Becoming heroes

The term cosplay was first coined in Japan in 1984 by film producer Nobuyuki Takahashi, after he attended the World Science Fiction Convention (known as Worldcon) in Los Angeles and saw fans dressed up.

Rather than use the American term "masquerade" — which had a Japanese translation he felt didn’t quite match what he saw — Takahashi created his own word that would later be used to describe the subculture.

Takahashi says that, rather than following the Western style of shortening phrases by putting initials together — “BLT for a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich,” for example, he says — he decided to use a portmanteau.

“In Japan, you often connect the first syllable of two words,” he tells The National. “In order to make the culture popular, you have to make it ‘short’, so that it will be remembered, especially when trying to create a buzz.”

Hence, costume play became cosplay.

He may have coined the term, but the idea had been around long before Takahashi named it.

The earliest recorded instance of people dressing up in disguise was at masquerade balls that began in the 15th century, where guests would don masks.

When it comes to cosplay as we know it today, history points to the first Worldcon, in New York in 1939. The event attracted only 200 people but included science fiction writer Myrtle R Douglas and her then-boyfriend and fellow sci-fi enthusiast Forrest J Ackerman.

Douglas, also known as Morojo, and Ackerman attended in outfits they created themselves (they called them “futuristicostumes”), inspired by the 1936 film Things to Come, written by HG Wells. The outfits included green capes, shoulder pads and shorts. They were the only ones who had dressed up, though Ackerman would later say he thought everyone who attended was supposed to.

Afterwards, costume contests would go on to become an annual tradition at Worldcon, bringing in more participants every year.

Cosplay popularity grows

In the 1970s, cosplay began to hit its stride. In the US, Star Trek conventions brought out legions of fans known as Trekkies who would cosplay as characters from the sci-fi show. Meanwhile, in Japan, people dressed as their favourite manga and anime characters at events.

The beginning of the decade would also mark the debut of San Diego Comic-Con in 1970. The first event was initially a comic book and sci-fi club meet-up, to gauge whether there was any interest. Later in the year, another San Diego comic convention called the Golden State Comic Con was held and had more than 300 people in attendance.

A few years later, the first Masquerade Ball was held at San Diego Comic-Con in 1974, where people could compete dressed as their favourite characters. This has since gone on to become an integral part of the annual event, with cosplay becoming synonymous with comic cons.

“I have been watching the evolution of cosplay culture for a long time and am enjoying the wonderful results,” says Takahashi, who has travelled around the world to attend the conventions, sometimes as a judge for competitions and other times as a fan. “Cosplay culture now and in the future has such an artful appeal.”

Today, there are many comic cons around the world, such as Fan Expo Boston in the US, Dhaka Pop Culture Expo in Bangladesh, Greece’s AthensCon and the Middle East Film and Comic Con in the UAE.

The first MEFCC took place at Dubai International Marine Club at Mina Seyahi in 2012. As expected, many people arrived in cosplay.

Over the years, this trend has only grown in the region. Yet despite the popularity, the practice continues to be widely misunderstood.