Is there any specific reason why female voice actors act for male roles in anime?


I've always been wondering: why do female voice actors act for male characters
in anime?

For example: Mayumi Tanaka for Luffy, Takeuchi Junko for Naruto, even Goku's
voice actor (Nozawa Masako), etc.

When there are such good male voice actors (for example the ones for Zoro,
Sanji, etc.), why do the main leads get female actors?

Is there any specific reason or is it just the way it is?




Your question is somehow related to this
[question](https://anime.stackexchange.com/questions/3259/how-common-is-it-
for-men-to-voice-women/3260#3260).

> Sometimes, an animated character is better suited for being voiced by a
> voice actor of the opposite sex. Maybe a higher voice is needed for a male,
> or a lower voice for a female.
>
> A common variant for this is for young boys, usually 12 and under, to be
> voiced by an adult woman. This is because real little boys' voices deepen
> when they go through puberty. Not to mention that it's easier to find
> experienced actresses than experienced prepubescent male actors. The
> producers don't have to deal with child labor laws that limit the amount of
> time a child can spend in a studio, either. Women are often able to maintain
> the role longer, as well, since their voices don't change like a growing
> boy's.
>
> There are exceptions, of course — sometimes an adult man or an actual child
> will voice a little boy. In films, this is the rule rather than the
> exception, as voice recording for a film generally takes much less time than
> for a TV series.
>
> And on a related note, sometimes, for comedy purposes, a deep-voiced woman
> will be played by a man.
> ([source)](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CrossDressingVoices)
>
> Also, female seiyuu voice acting as a male character is much more common
> than male seiyuu voice acting as a female character probably because it is
> easier for women to lower their voice's pitch than a man to make his voice's
> pitch higher like that of a woman.

As to why female dubbers mostly get the main role, aside from the fact that
female voices' are more flexible in acting than those of males', popularity
also is a major factor. There are many female dubbers that are also in their
singing career so it kinda boost up both the anime and the dubber's popularity
by having that person get a main role. But I think the flexibility of females'
voices are the main reason.

