

In Japanese, katakana is used for loan words/foreign words, but it shows up a
lot in backgrounds of manga as what seems to be onomatopoeia. Is this manga-
specific, and where did it originate?

![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/DfQLn.jpg)

The center white katakana on the bottom panel seem to be "fuaaaaa", for
instance.


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2013-09-19T18:18:45.453
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2013-09-19T22:28:35.617
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japanese-language
Why is katakana used for the onomatopoeia/sounds in the background?


Using onomatopoeia to stress sound effects in literature is not manga-specific
or even comic-specific. For example, 1966's _Batman_ TV series or even
Nickelodeon's _The Fairly OddParents_ had readily available audio to match
their onscreen text with emphasis. But several cultures have their own
origins. Tracing back **when** this particular artistic/literary device caught
on would be pretty exhaustive, if even credible at all.


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2013-09-19T18:49:20.010
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2013-09-19T18:49:20.010
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