Fandom
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Fandom (from the noun fan and the affix -dom, as in kingdom, dukedom, etc.) is a term used to refer to a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of sympathy and comradeship with others who share a common interest. A fandom can grow up centered around any area of human interest or activity. The subject of fan interest can be narrowly defined, focused on something like an individual celebrity; or wide, encompassing entire hobbies, genres or fashions. Fandom as a term can also be used in a broad sense to refer to an interconnected social network of individual fandoms, many of which overlap. While it is now used to apply to groups of people fascinated with any subject, the term has its roots in those with an enthusiastic appreciation for sports. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the usage of the term back as far as 1903, with many of its documented references referring to sports fandom.[1] [Apr 2007]
