Editing Ecchi (section)

== Etymology and use in Japan ==
The correct transcription of the word {{lang|ja|エッチ}} in [[Hepburn romanization|Hepburn]] notation is "{{lang|ja-latn|etchi}}".<ref>After the sources of the article [[Hepburn romanization]]. In Hepburn, the [[sokuon]] (っ, small ''tsu'') is romanized ''t'' before ''ch''.</ref> However, it is typically written as "ecchi" in the Western world.

''Etchi'' in and of itself is merely an abbreviation of ''[[hentai]]''. There is no distinction between "hardcore" ''hentai'' and "softcore" ''etchi'' in proper Japanese. See [[Hentai#Etymology]] for further etymology.

''{{lang|ja-latn|Hentai}}'' was introduced in the [[Meiji period]] as a term for ''change of form'' or ''transformation'' in science and [[psychology]]. In this context, it was used to refer to disorders such as [[hysteria]] or to describe [[paranormal phenomena]] like [[hypnosis]] or [[telepathy]].<ref name="hikaru-2004">{{cite book |last=Hikaru |first=Saitō |title=Hentai—H |pages=45–58 |publisher=Kōdansha gendaishinsho |year=2004 |edition=Kansai seiyoku kenkyūkai |series=Sei no yōgoshū}}</ref> Slowly, the meaning expanded until it had the meaning of ''non-standard''. In the 1910s, it was used in [[sexology]] in the compound expression "{{lang|ja-latn|hentai seiyoku}}" ({{lang|ja|変態性欲}}, ''abnormal sexual desire<ref>{{cite book |first=Jennifer |last=Robertson |title=Gender and the State in Japan |publisher=The George Washington University Institute for Ethnographic Research |volume=64 |series=Theatrical Resistance, Theatres of Restraint: The Takarazuka Revue and the "State Theatre" Movement in Japan |year=1991 |pages=165–177}}</ref>'', which is rephrased as "[[sexual perversion]]" in modern times) and became popular within the theory of sexual deviance (''{{lang|ja-latn|Hentai seiyoku ron}}''), published by Eiji Habuto and Jun'ichirō Sawada in 1915.<ref>{{cite book |first=Jennifer |last=Robertson |title=Dying to Tell: Sexuality and Suicide in Imperial Japan |publisher=The University of Chicago Press |volume=25 |year=1999 |page=21}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Jim |last=Reichert |title=Deviance and Social Darwinism in Edogawa Ranpo's Erotic-Grotesque Thriller "Kotō no oni" |series=Journal of Japanese Studies |publisher=The Society for Japanese Studies |volume=27 |page=128}}</ref> In the 1920s, many publications dealt with deviant sexual desires and the {{lang|ja-latn|[[ero guro nansensu]]}} movement. Goichi Matsuzawa calls it a period characterized by a "''hentai boom''".<ref>[[Goichi Matsuzawa]] (1997). ''Meiji, Taishō, Shōwa, kindai fūzoku shuppan no rekishi, Ero no hon''. Tokyo. Wani no ana. p. 55</ref> In the 1930s, censorship became more common, leading to fewer books being published on this theme.<ref>[[Sabine Frühstück]] (2003). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=77gwDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA15 Colonizing Sex: Sexology and Social Control in Modern Japan]''. University of California Press. {{ISBN|0-520-23548-7}}. p. 15</ref>

{{anchor|H}}After the Second World War, in the 1950s, interest in hentai was renewed, and people would sometimes refer to it just by the first English letter, ''H'' (pronounced as {{lang|ja|エッチ}}, {{IPAc-ja|e|'|t|ti}}). In 1952, the magazine ''Shukan Asahi'' reported that a woman who was groped by a stranger in a movie theater reacted with ''"{{lang|ja-latn|ara etchi yo}}"'' (''"hey, that's perverse"''). In this context, ''{{lang|ja-latn|etchi}}'' should be understood as ''sexually forward'' and is synonymous to ''{{lang|ja-latn|iyarashii}}'' ({{lang|ja|嫌らしい}}, dirty or disgusting) or ''{{lang|ja-latn|sukebe}}'' ({{lang|ja|すけべ}}, a person with sex on the brain). From this, the word ''{{lang|ja-latn|etchi}}'' started to branch off, and assume new connotations. In the 1960s, ''{{lang|ja-latn|etchi}}'' started to be used by youth to refer to sex in general. By the 1980s, it was used to mean ''sex'', as in the phrase ''{{lang|ja-latn|etchi suru}}'' (to have sex).<ref name="hikaru-2004"/><ref>[[Mark McLelland]] (2006). "A Short History of 'Hentai'{{-"}}.  In: ''Intersections: Gender, History and Culture in the Asian Context''. Vol. 12.</ref><ref>{{cite book | last = Cunningham | first = Phillip J. | title = Zakennayo! | page = 30 | publisher = Penguin Group | year = 1995}}</ref>

Other neologisms such as ''{{lang|ja-latn|sekkusu}}'' are often used to refer to sex, in addition to the term ''ecchi.'' ''Ecchi'' is now used as a qualifier for anything related to erotic or pornographic content. Its exact meaning varies with context, but in general, it is most similar to the English word "naughty" (when used as an adjective). The Japanese media tend to use other words, e.g. ''ero-manga'' ({{lang|ja|エロ}}), ''adult manga'' ({{lang|ja|アダルト}}), or anime / manga for persons over 18 years ({{lang|ja|18禁アニメ}}, {{lang|ja|18禁}}). The prefix "H-" is also sometimes used to refer to pornographic genres, e.g. H-anime, H-manga, etc.