Nobuyuki Takahasi coined the term "cosplay" in his article for the June 1983 issue of "My Anime." Cosplay originated at Tokyo's Comiket, the world's largest comic convention, during the 1980s. It started simply, when fans began wearing homemade shirts depicting their favorite characters, and others were inspired to take their devotion a step further by replicating the costumes worn by iconic anime and manga characters. Nagoya's World Cosplay Championship exemplifies cosplay's contemporary international popularity. Its 2010 preliminary costume contests and its final round in Nagoya drew hundreds of thousands of cosplayers, representing 15 countries.
Most major cosplay events are held at anime, manga and comic book conventions, with the largest conventions featuring shows that offer thousands of dollars in prize money. The World Cosplay Summit is held annually in Nagoya, Japan, and hosts the World Cosplay Championship. The event begins with a cosplayer parade through the city streets and concludes with the WCC competition and awards ceremonies. The San Diego Comic-Con has held its Masquerade since 1973 and cosplayers wear their finest creations onstage, performing a skit or routine related to the characters they're portraying. Judges present awards in categories such as Best in Show, Best Original Design and Best Novice. Anime Expo is America's largest Anime Convention and hosts several cosplay events. Its Masquerade is its biggest competition, dedicated to anime and manga cosplay. Its smaller cosplay events include the Pop Shock Masquerade, an event for cosplayers who design outfits unrelated to anime and manga, and the Chibi Masquerade, an event designed for beginning cosplayers, where they can perform skits and display their costumes in a relaxed, non-competitive environment.
In Japan, retailers such as Cospa sell wigs, accessories and full costumes to their cosplaying clientele. While America doesn't have an analagous chain store, many online retailers and comic book specialty shops carry cosplay gear. Most dedicated cosplayers create their own costumes, though, and all costumes worn in convention competitions must be the creations of the cosplayers. Competitive cosplayers may spend up to a year designing their costumes, drafting the pattern and looking for just the right accessories in thrift shops and second-hand clothing stores. Hair styling and makeup application for a competition can take hours, depending on the intricacy of the design.
While cosplay primarily attracts comic book and anime fans, cosplayers delve through all of popular culture, so it's not unusual to see a cosplayer dressed as Darth Vader, Indiana Jones or Tinkerbell strolling a convention floor. In Japan, cosplay participants don't limit their costumes to pop culture characters -- maids, nurses, schoolgirls and other roles and professions associated with a specific uniform are common templates for Japanese cosplayers.