Dakimakura on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
A ''dakimakura'' (; from ''daki'' "embrace" and ''makura'' "pillow") is a type of large
During the late '90s and early 2000s, ''dakimakura'' began to intertwine with
pillow
A pillow is a support of the body at rest for comfort, therapy, or decoration. Pillows are used in different variations by many species, including humans. Some types of pillows include throw pillows, body pillows, decorative pillows, and man ...
from Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
which is usually coupled with pillow covers depicting manga and anime characters. The word is often translated to English as body pillow, waifu
The following is a glossary of terms that are specific to anime and manga. Anime includes animated series, films and videos, while manga includes graphic novels, drawings and related artwork.
''Note: Japanese words that are used in general ...
pillow, or husbando pillow. ''Dakimakura'' are similar to Western orthopedic body pillows, and are commonly used by Japanese youth as "comfort object
A comfort object, more formally a transitional object or attachment object, is an item used to provide psychology, psychological comfort, especially in unusual or unique situations, or at bedtime for children. Among toddlers, a comfort object of ...
s".
History
During the late '90s and early 2000s, ''dakimakura'' began to intertwine with otaku
is a Japanese word that describes people with consuming interests, such as anime, manga, video games, computers or other highly enthusiastic hobbies. Its contemporary use originated with a 1983 essay by Akio Nakamori in '' Manga Burikko''. ...
culture, leading to the production of pillow covers featuring printed images of ''bishōjo
In Japanese popular culture, a , also romanized as ''bishojo'' or ''bishoujo'', is a cute girl character. characters appear ubiquitously in media including manga, anime, and computerized games (especially in the ''bishojo'' game genre), and al ...
'' and ''bishōnen
is a Japanese term literally meaning "beautiful youth (boy)" and describes an aesthetic that can be found in disparate areas in East Asia: a young man of androgynous beauty. This word originated from the Tang dynasty poem '' Eight Immortals ...
'' posed lying down from various anime or ''bishōjo'' games. Many of these early otaku ''dakimakura'' covers were released through Cospa
is a Japanese clothing company specializing in the production of cosplay costumes and other apparel for the otaku fan base. The company started in May 1995 as the child company of Broccoli. The name "Cospa" comes from an acronym
An acronym ...
, a character goods and apparel store which as of 2018 continues to release official ''dakimakura'' covers.
Although ''dakimakura'' are sometimes called "Dutch wife", the original definition of this phrase is closer to the '' chikufujin'', or "bamboo wife". The year 2015 saw some of the first talking body pillows with ''Ita-Supo'' and its mascot, Rina Makuraba. It was invented by former Kyushu Institute of Technology
The is one of the 87 national universities in Japan. Located in Fukuoka Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, it is dedicated to education and research in the fields of science and technology. It is earlier abbreviated to KIT and is now official ...
researcher, Koichi Uchimura.
Sizes
''Dakimakura'' are available in two main sizes, in length with a width ( circumference). Prior to the mid-2000s, ''dakimakura'' were available in one size; . Since the late 2000s, ''dakimakura'' became available and increasingly popular due to shipping cost savings from being under the airmail weight limit. Due to the increase in popularity, new sizes have been created to adapt to all heights and ages, and although there are other sizes available, the 5 most popular sizes are 180x60, 170x60, 160x60, 150x50 and 140x40 cm.Love pillows
Love pillows are a subset of ''dakimakura'' usually portraying life-size pictures of characters in intercourse poses. They may portray anime characters, furry characters, orpornographic film actor
A pornographic film actor or actress, pornographic performer, adult entertainer, or porn star is a person who performs sex acts on video that is usually characterized as a pornographic film. Such videos tend to be made in a number of distinc ...
s.
See also
*Co-sleeping
Co-sleeping or bed sharing is a practice in which babies and young children sleep close to one or both parents, as opposed to in a separate room. Co-sleeping individuals sleep in sensory proximity to one another, where the individual senses the p ...
*Sex doll
A sex doll (also, joy toy, love doll, fuck doll or blowup doll) is an anthropomorphic sex toy in the size and shape of a sexual partner. The sex doll may consist of an entire body, or just a head, pelvis, or other body part (vagina, anus, mo ...
*Bolster
A bolster is a long narrow pillow or cushion filled with cotton, down or fibre. Bolsters are usually firm for back or arm support or for decorative application.Von Tobel, Jackie. "Neck Rolls and Bolsters." The Design Directory of Bedding. Lay ...
*Bamboo wife
A bamboo wife is a bolster (pillow) made from a woven bamboo cylinder that may be as large as the size of the human body. It goes by names such as ( zh, c=竹夫人, p=zhúfūrén, cy=jūkfūyàhn; Vietnamese: ''trúc phu nhân''; ; ), also know ...
*3D mousepad
A 3D mousepad is a type of mousepad with a wrist rest that is modelled to resemble breasts, buttocks, or other anatomy. They are typically printed with an image of a character from an anime, manga, or video game series. 3D mousepads are sometime ...
References
External links
* {{Pillows Japanese inventions Otaku Pillows