I really hate the word "Otaku"

I agree with neet, tho only if I am the one who's calling myself a word I dont understand. But when it comes to other people using a word to describe other people without knowing its meaning, then thats their problem.

Moral of the story is, people should just educate themselves on the meaning of the words they use. Personally myself, I don't use a word unless I know the meaning behind it. Just like a word can have a denotation it also has a connotation. So yeah, otaku in the books is someone who has obsessed interests over something but it's connotation would also just go to someone who likes anime. So even though it's technically wrong it's still right in a way.

Prejudice. I dont care. holliwood movie fan dont mean I do porn... Play games was only to vagabound/kids. Now my 60+ Years mother play more games than me. Be on internet was the same to say "Im sick" Now beach onde havê its issues. No one is Saint. Bit the bastarda need to atack someone religion' beliefs and behaviour as if they where perfect. Im proud Otaku. That means I love animes.

Hmm.. New to this but to be honest (and please correct me if I am wrong) I don't believe Otaku is by definition an insult more than it is simply a descriptive term. Comparing it to words like N*gga and Cr*cker is not fair because they are automatically more powerful to most people simply because they bring about the issue of race. I believe more accurate analogies would be words like nerd or jock which can be viewed negatively or positively. Personally, I felt smart whenever called a nerd and strong/ athletic whenever called a jock. Also, someone said earlier, and I agree that the main reason for the negativity surrounding Otaku is the way they are perceived in media and even in Anime itself sometimes. But similarly to Nerd and Jock, when I am referred to as Otaku I consider it a Homage to my Anime Prowess.. though wiki tells us that Otaku is no longer even specific to Anime and means obsessive behavior of any kind.. Obsessive Interests in ______ (Anything).. Like a Technology Otaku or Car Otaku. Idk. Maybe I am just a positive person so it doesn't bother me. I wouldn't mind the site being called AnimeNerds either. These words are not innately negative though they may be often used that way and have developed some sort of a social stigma surrounding them.

Hrm, would be great if people would explain the etymology of the word Otaku. And how it all started. Cause all I found on the internet was that it was coined from a lolicon magazine and earned it's negative connotation from the otaku serial killer. Was the original intention really negative or was it just born from prejudice? Also http://web.archive.org/web/20130703184904/http://news.mynavi.jp/news/2013/04/27/076 states that a large population of Japan describe themselves as otaku of something.

That's what I thought too, applecaeks. From what I could piece out, the Otaku serial killer case gave it a very bad connotation in the 90s; it doesn't help that the media chooses to focus on examples such as the man who married Nene Agasaki of Love Plus. Sure, everyone is entitled to his/her interpretation of the term 'otaku'; but you can't sweep/underemphasize the more extreme examples. Like many others who have mentioned though, otakus come in different flavors and like the recent normalization of the 'nerd' term, more Japanese have gradually begun to identify themselves as 'otaku' if you define it loosely as fans of anime/*insert your favorite anime show name*.