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Cosplay is a Japanese subculture centered around dressing as characters from manga, anime and video games, and, less commonly, live action television shows, movies or Japanese pop music bands.
Teens in Tokyo gather for Cosplay
The term is a Japanese contraction combining the words "costume" and "play" which accurately describes the hobby of having fun by dressing up as one's favorite characters. Besides dressing up for public events such as anime conventions, it is not unusual for teens in Japan to gather with like-minded friends just to do cosplay.
The main difference between cosplay and costuming in the United States is that in Japan people typically dress up as characters from Japanese animated films (anime), Japanese comics (manga), or Japanese video games, as compared to dressing up as Star Trek characters or in Renaissance-era costumes. The other difference is that most costuming in the United States is centered around particular events such as conventions or festivals.
Cosplay has spread across the world in recent years, joining with costuming at science fiction conventions in North America and Europe.