ABC’s of the Anthro Community
_{by ^cooley}


“A” is for “anthropomorphism” or just “anthro” for short. Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human motivation, characteristics, or behavior to inanimate objects, animals, plants, or natural phenomena. (Dictionary.com)

“B” is for "Bladewind", ^cooley’s anthro persona.

“C” is for “Cooley,” the last name of Ginger Cooley. ^cooley is one of two anthro gallery directors.

“D” is for “digital,” one of the most popular mediums used to create anthro art.

“E” is for “Egyptian.” Egyptian deities feature anthropomorphic characters. Such examples include the sky god “Horus” (a man with a falcon’s head) and “Anubis,” the god of death represented by a man with a jackal’s head.

“F” is for “furry.” Furries are a fandom dedicated to anthropomorphic characters. Many members participate in conventions and wear fur-suits.

“G” is for “Greek.” Words such as anthropomorphism and therianthrope are derived from the Greek language. The Greek root of anthropomorphism is “anthropos,” meaning human and “morphe,” meaning shape. Therianthrope is derived from the Greek word “therion,” meaning wild animal and “anthropos,” meaning man (Wikipedia.com).

“H” is for “human qualities.” The attribution of human qualities (bipedal anatomy, opposable thumbs, the ability to partake in human activities and wear clothing) are elements of an anthropomorphic character.

“I” is for “IamAnthro,” the official AR-sponsored chat room of the anthro gallery.

“J” is for “Japanese art” or “anime.” Human characters featuring ears or a tail in anime are not considered anthro art. These should be placed in the manga/anime category of DeviantART.

“K” is for “Kimba” the protagonist of the film, “Kimba, The White Lion.” The Japanese anime series was released in 1965. This film is considered part of the beginning of the furry fandom. In 1994, Kimba inspired the Disney movie “The Lion King,” starring “Simba.”

“L” is for “Looney Toons,” a series of Warner Bros. cartoons that began in theatres in 1930. Looney Toon shorts featured numerous anthro characters including: Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, Tweety Bird, Sylveser the cat, Porky Pig, Beans the cat, Wile E. Cayote, Foghorn Leghorn the rooster, Henery Hawk, Pepe le Pew the skunk, etc.

“M” is for “minotaur,” a mythological beast that, despite popular belief, is an anthro character. In the same way, werewolves and other such were-creatures are also considered anthropomorphic characters.

“N” is for “natural phenomena.” In art, natural phenomena such as a mighty storm or spirit of nature can be portrayed by an anthropomorphic character. Such an example is the kitsune (fox) in Japanese culture or the trickster raven spirit in native Alaskan culture.

“O” is for “over one million” -- that’s how many images on dA are part of the anthro gallery.

“ P” is for “ persona.” A persona is a social role or a character used by many anthro artists as a representation of themselves. The word is derived from the Latin term for “mask” (Wikipedia.com).

“Q” is for “quality.” The quality of an image (effort put into it, use of media, etc.) determine whether an image is worthy of a Daily Deviation feature.

“R” is for Disney’s “Robin Hood,” the 1973 film starring a fox as the protagonist. This film is also considered part of the foundation of the furry fandom.

“S” is for “Skifi,” one of two anthro gallery directors.

“T” is for “therianthropy.” Therianthropy refers the metamorphosis of humans into animals. Therianthropic characters can be found in most ancient art such as cave drawings and mythological illustrations (Wikipedia.com).

“U” is for “unicorn,” an animal that is often wrongly categorized as an anthro character. Creatures like dragons, unicorns, gryphons, mermaids, centaurs, fairies and elves belong in the fantasy gallery.

“V” is for “Vicente,” the first name of ^skifi, one of the anthro gallery directors.

“W” is for “Watership Down,” a novel written by Richard Adams and published in 1972. Like “Kimba, The White Lion” and “Robin Hood,” the film adaptation of this book released in 1978 helped lay the foundation for the furry fandom.

“X” is for “xenophobia,” the fear of the foreign or unknown, especially strangers (Wikipedia.com). Many people treat furries and/or therians with a certain xenophobia, an undeserved reaction to a people who are little-understood.

“Y” is for “yiff,” a pornographic form of anthro art and is not allowed here on DeviantART. As a fun fact, “yiff” and “yip” are terms that refer to the bark of a fox.

“Z” is for “zodiac.” Zodiac animals and creatures belong in the animal or fantasy gallery, not the anthro one.