

Valid points are stated in this
[video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRfv5a9QFu8).

> In Western countries, anime is thought of as Eastern animation. In Eastern
> countries, all animation are thought of as anime.

So this question kind of leads to what is an anime? Does having a published
manga a requirement to become an anime? Let's settle this once and for all, is
_Avatar: the Last Airbender_ an anime or not?


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terminology avatar
Is Avatar: the Last Airbender an anime?


_Anime_ basically translates to _animation_ , so the Japanese don't really
have a distinction. Claymation for example could qualify as 'anime' in the
East.

![](https://i.stack.imgur.com/FqhaK.jpg)

From a Western perspective, 'anime' is a looser term, generally meaning
animations from Japan, but sometimes it's applied to Western shows with the
anime 'look', like RWBY or Avatar.

There's no strict guideline on what qualifies as anime and what doesn't, and
arguments arise frequently online by people with different opinions on this.

It's safest to say Avatar is **anime-styled**.

In regards to the 'manga' of Avatar, it seems to be commonly referred to as a
comic rather than a manga. But the format of this should have no bearing on
the animated production.


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There really isn't much point in arguing about whether Avatar or whatever is
an anime or not.

Really, all you're doing is looking at the definition of the word anime, and
there is no authority on that.

Depending who you ask, it's a style of animation, probably including shows
such as Avatar and RWBY but not the Simpsons, or it just means cartoons from
Japan, in which case Avatar is definitely excluded.

Because of this ambiguity, there isn't a simple, accepted answer to your
question.


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The other answers are being unnecessarily noncommittal. The meaning of the
word _anime_ has different connotations in the West and in Japan. No, _Avatar_
is not an anime, speaking in English.

In the West - more specifically, in English - _animation_ is a general term
that means all animated media, yes including claymation and cartoons. In
Japanese, _anime_ is a borrowed word derived from _animation_ , and it means
the same thing as the original word.

After Japanese animated works crossed over to Western audiences, the word
_anime_ was then borrowed back to refer to animated works from that country,
especially those with the style we would naturally describe as "anime".

_Avatar_ is a show created in the west that was heavily influenced by asian
culture and anime. It was designed and created in the West. It was not created
in Japan, and it does not have the style that English-speakers would call
"anime" -- it has influences, but would never be identified as anime if placed
next to a show like _Baccano!_ or _Sailor Moon_. The show's style is distinct
from other western cartoons because of the Asian influence, but the incredible
variety in animation style among Western cartoons is also a distinct flavor of
American-designed animation. And _animation_ includes everything already.
_Avatar_ doesn't match any criteria - I use that word loosely, since it's more
a mass understanding than a checklist - to be called anime.

Saying that there's ambiguity in what is and is not anime is like saying that
there is no style that an English-speaker would recognize specifically as
"anime" at all, which is untrue. And I don't want to read any mentions of
_Avatar_ being animated in Korea, because no-one will ever call _Family Guy_
and most other American cartoon TV shows "anime."

\--Edit because I forgot to address the manga part--

Also no, the comics are not _manga_ , speaking in English, for the same
reasons as above. There are plenty of anime that don't have manga, so it's not
any kind of requirement, to begin with.

Like _anime_ , the word _manga_ was borrowed by Western audiences to refer
specifically to Japanese comics. In Japanese, the word _manga_ is equivalent
to the English _comic_. So someone speaking Japanese would call _The Promise_
"manga" because that's the Japanese word for such works, like _Calvin &
Hobbes_ or _X-Men_. As with _Family Guy_ , there are no English speakers who
would describe _X-Men_ with the Japanese word unless they were speaking
Japanese.


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**The term comes from Japanese, and in that language, yes: Avatar is anime.**
As used in Japanese, the term simply refers to animation, and does not
distinguish it by nation of origin. **But as a loanword in other languages,
however, Avatar usually doesn't qualify**. Most languages other than Japanese
have borrowed the term _anime_ to refer specifically to animation of Japanese
origin.

Anime-as-loanword is a somewhat fuzzy term, but generally refers specifically
to the animation's _origin_ , and not necessarily where it is _produced_.
**Much of what we would call anime is actually produced outside of Japan** :
it originates there, but the production is outsourced to studios in other
countries. _Kaleido Star_ is an example of this: its origin is Japanese, but
much of the work was done as a collaboration between Japanese studio GONZO and
Korean studio G&G Animation.

**Likewise, a surprising amount of animation that we wouldn't call anime
originates outside Japan, but the animation work is outsourced to a Japanese
company**. _ThunderCats_ is an example in both its incarnations: few people
outside of Japan would call it anime, but the animation work _was_ done there
(the 1980s TV series was done by Pacific Animation, while the recent series
was done by Studio 4C).

**_Avatar: The Last Airbender_ represents a third category: it is neither of
Japanese origin nor production, but is so heavily influenced by anime tropes
that it can be difficult to tell the difference without researching the show's
credits**. The creators are American. The animation work on the original
series was outsourced to a number of Korean companies. A few episodes of its
sequel series, _The Legend of Korra_ actually were animated in Japan (by
Studio Pierrot), but most of the animation work on this series was done by a
Korean company: Studio Mir. But despite the franchise's origin and production,
the influence of anime on it is extremely strong, as its own creators admit.
Anime's influence can be seen in virtually every aspect of the franchise, from
its visual styling to its world-building to its character depictions.

**Whether this makes it count as anime, or at least as "close enough", is a
subject of debate among some fans**. In the strictest sense, it doesn't
qualify unless you're speaking Japanese. But if it's indistinguishable from
anime without closely examining the credits, then perhaps there isn't much
sense in insisting on the distinction. So, at least, say the people who would
include it. There are also fans who agree that it's "not technically anime,"
but consider it close enough that it should be included in anime fandom anyway
("honorary anime" is a term you hear from this camp sometimes).

**Even in Japan there is some debate, in a case of what can only be described
as linguistic ping-pong**. It's common knowledge that the term _anime_ was
borrowed (in abbreviated form) from English, to mean animation. English then
re-imported the term, referring specifically to anime of Japanese origin. And
although it has yet to really hit the mainstream, some Japanese fans have
taken to re- _re_ -importing the term, this time in the unabbreviated form
_animation_ , to refer to animation of _non_ -Japanese origin.


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