tóngrén: 同人 - Fan Fiction, Doujin, Coterie

• Keywords: 同人, tóngrén, doujin, doujinshi, Chinese fan fiction, fan art, fan-created works, C-fandom, fan works, coterie, secondary creation, 二次创作
• Summary: 同人 (tóngrén) is a modern Chinese term, borrowed from Japanese, that refers to fan-created works such as fan fiction, fan art, and fan games based on existing media like anime, novels, or TV shows. As the direct cultural equivalent of the Japanese “doujin,” tóngrén describes the vast world of amateur, derivative content created by fans for other fans. While it has classical roots meaning a “coterie” or group of like-minded people, its contemporary usage is almost exclusively tied to online and pop culture fandom.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): tóngrén
• Part of Speech: Noun
• HSK Level: N/A
• Concise Definition: Fan-created works based on existing media (fan fiction, fan art); also, a group of people with the same interests.
• In a Nutshell: Imagine a group of fans who love a book or movie so much that they start creating their own art and stories set in that universe. That entire world of fan-made content is called 同人 (tóngrén) in Chinese. While the characters literally mean “same people,” signifying a community with shared interests, today it's the go-to term for the creations of that community. It is the Chinese equivalent of “fan works” in English or “doujin” in Japanese.

• 同 (tóng): This character means “same,” “alike,” or “together.” It's composed of a frame and a mouth (口), suggesting a group of people speaking with one voice or in agreement within a shared space.
• 人 (rén): This is one of the simplest and most common characters, meaning “person” or “people.” It's a pictograph of a person walking.
• Together, 同人 (tóngrén) literally translates to “same people.” This originally referred to a clique, a coterie, or a fellowship of individuals with shared goals or beliefs. This classical meaning perfectly evolved to describe the modern phenomenon of a “fandom”—a group of “same people” who share a passion for a particular piece of media and create works for each other.

同人 (tóngrén) has a fascinating dual history. Its classical meaning appears in ancient texts like the I Ching (Book of Changes) to describe “fellowship with men.” However, its modern, dominant meaning is a re-import from Japan. In Japan, the same characters (pronounced dōjin) evolved to describe self-published works created by amateur artists and writers. These works, especially those based on popular anime and manga, became a cornerstone of fan culture, sold at massive conventions like Comiket. This Japanese “doujin” culture was imported into China, along with anime and manga, in the 1990s and 2000s. The term 同人 was adopted to describe this same phenomenon. Comparison with Western “Fandom”: The concept is very similar to “fan fiction” or “fan works” in the West. However, the East Asian 同人 (tóngrén) scene is often more organized and commercially oriented. While Western fan fiction communities (like on Archive of Our Own) are typically non-profit, the 同人 scene in China, Taiwan, and Japan features large-scale conventions where creators sell physical copies of their fan comics and novels (同人志, tóngrénzhì). This makes 同人 culture a significant sub-economy and a semi-public sphere for creative expression, whereas Western fandom often remains more private and online-focused.

In modern conversation, 同人 almost exclusively refers to its pop culture meaning. It is a neutral, descriptive term used by fans.

• As a General Noun for Fan Works: It serves as an umbrella term. People will specify the type of work:
  • 同人小说 (tóngrén xiǎoshuō): Fan fiction
  • 同人图 (tóngrén tú): Fan art
  • 同人漫画 (tóngrén mànhuà): Fan comic / Doujinshi
  • 同人游戏 (tóngrén yóuxì): Fan-made game
• Describing the Community: The term 同人圈 (tóngrénquān), meaning “the tóngrén circle/community,” is used frequently to refer to the collective group of fans and creators.
• Formality: It is an informal, colloquial term used within fandom and by those familiar with youth pop culture. You would not use it in a formal academic or business setting unless the topic was specifically pop culture.

• Example 1:
  • 我最近在写一篇关于《哈利·波特》的同人小说。
  • Pinyin: Wǒ zuìjìn zài xiě yī piān guānyú “Hālì·Bōtè” de tóngrén xiǎoshuō.
  • English: I've recently been writing a fan fiction story about “Harry Potter”.
  • Analysis: This is the most common usage, where 同人 acts as an adjective modifying “novel” (小说) to mean “fan fiction.”
• Example 2:
  • 这位画师的同人作品质量非常高，几乎和官方一样好。
  • Pinyin: Zhè wèi huàshī de tóngrén zuòpǐn zhìliàng fēicháng gāo, jīhū hé guānfāng yīyàng hǎo.
  • English: This artist's fan-created works are of very high quality, almost as good as the official ones.
  • Analysis: Here, 同人 modifies “works” (作品) and is contrasted with “official” (官方, guānfāng), highlighting its fan-made nature.
• Example 3:
  • 你看没看过那篇超火的同人，里面他们俩终于在一起了！
  • Pinyin: Nǐ kàn méi kàn guo nà piān chāo huǒ de tóngrén, lǐmiàn tāmen liǎ zhōngyú zài yīqǐ le!
  • English: Have you read that super popular fanfic where the two of them finally get together?
  • Analysis: In casual speech, 同人 can be used alone to refer to a specific fan work, usually a fan fiction story.
• Example 4:
  • 这个周末我要去参加一个同人展，希望能买到喜欢的本子。
  • Pinyin: Zhège zhōumò wǒ yào qù cānjiā yī ge tóngrén zhǎn, xīwàng néng mǎidào xǐhuān de běnzi.
  • English: This weekend I'm going to a doujin/fan works convention, I hope I can buy some booklets I like.
  • Analysis: This demonstrates the cultural practice of 同人 conventions (同人展). “本子” (běnzi) is slang for self-published fan books.
• Example 5:
  • 刚入同人圈的时候，我什么都不懂。
  • Pinyin: Gāng rù tóngrénquān de shíhòu, wǒ shénme dōu bù dǒng.
  • English: When I first got into the fandom/doujin community, I didn't understand anything.
  • Analysis: Shows the use of 同人圈 (tóngrénquān) to refer to the community or subculture itself.
• Example 6:
  • 警告：这篇同人可能会有OOC（角色性格不符）。
  • Pinyin: Jǐnggào: Zhè piān tóngrén kěnéng huì yǒu OOC (juésè xìnggé bù fú).
  • English: Warning: This fanfic might contain OOC (Out of Character).
  • Analysis: This illustrates how specific fandom terminology like “OOC” is used within the context of 同人.
• Example 7:
  • 她不仅看同人，自己也产出，是个很有名的作者。
  • Pinyin: Tā bùjǐn kàn tóngrén, zìjǐ yě chǎnchū, shì ge hěn yǒumíng de zuòzhě.
  • English: She doesn't just read fan works, she also produces them; she's a very famous creator.
  • Analysis: “产出” (chǎnchū), literally “to produce,” is common slang in the 同人圈 for creating fan content.
• Example 8:
  • 这只是我的同人设定，跟官方剧情没有任何关系。
  • Pinyin: Zhè zhǐshì wǒ de tóngrén shèdìng, gēn guānfāng jùqíng méiyǒu rènhé guānxì.
  • English: This is just my fan-made setting (headcanon); it has nothing to do with the official plot.
  • Analysis: This clearly separates fan-created ideas (同人设定) from official canon (官方剧情).
• Example 9:
  • 我最喜欢的CP的同人图太少了，只能自己画了。
  • Pinyin: Wǒ zuì xǐhuān de CP de tóngrén tú tài shǎo le, zhǐ néng zìjǐ huà le.
  • English: There's too little fan art of my favorite pairing (CP), I have no choice but to draw it myself.
  • Analysis: This sentence incorporates another key fandom term, “CP” (Couple/Pairing), showing how central pairings are to 同人 culture.
• Example 10:
  • 什么是“同人”？简单来说，就是粉丝基于原作进行的二次创作。
  • Pinyin: Shénme shì “tóngrén”? Jiǎndān láishuō, jiùshì fěnsī jīyú yuánzuò jìnxíng de èrcì chuàngzuò.
  • English: What is “tóngrén”? Simply put, it's secondary creation done by fans based on an original work.
  • Analysis: This sentence provides a perfect definition, linking 同人 to the more formal term 二次创作 (èrcì chuàngzuò), or “secondary creation.”

• False Friend: Not “Colleague”. In Japanese business contexts, 同人 (dōjin) can sometimes refer to a literary group or even colleagues. In modern Chinese, this usage is virtually non-existent. Do not use 同人 to mean “colleague”—the correct word for that is 同事 (tóngshì).
• Mistake: Confusing with “Official”. The most critical distinction is that 同人 is, by definition, unofficial. It is fan-made content. The opposite is 官方 (guānfāng), meaning “official.” Forgetting this distinction can lead to major confusion about what is canon in a story.
  • Incorrect: 这个角色的结局是官方同人。 (This character's ending is the official fan work.) → This is contradictory.
  • Correct: 这个角色的官方结局我不喜欢，所以我去看同人了。(I don't like this character's official ending, so I went to read fan fiction.)
• It's More Than Just Writing: While 同人小说 (fan fiction) is a huge part of the culture, don't assume the term only refers to text. It's an umbrella term for all forms of fan-created media, including art, comics, music, and games.

• 同人志 (tóngrénzhì) - The physical, self-published magazines, comics, or novels of fan works. The “-zhi” (志) means “publication” or “record.”
• 同人圈 (tóngrénquān) - The fan community or “circle” dedicated to creating and consuming fan works.
• 二次元 (èrcìyuán) - The “2D world” of Anime, Comics, and Games (ACG), which is the source material for the vast majority of 同人 content.
• CP (CP) - An abbreviation for the English word “Couple” or “Pairing.” It refers to a romantic relationship between two characters, whether canon or fan-created, and is a primary driver of 同人 creation.
• 衍生 (yǎnshēng) - A more formal term for “derivative work” or “spin-off.” 同人 is a type of 衍生 work.
• 官方 (guānfāng) - “Official.” The direct antonym of 同人. It refers to the source material and any content produced by the original creators.
• OOC (OOC) - “Out of Character.” A common acronym used in fandom to describe when a fan work portrays a character in a way that is inconsistent with their personality in the original source material.
• 二次创作 (èrcì chuàngzuò) - “Secondary creation.” A more formal and broader term for fan works or any creation based on a pre-existing work. 同人 is the most common colloquial term for this concept.
• 太太 (tàitai) - Literally “madam” or “Mrs.” In the 同人圈, this is a slang term of high respect for a very skilled and popular fan artist or writer.