what is an otaku?

[carneman]

i kinda feel dumb asking this but what is it?

[Htom Sirveaux]

It's a Japanese word somewhat akin to the English "dork". Essentially, an otaku is a person who's into Japanese pop culture.

[carneman]

ah, thanks

[Aeolus21]

It literally means "house", but it's just like saying a "person who stays inside the house all the time" or a geek. Like SpoonyBard mentioned in context, most fans see the definition as a person who is really into Japanese culture or anime.

[HikariChan]

I didnt know, lol

[termyt]

In the US, otaku is generally a fan of anime and manga or Japanese culture in general. The term is fairly synonymous with geek.

In Japan, the term has a generally more negative connotation. Someone who is otaku in Japan is considered to be obsessed with (insert object here) to the point of mental instability.

There’s a really good article here, if you are interested:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otaku

[mitsuki lover]

Here's a way of looking at it:some time back Denise Crosby took part in
a documentary that followed some really hard core Trekkers around.They
called the film:TREKKERS(or was it TREKKIES)?Any case it's pretty famous
(or if you want infamous)in Trek circles.
My point here is that an otaku would be an equivalent of a die hard
Trekkie/Trekker here.Someone who gives up all their free time in pursuit
of Japanese Pop Culture.
However both can give more moderate fans a bad name so you do have to be careful.