Yurijin

Synonyms:	百合人, Yuri People
See also:	himejoshi, himedanshi, yuributa, yuri, otaku
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Yurijin (百合人, "Yuri People") is term for fans of yuri media. It was first mentioned in the English-language yuri fandom by Erica Friedman in 2015, however it wasn't until 2019 did she begin using the term more frequently. It has since went on to see some use within yuri fandom, though himejoshi and himedanshi remain more popular among fans on social media sites such as Twitter and Tumblr.

Creation of Yurijin

One of the questions asked about terms for fans of Yuri, the way fujoshi and fudanshi were used for BL fans. In response I went on a rant about why the women were “rotten” in that term. They were rotten for having a hobby that had to do with sex that didn’t involve their husbands or boyfriends. Effectively the reason the women are rotten is for having any space of their own that isn’t about the men they give all their time and energy to. Have I never explained how much I hate that? Well. I hate it. The terms Himejoshi and Himedanshi are stupid. Just flat out idiotic. For one thing, why are fandoms gendered at all, I asked. Why we are not all just…people.

And then I decided that we need a new word. So, I have officially announced that “Yuri fans” are to be hereafter known as “Yurijin,” (百合人) – Yuri People.

Like the word “Yuri,” I did not coin that, but I am endorsing it. It is not gendered, includes no age, sexuality or any other limits. Yuri is for anyone who enjoys Yuri. Yurijin are anyone who enjoys Yuri.

A new, queerer Yuri genre deserves a new, more inclusive word. ^_^

Erica Friedman, 2019 

Interestingly, a whole new section of my paper opened up with my desire to create a new word for Yuri fans. We’ve gotten first-hand testimony from Rica Takashima that Itoh Bungaku-sensei meant to specifically coin a phrase for lesbians when he chose Yurizoku and I’ve done some primary research this week of currently used terms. Yuri is a common genre term now, but there is no clear pre-eminent word for Yuri fan. Yurizuki has been suggested, but it’s no more common than anything else, having been primarily promoted on Twitter through the efforts of two bots who RTed it an average of 5 times a day in 2013-2015. So a bunch of us are now working with 百合人-Yurijin…although predictably there’s already valid discussion about pronunciation and calling it Yuribito…but as I was typing this I realized why I don’t care for that. Yuribito describes a single person’s identity or role within a society. I’m thinking of us all as “the Yuri people,”so Yurijin it is for me. (Leaving Yurizoku still for lesbians, as opposed to anyone who likes Yuri the genre.) I’ve been among those who shape how we talk about this genre for 20 years now and I love how we’ve pushed and prodded it towards a broader vision of inclusivity. ^_^ This conversation will evolve, undoubtedly. Who knows what we’ll call it in another 20 years! Isn’t language fascinating?

Erica Friedman, 2019