Oshimen vs. Jitan: What Japanese Fans Call Their Favorite Group Member

K-pop fans call the group member they love most their “bias.” Japanese fans have two main words for the same idea. Your friend says oshimen; you say jitan. Why do the names differ when the love is the same? Here are the origins of the words, how different fan spheres use them, and related terms like saioshi and tantou.

What Oshimen and Jitan Mean

Oshimen (推しメン) is short for “the member I oshi,” and jitan (自担) is short for “my person in charge.” Both refer to the member of a group you support most. Oshimen travels well across genres, while jitan is common in idol fan spheres with a tantou (“person in charge”) culture of “[name]-tan” labels.

Even when they point to the same person, the two words grew up in different places and carry a different sense of distance. In a new fan sphere, see which term the official accounts and the fans around you use before picking yours, and conversation comes more easily.

Origin and History

Oshimen is a shortened form of “my number-one member” or “the member I support,” and it spread along with an idol culture in which fans choose whom to support from among many members. Tantou (“in charge”) carries the feel of taking on the role of supporting that person, and it developed into “[name]-tan” and jitan. Today both are used alongside the shared word oshi. Pinning down an exact first appearance or a single origin is difficult.

OshiThe shared word, any genre

• OshimenThe member you oshi
• JitanThe member you are in charge of
• SaioshiThe one who matters most
• Hako-oshiThe whole group
• Tan-oshiOnly one person

Every word points at the same feeling from a different angle.

What goes in front of “-tan” isn’t limited to a member’s name. It can be a member color or an instrument, and each fan sphere has branched off its own turns of phrase.

Examples

• “When someone asked me for my oshimen in an intro, I was a little surprised my answer came out without hesitation”
• “A member in the new song caught my eye, so now I have two oshimen”
• “My jitan looked so good today that I cried out the moment they walked on”
• “I pulled my friend’s oshimen from a blind box, so I’ll hand it over next time we meet”
• “My jitan’s solo part got longer and I’m so happy. I could watch it over and over”

How It Differs From Oshi, Saioshi and Tantou

There is no rule that you must have only one oshimen, or that changing your tantou requires an announcement. Supporting one member, several or the whole group is a style each fan chooses.

The “-Tan” Words in One Place

In fan spheres with a tantou culture, there is a whole set of words built around “-tan.”

All of them are free to use as labels for yourself. The moment you use one to draw a line around someone else, as in “you’re a tatan, so…,” the conversation turns stifling.

Your own support

Jitan and kentan

• Jitan is the member you support
• Kentan means supporting several in one group

Other fans

Doutan and tatan

• Doutan supports the same member as you
• Tatan supports a different member

A change

Tan-ori

• Switching the member you support
• Or stepping away entirely

Free as labels for yourself, stifling as walls around others.

Choosing Your Term in a New Fan Sphere

1. Look at the official wording — TV listings, profiles on official sites and merchandise names show the term actually in use at that genba (live events)
2. Read fans’ posts — Watch for about a week what they call the same person, and the natural words for that sphere emerge
3. When in doubt, just say “oshi” — It’s a shared word understood everywhere, so it will see you through until you get used to a place

1. 01Check official wordingTV listings, profiles, merch names
2. 02Read fans' postsAbout a week is enough
3. 03Fall back on oshiUnderstood everywhere

Match the local word, or use the shared one.

Don’t Compete Over Terminology

A fan sphere’s words aren’t proof of membership. Don’t treat someone who doesn’t say jitan as a newcomer, or ask someone who says oshimen to correct themselves. If the meaning gets across, accept it.

Don’t decide for other people how they feel, either, as in “surely [name] is your oshimen.” Adding another oshi and switching your oshi over time are both common. If you put it on your profile, listing it separately from your policy on interacting with doutan (fans of the same member) reduces misunderstandings.

The Terms May Not Fit Outside a Group

Individual actors, athletes and story characters don’t come with a “member” premise, so “oshi” is more natural than oshimen. Where there is no tantou culture, jitan may not even get the meaning across. If you can switch to a shared word the other person understands, first conversations get easier.

When Membership Changes

When the official side announces a member’s graduation or a new joiner, the range of people the word oshimen points to shifts too. If you keep supporting the person after graduation, “oshi” works. To talk about their time in the group, adding the period, as in “my oshimen back then,” conveys that you don’t mean their current affiliation.

After a new member joins, the question “who’s your oshimen?” is one where meaning easily slips depending on who answers. Check whether you’re being asked about the group or about an individual before you answer, and you’ll stay on the same page.

Notes From The Oshi Lab: Changing Names Show the Depth of a Fandom

Oshimen and jitan are words for choosing who you love, and also words that announce to the outside world, “I’m watching this person.” What is interesting when you look at how the terms are distributed is that which one someone uses often reflects when they joined and through which door. Someone who saw the whole group on TV and fell for them, and someone who picked up the vocabulary at a genba where tantou culture had taken root, don’t share a vocabulary even when they’re talking about the same person. The name stays behind as a record of which door you first came in through.

For those on the sending side, these terms are a gauge of how far one-to-one relationships have grown. While people talk in terms of the group name, that’s popularity as a package; once “-tan” or “oshimen” start attaching to individual member names, it’s a sign that fan bases for each individual are forming. The deeper the individual support, the stronger the response to solo projects and birthdays, and the bigger the shock when personnel change. Counting how the terms change is one clue for measuring the depth of a fandom.

Related Terms

Oshi / Saioshi and kamioshi / Hako-oshi / Tan-oshi