha. It debuted in September 1980. It is one of the leading manga magazines for adult women, the second of its kind (the first being ...

'' (monthly 1980–1982, 2018–present, bimonthly 1982–2018; originally called ''Be in Love'') *''

Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...

'' (monthly since 1992) *''Kiss Plus'' (bi-monthly, ????-2014; succeeded by ''Hatsu Kiss'') *''ITAN'' (quarterly since 2010) *''Hatsu Kiss'' (bi-monthly 2014–2018, monthly 2018–2021) Web magazines *''Ane Friend'' *''Comic Tint'' *''Honey Milk''

Literary magazines

* ''

Gunzo :''The article is about the historical figure. For the Japanese magazine, see Gunzo''. Gunzo (also ''Cunzo'') was a 7th-century duke of the Alamanni under Frankish sovereignty. His residence was at ''villa Iburninga'' (today's Überlingen) at L ...

'', monthly literary magazine * '' Mephisto'', tri-annual literary magazine focusing on mystery and detective stories * ''

Faust Faust ( , ) is the protagonist of a classic German folklore, German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust (). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a deal with the Devil at a ...

Book series

Published by Kodansha Ltd.

* Kodansha Gakujutsu Bunko (講談社学術文庫) (English, "Kodansha Academic Paperback Library") (1970)

Published by Kodansha International/USA Ltd.

* Japanese for Busy People Series * Japanese for Young People Series * Kodansha Bilingual Books * Kodansha Globe * This Beautiful World

Miss iD

Kodansha organizes the Miss iD

pageant Pageant(s) or The Pageant(s) may refer to: Events * Procession or ceremony in elaborate costume * Beauty pageant, or beauty contest * List of pageants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints * Medieval pageant, a narrative medieval pro ...

, which started in 2012. iD stands for "identity", "

idol Idol or Idols may refer to: Religion and philosophy * Cult image, a human-made object that is venerated or worshipped for the deity, spirit or daemon that it embodies or represents * Murti, a devotional image of a deity or saint used during puja ...

", "I", and "diversity", and it is described as a pageant to discover diverse role models for the "new era" without being bound to conventional beauty and lifestyle standards.

Married Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

and

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

women are allowed to participate. The Miss ID title is awarded to more than one person each year, and holders of the title include actress Tina Tamashiro, singer

Rie Kaneko is a Japanese–Filipino gravure idol, actress, fashion model and singer best known for being a member of Ladybaby. Background Kaneko's mother is Spanish of Filipino descent and her father is Japanese. In September 2014 Rie Kaneko was co-Gr ...

, and musician Ena Fujita. Computer-generated character Saya and AI character Rinna were semifinalists in the 2018 pageant.

Awards given

Kodansha presents the following awards: * The Noma Prize for Literature * The Noma Literary Prize for New Writers * The Noma Literary Prize for Children’s Literature * The Noma Publishing Cultural Prize * The Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for Literature * The Yoshikawa Eiji Bunko Prize * The Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for New Writers * The Yoshikawa Eiji Cultural Prize * The Kodansha Manga Awards * The Kodansha Honda Yasuharu Non-Fiction Award * The Kodansha Science Publication Award * The Kodansha Picture Book Award * The Noma Award for the Translation of Japanese Literature * The Edogawa Rampo Award * The Kodansha Media Award

References

External links

Kodansha Official Japanese website

Kodansha USA Official Website
(archive)
Kodansha USA Official Website

Kodansha Anime News Network
{{Kodansha manga magazines Japanese companies established in 1909 Publishing companies established in 1909 Japanese companies established in 1911 Publishing companies established in 1911 Book publishing companies in Tokyo Comic book publishing companies in Tokyo Liberal media in Japan Magazine publishing companies in Tokyo Mass media companies based in Tokyo Manga distributors Publishers of adult comics Japanese brands Disney comics publishers Television production companies of Japan

History

Relationships with other organizations

NHK

Honors

List of magazines

Manga magazines

Male-oriented manga magazines

Female-oriented manga magazines

Literary magazines

Book series

Published by Kodansha Ltd.

Published by Kodansha International/USA Ltd.

Miss iD

Awards given

See also

References

External links