Afghanis-tan: Difference between revisions

Afghanis-tan (Afghanistan)
	Japanese edition cover
あふがにすタン; (Afuganisu-tan)
Genre	Comedy; History; Moe;
Manga
Written by	Timaking (ちまきing)
Published by	SansaiBooks
Magazine	Online
Original run	October 2003 – February 2005
Volumes	1
Manga
Pakis-tan
Written by	Timaking (ちまきing)
Published by	SansaiBooks
Magazine	Online
Original run	February 2005 – Late Winter/Early Spring 2005
Volumes	1

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Afghanis-tan (あふがにすタン, Afuganisu-tan, see note on name below) or Afghanistan is a Japanese yonkoma manga, originally published as a webcomic, by Timaking (ちまきing). It is also the name of the protagonist of the manga. The manga is nicknamed Afgan (あふがん, Afugan)

Background

Afghanis-tan illustrates the modern history of Afghanistan and its neighboring countries, starting from the imperialist era in the 19th century, through moe anthropomorphism. The title character, a short and clumsy bishōjo, is a national personification of Afghanistan. Other female characters personify the nearby nations of Central Asia, such as Pakistan and Uzbekistan. Nations that have fought wars in Afghanistan at various times, such as Britain, the Soviet Union and the United States also make appearances. The Taliban regime and Al-Qaeda terrorist group are also represented in the comic as feral cats.

Each yonkoma strip is accompanied by an "Afghan Memo" that explains some of the background and history of the nations depicted. Additional pages give short biographies of the characters.

The fact that it is a moe manga depicting international conflict, and the fact that it personifies countries, has drawn some criticism. However, it has also drawn attention for its attempt to blend an appropriate depiction of the history and background of each country with the personality of its characters.

Afghanis-tan has finished, and work on its sequel, "Pakis-tan" (ISBN 4-86199-116-1), was suspended after four editions but was released in 2008 by the company SansaiBooks. The author of both the comics caught a virus on his computer that had leaked his personal info, after which he took down his website and moved on from associating with the comics.

On July 26, 2005, after several delays, the series went on sale as a comic book, "Afghanis-tan" (ISBN 4-86199-009-2).

Characters

Afghanis-tan (あふがにすタン, Afuganisu-tan, represents Afghanistan): The protagonist of the series, an unfortunate girl surrounded by neighbors with strong personalities. According to her character description, "she trips and falls a lot". Her design appears to be based on Sharbat Gula, an Afghan woman whose iconic photo appeared on the cover of the June 1985 issue of National Geographic.
Pakis-tan (ぱきすタン, Pakisu-tan, represents Pakistan): Boastful, and often feels lonely, especially without Kashmir. Likes Afghanis-tan.
Uzbekis-tan (うずべきすタン, Uzubekisu-tan, represents Uzbekistan): Stubborn and a sore loser. Often quarrels with Pakis-tan. Idolizes "Older-Sister Russia".
Tajikis-tan (たじきすタン, Tajikisu-tan, represents Tajikistan): A salt-of-the-earth Edokko type, quick to argue and quick to make up. Has girlish tastes.
Kyrgyzs-tan (きるぎすタン, Kirugisu-tan, represents Kyrgyzstan): Quick-thinking and sharp-tongued. Always riding on a wooden horse.
Turkmenis-tan (とるくめにすタン, Torukumenisu-tan, represents Turkmenistan): A girl with a mysterious personality. One never knows her true thoughts. (Cf. Saparmurat Niyazov)
Meriken (めりけん, Meriken, represents the United States): The richest person in the neighborhood and a bully.
Al-Nyaida (あるにゃいだ, Arunyaida, represents Al-Qaeda): A group of feral cats causing trouble in the neighborhood. Come to live in Afghanis-tan's house while she is out.

Reception

Around the time when the book was published by Sansai Books, part of the intention was to provide information about the current state of Afghanistan.^{[citation needed]}

There is criticism that using the style of moe trivializes the situation. In particular, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 were depicted as "an incident where a cat called Al-Qaeda bit America", a fact which was severely criticized in the secondary work, "Introduction to the Kashmir conflict (カシミール紛争入門, Kashimīru Funsō Nyūmon)".

Collections

No.	Title	Release date	ISBN
1	Afghanis-tan (あふがにすタン, Afuganisu-tan)	July 26, 2006	978-4-8619-9009-0
2	Pakis-tan (ぱきすタン, Pakisu-tan)	August 30, 2008	978-4-8619-9116-5

References

"Popular Web Mangaka Vanishes After Winny Incident" Archived 2009-08-13 at the Wayback Machine. Anime News Service Archived 2007-02-01 at the Wayback Machine. 5-2-06

External links

(in Japanese) Partial archive of Afghanis-tan site (many images not available)
Afghanis-tan (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
https://sites.google.com/view/afuganisutanandpakisutanmangas/home (Fan Translations)

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|Japanese yonkoma manga}}
 {{distinguish|Afghanistan}}
 {{No footnotes|date=July 2019}}
 {{Infobox animanga/Header
-| name            = Afghanis-tan (Afghanistan)
+| name = Afghanis-tan (Afghanistan)
-| image           = Afuganisu-tan-cover.jpg
+| image = Afuganisu-tan-cover.jpg
-| caption         = Japanese edition cover
+| caption = Japanese edition cover
-| ja_kanji        = あふがにすタン
+| ja_kanji = あふがにすタン
-| ja_romaji       = Afuganisu-tan
+| ja_romaji = Afuganisu-tan
-| genre           = [[Comedy]], [[History]], [[Moe (slang)|Moe]]
+| genre = {{ubl|[[Comedy]]|[[History]]|[[Moe (slang)|''Moe'']]}}
 }}
 {{Infobox animanga/Print
@@ Line 33: / Line 34: @@
 {{Infobox animanga/Footer}}
-{{nihongo|'''''Afghanis-tan'''''|あふがにすタン|Afuganisu-tan|see note on name below}} or '''''Afghanistan''''' is a Japanese [[yonkoma]] [[manga]], originally published as a [[webcomic]], by Timaking (ちまきing).  It is also the name of the heroine of the manga. The manga is nicknamed {{nihongo|Afgan|あふがん|Afugan}}
+{{nihongo|'''''Afghanis-tan'''''|あふがにすタン|Afuganisu-tan|see note on name below}} or '''''Afghanistan''''' is a Japanese [[yonkoma manga|''yonkoma'' manga]], originally published as a [[webcomic]], by Timaking (ちまきing). It is also the name of the protagonist of the manga. The manga is nicknamed {{nihongo|Afgan|あふがん|Afugan}}
 ==Background==
-''Afghanis-tan'' illustrates the modern [[history of Afghanistan]] and its neighboring countries, starting from the [[imperialist]] era in the 19th century, through [[moe anthropomorphism]]. The title character, a short and clumsy [[bishōjo]], is a [[national personification]] of [[Afghanistan]]. Other female characters personify the nearby nations of [[Central Asia]], such as [[Pakistan]] and [[Uzbekistan]]. Nations that have fought wars in Afghanistan at various times, such as [[United Kingdom|Britain]], the [[Soviet Union]] and the [[United States]] also make appearances. The [[Taliban]] regime and [[Al-Qaeda]] terrorist group are also represented in the comic, the latter as cats.
+''Afghanis-tan'' illustrates the modern [[history of Afghanistan]] and its neighboring countries, starting from the [[imperialist]] era in the 19th century, through [[moe anthropomorphism|''moe'' anthropomorphism]]. The title character, a short and clumsy ''[[bishōjo]]'', is a [[national personification]] of [[Afghanistan]]. Other female characters personify the nearby nations of [[Central Asia]], such as [[Pakistan]] and [[Uzbekistan]]. Nations that have fought wars in Afghanistan at various times, such as [[United Kingdom|Britain]], the [[Soviet Union]] and the [[United States]] also make appearances. The [[Taliban]] regime and [[Al-Qaeda]] terrorist group are also represented in the comic as feral cats.
-Each [[yonkoma]] strip is accompanied by an "Afghan Memo" that explains in prose some of the background and history of the nations depicted. Additional pages give short biographies of the characters.
+Each ''[[yonkoma]]'' strip is accompanied by an "Afghan Memo" that explains some of the background and history of the nations depicted. Additional pages give short biographies of the characters.
-The fact that it is a [[moe (slang)|moe]] manga depicting international conflict, and the fact that it personifies countries, has drawn a little criticism. However, it has also drawn attention for its attempt to blend an appropriate depiction of the history and background of each country with the personality of its characters.
+The fact that it is a [[moe (slang)|''moe'']] manga depicting international conflict, and the fact that it personifies countries, has drawn some criticism. However, it has also drawn attention for its attempt to blend an appropriate depiction of the history and background of each country with the personality of its characters.
-''Afghanis-tan'' has finished, and work on its sequel, "'''Pakis-tan'''", was suspended after four editions.
+''Afghanis-tan'' has finished, and work on its sequel, "Pakis-tan" (ISBN 4-86199-116-1), was suspended after four editions but was released in 2008 by the company SansaiBooks. The author of both the comics caught a virus on his computer that had leaked his personal info, after which he took down his website and moved on from associating with the comics.
-On July 26, 2005, after several delays, the series went on sale as a comic book, "'''Afghanis-tan'''" ({{ISBN|4-86199-009-2}}).
+On July 26, 2005, after several delays, the series went on sale as a comic book, "Afghanis-tan" ({{ISBN|4-86199-009-2}}).
 ==Characters==
-:''Note that most of the character names are written in Japanese the same way the country they represent is written, only with a [[katakana]] emphasis on the "[[Japanese honorifics#Baby talk variations|-tan]]" suffix''
+{{Hatnote|1=Note that most of the character names are written in Japanese the same way the country they represent is written, only with a [[katakana]] emphasis on the "[[Japanese honorifics#Baby talk variations|-tan]]" suffix}}
+; {{Flagdeco|Afghanistan|variant=2002}} {{nihongo|'''Afghanis-tan'''|あふがにすタン|Afuganisu-tan|represents [[Afghanistan]]}}
-; {{nihongo|'''Afghanis-tan'''|あふがにすタン|Afuganisu-tan|represents [[Afghanistan]]}}
 : The protagonist of the series, an unfortunate girl surrounded by neighbors with strong personalities. According to her character description, "she trips and falls a lot". Her design appears to be based on [[Sharbat Gula]], an Afghan woman whose [[Afghan Girl|iconic photo]] appeared on the cover of the June 1985 issue of [[National Geographic Magazine|National Geographic]].
+; {{Flagdeco|Pakistan}} {{nihongo|'''Pakis-tan'''|ぱきすタン|Pakisu-tan|represents [[Pakistan]]}}
-{{nihongo|'''Pakis-tan'''|ぱきすタン|Pakisu-tan|represents [[Pakistan]]}}
 : Boastful, and often feels lonely, especially without Kashmir. Likes Afghanis-tan.
+; {{Flagdeco|Uzbekistan}} {{nihongo|'''Uzbekis-tan'''|うずべきすタン|Uzubekisu-tan|represents [[Uzbekistan]]}}
-{{nihongo|'''Uzbekis-tan'''|うずべきすタン|Uzubekisu-tan|represents [[Uzbekistan]]}}
 : Stubborn and a sore loser. Often quarrels with Pakis-tan. Idolizes "Older-Sister [[Russia]]".
+; {{Flagdeco|Tajikistan}} {{nihongo|'''Tajikis-tan'''|たじきすタン|Tajikisu-tan|represents [[Tajikistan]]}}
-{{nihongo|'''Tajikis-tan'''|たじきすタン|Tajikisu-tan|represents [[Tajikistan]]}}
 : A salt-of-the-earth [[Edokko]] type, quick to argue and quick to make up. Has girlish tastes.
+; {{Flagdeco|Kyrgyzstan}} {{nihongo|'''Kyrgyzs-tan'''|きるぎすタン|Kirugisu-tan|represents [[Kyrgyzstan]]}}
-{{nihongo|'''Kyrgyzs-tan'''|きるぎすタン|Kirugisu-tan|represents [[Kyrgyzstan]]}}
 : Quick-thinking and sharp-tongued. Always riding on a wooden horse.
+; {{Flagdeco|Turkmenistan}} {{nihongo|'''Turkmenis-tan'''|とるくめにすタン|Torukumenisu-tan|represents [[Turkmenistan]]}}
-{{nihongo|'''Turkmenis-tan'''|とるくめにすタン|Torukumenisu-tan|represents [[Turkmenistan]]}}
 : A girl with a mysterious personality. One never knows her true thoughts. (Cf. [[Saparmurat Niyazov]])
+; {{Flagdeco|USA}} {{nihongo|'''Meriken'''|めりけん|Meriken|represents the [[United States]]}}
+: The richest person in the neighborhood and a bully.
-{{nihongo|'''Meriken'''|めりけん|represents the [[United States]]}}
+; {{Flagdeco|Al-Qaeda}} {{nihongo|'''Al-Nyaida'''|あるにゃいだ|Arunyaida|represents [[Al-Qaeda]]}}
-: The richest person in the neighborhood. Good in a fight.
-{{nihongo|'''Al-Nyaida'''|あるにゃいだ|Arunyaida|represents [[Al-Qaeda]]}}
 : A group of [[feral cat]]s causing trouble in the neighborhood. Come to live in Afghanis-tan's house while she is out.
 == Reception ==
-As it makes it easy for readers to learn about the history and geography of Central Asia, topics which Japanese people are not very familiar with, it could be thought of as an educational text. Around the time when the book was published by Sansai Books, again, part of the intention was to  provide information about the current state of Afghanistan.
+Around the time when the book was published by Sansai Books, part of the intention was to  provide information about the current state of Afghanistan.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}
-There is criticism that using the style of "[[Moe (slang)|moe]]" trivializes the situation. In particular, the [[9/11|terrorist attacks]] of September 11, 2001 were depicted as "an incident where a cat called Al-Qaeda bit America", a fact which was severely criticized in the secondary work, "{{nihongo|Introduction to the Kashmir conflict|カシミール紛争入門|Kashimīru Funsō Nyūmon}}".
+There is criticism that using the style of [[Moe (slang)|''moe'']] trivializes the situation. In particular, the [[9/11|terrorist attacks]] of September 11, 2001 were depicted as "an incident where a cat called Al-Qaeda bit America", a fact which was severely criticized in the secondary work, "{{nihongo|Introduction to the Kashmir conflict|カシミール紛争入門|Kashimīru Funsō Nyūmon}}".
 ==Collections==
@@ Line 103: / Line 96: @@
 ==See also==
-* ''[[Hetalia: Axis Powers]]'' — a series with a similar premise, but instead employs [[bishōnen]] to represent [[Italy]] and its interactions with other countries, particularly around [[World War I]] and [[World War II]].
+* ''[[Hetalia: Axis Powers]]'' – a series with a similar premise, employing ''[[bishōnen]]'' to represent [[Italy]] and its interactions with other countries, particularly around [[World War I]] and [[World War II]].
-* [[ISIS-chan]]
-{{-}}
 ==References==
-* Much of this article was translated from the [[:ja:あふがにすタン|equivalent article in the Japanese Wikipedia]], accessed on September 1, 2006.
 * [http://www.animenewsservice.com/archives/jan55.htm "Popular Web Mangaka Vanishes After Winny Incident"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090813191326/http://www.animenewsservice.com/archives/jan55.htm |date=2009-08-13 }}. [http://www.animenewsservice.com/ Anime News Service] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070201233036/http://animenewsservice.com/ |date=2007-02-01 }}. 5-2-06
@@ Line 113: / Line 104: @@
 * {{in lang|ja}} [https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.yukai.jp/~timaking/afgan/* Partial archive of ''Afghanis-tan'' site] (many images not available)
 * {{ann|manga|6654}}
+* https://sites.google.com/view/afuganisutanandpakisutanmangas/home (Fan Translations)
 {{Portal bar|Anime and manga}}
@@ Line 126: / Line 117: @@
 [[Category:History of Afghanistan in fiction]]
 [[Category:Afghanistan in fiction]]
-[[Category:Works about The Great Game]]
+[[Category:Works about the Great Game]]
 [[Category:2003 manga]]
 [[Category:Islam in comics]]