Q&A: “What’s the difference between Otaku and Weeaboo?”

Otaku is a Japanese word.
It refers to a very dedicated or often obsessed fan. Not just of anime or popular culture, but of any hobby. Like densha otaku— train nerds. A very common type of otaku among older men in Japan.

Weeaboo is not a Japanese word.
Weeaboo was coined in an English speaking space online, replacing the older word “wapanese” (a non-Japanese or western person who wanted to be Japanese, because they ignorantly aggrandized the culture/country beyond reality).

USE—
Weeaboo was not just about interest in popular culture, but the word heavily circulated in pop culture spaces. It became used more towards non-Japanese fans of pop culture, but any non-Japanese person who romanticized Japan or appropriated their culture. But there‘s more—

For a while in the 90s early 2000s people stigmatized their intention behind weeaboo— any fan of pop culture would get called weeaboo.
“Oh you like anime, what you want to be Japanese?”
It was a racist way to belittle Japanese culture or anything Japanese made.

We use weeaboo as a way to say, this person is aggrandizing Japan, ignoring any realities or voices of Japanese people. It’s appropriation. That’s what weeaboo means and how it should be used.

It is VERY DIFFERENT from Otaku. Do not conflate them.