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Bishōnen (美少年. literally, "beautiful boy") is a specific Japanese aesthetic concept of the ideally beautiful young man. The prefix bi- (美) specifically refers to feminine beauty (bijin, lit. "beautiful person", refers to a beautiful woman.)
The bishōnen is typically quite slender and not very muscular, with a tapered chin, stylish hair, and an overall effeminate or androgynous appearance.
The aesthetic of the bishōnen began as an ideal of a young homosexual lover. It is perpetuated today in anime and manga, especially shojo (girl) anime, shonen-ai, and yaoi.
Some western anime and manga fans use the term bishōnen (or more playfully 'bishy') to refer to any handsome male character, although this is technically incorrect. Bishōnen who are old enough to be considered men are properly 'biseinen.'
Bish' has even been used by Americans fandom to describe some androgynous women, espeically okama (crossdressers) in anime and manga. This is mainly due to lack of common positive slang in America for an attractive woman who seems more handsome than beautiful. Lady Oscar from Oniisama E (Brother Dear Brother) would be considered the Bish Girl archetype. Another term is bifauxnen, suggesting a woman who is androgynously handsome enough to be a faux bishōnen.
Alternative spellings are bishonen and bishounen.
- Bishonen is a Hong Kong film about a gay romance. See: Bishonen (movie)
- "Bishonen" is also the name of a song by Momus (musician).
- Bishonen is also a brand of sake.