# Chibi Maruko-chan (ちびまる子ちゃん)
**Chibi Maruko-chan** (ちびまる子ちゃん) is a Japanese comedy manga by Momoko Sakura (さくらももこ) about the everyday life of Maruko, a third-grade girl of the Sakura family living in Shimizu, Shizuoka Prefecture (now Shimizu-ku, Shizuoka City), serialized in the girls' magazine Ribon since 1986 and adapted as a television anime on Fuji TV since 1990. The title is explained in the story itself: Maruko was called "chibi maruko-chan" because she was very small (chibi) and a girl, a nickname built on her family name Sakura[1](https://sakuraproduction.jp/collection/comics/) • [2](https://www.shueisha.co.jp/books/items/contents.html?isbn=4-08-853413-1).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Serialization | Began in the August 1986 issue of Ribon (Shueisha); first run through the June 1996 issue, since then irregular serialization[3](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000683.000011454.html) • [4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) |
| Setting | Shimizu, Shizuoka Prefecture (now Shimizu-ku, Shizuoka City), in the 1970s of the author's own childhood[3](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000683.000011454.html) • [5](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/) |
| Awards | 13th Kodansha Manga Award for Chibi Maruko-chan, 1989[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) |
| Anime | On Fuji TV since 1990, Sundays at 6:00 pm; first series January 1990 to September 1992, 142 episodes[5](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/) • [6](https://www.mangazukan.com/work.php?id=5737) |
| Sales | Collected volumes 1–18; cumulative circulation over 32.5 million copies including the digital edition[5](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/) |
| Theme song | "Odoru Pompokolin," lyrics by Sakura, composed by Tetsuo Oda, sung by B.B.Queens, won the 32nd Japan Record Award in 1990[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) • [3](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000683.000011454.html) |
| Author | Momoko Sakura, born 1965 in Shimizu; died August 15, 2018[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) |
## Story and style
The series follows Maruko (さくら ももこ, the author's namesake), the second daughter of the Sakura household, through her daily life with her family, her close friend Tama-chan, and classmates such as Hanawa-kun and Maruo-kun. Nippon [Animation](https://www.edgepedia.org/animation) describes the work as a warm depiction of ordinary days that is fun, funny, and at times poignant[5](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/). Shueisha's catalog calls it a cheerful "everyday picture-diary comic" of a third grader with her amusing family and school friends[2](https://www.shueisha.co.jp/books/items/contents.html?isbn=4-08-853413-1).
The setting is the author's own: Sakura was born in Shimizu City in 1965, and the manga draws on her experiences as a girl in the 1970s. A retrospective marking 40 years of serialization notes that, rather than the beautiful art and dramatic plotting typical of girls' manga, it uses a simple, approachable drawing style and everyday experiences familiar to anyone, wrapped in humor and nostalgia, and carried the series beyond the framework of girls' manga into [Japanese popular culture](https://www.edgepedia.org/japanese-popular-culture) at large[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) • [7](https://www.kosho.or.jp/special_topic/detail.php?topic_id=540).
## Publication history
Sakura made her manga debut in 1984 with "Oshiete yarun da arigataku omoe!" in Ribon Original (winter issue, Shueisha)[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/). Chibi Maruko-chan, her first serialized work, began in the August 1986 issue of Ribon, when she was 21, and ran through the June 1996 issue; it has continued irregularly in the magazine since[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) • [3](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000683.000011454.html).
The manga won the 13th Kodansha Manga Award in 1989[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/). The collected volumes, published as Ribon Mascot Comics, run to 18 volumes, with a cumulative circulation of over 32.5 million copies including digital editions, and foreign editions published across Asian countries[5](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/). The retrospective feature records the collected volumes as having passed 30 million copies[7](https://www.kosho.or.jp/special_topic/detail.php?topic_id=540).
After Sakura died suddenly in August 2018, Kohagi Botan, her assistant of many years, took over the artwork, and volume 18 appeared in 2022[3](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000683.000011454.html) • [4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/).
## Anime adaptation
The television anime began in 1990 on the Fuji TV network and still airs Sundays at 6:00 pm[5](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/). The first series ran 142 episodes from January 1990 to September 1992[6](https://www.mangazukan.com/work.php?id=5737). The series has been broadcast overseas, including in Chinese-speaking regions[5](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/).
The anime's ending theme "Odoru Pompokolin" (lyrics by Sakura, composed by Tetsuo Oda, performed by B.B.Queens) won the 32nd Japan Record Award in the pop/rock division in 1990; Shueisha describes the song's success as a social phenomenon that carried the anime's popularity nationwide[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) • [3](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000683.000011454.html). Shueisha's company history likewise records that the Chibi Maruko-chan TV anime became a hit and a social phenomenon[8](https://www.shueisha.co.jp/history/).
## Place in Japanese popular culture
The franchise extended beyond print and broadcast. The Chibi Maruko-chan Land museum opened in [Shizuoka Prefecture](https://www.edgepedia.org/shizuoka-prefecture) in 1999 and was renewed in 2020. In 2018, the year of Sakura's death, the city of Shizuoka installed two designs of Chibi Maruko-chan manhole covers and awarded her its first Shizuoka City Citizen's Honor Award[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/). An exhibition marking the anime broadcast's 30th anniversary in 2020, held by the Ehime Prefectural History and Culture Museum, also displayed Sakura's handwritten scripts and character design materials after her death[9](https://www.i-rekihaku.jp/about/documents/r04nenpou.pdf).
Three theatrical films have been released, with screenplays by Sakura herself: Chibi Maruko-chan: Ono-kun to Sugiyama-kun (1990), Chibi Maruko-chan: Watashi no Suki na Uta (1992), and Chibi Maruko-chan: A Boy from Italy (2015)[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/). Sakura also spun the series off in other directions, including the self-parody manga Chibi Shikaku-chan, serialized in Grand Jump from 2016, and a four-panel newspaper version that ran in eleven national papers from 2007 to the end of 2011[4](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/) • [10](https://shizubi.jp/common/img/outline/r05.pdf).
In 2026 the original manga marks its 40th anniversary, with anniversary projects and merchandise collaborations announced by the license holders[11](https://sakuraproduction.jp/news/posts/20260417-els7npu_6y2/).
## References
1. [Sakura Momoko's works: Chibi Maruko-chan, Sakura Production](https://sakuraproduction.jp/collection/comics/)
2. [Chibi Maruko-chan 1, Shueisha book catalog](https://www.shueisha.co.jp/books/items/contents.html?isbn=4-08-853413-1)
3. [Ribon 70th anniversary press release featuring Chibi Maruko-chan, Shueisha (PR Times)](https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000683.000011454.html)
4. [Momoko's story (chronology), Sakura Production](https://sakuraproduction.jp/history/)
5. [Chibi Maruko-chan (original work) license page, Nippon Animation](https://www.nippon-animation.co.jp/business/license/15378/)
6. [Chibi Maruko-chan (first series), Mangazukan](https://www.mangazukan.com/work.php?id=5737)
7. [Chibi Maruko-chan serialization 40 years, Kosho special topic archive](https://www.kosho.or.jp/special_topic/detail.php?topic_id=540)
8. [Shueisha company history, Shueisha](https://www.shueisha.co.jp/history/)
9. [Special exhibition for the anime's 30th anniversary, Ehime Prefectural History and Culture Museum annual report](https://www.i-rekihaku.jp/about/documents/r04nenpou.pdf)
10. [Exhibit source list including Chibi Shikaku-chan first appearance, Shizuoka Bunka (r05.pdf)](https://shizubi.jp/common/img/outline/r05.pdf)
11. [CHIBI MARUKO CHAN 40th ANNIVERSARY, Sakura Production news](https://sakuraproduction.jp/news/posts/20260417-els7npu_6y2/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Anime and manga › Manga titles, publishers, and magazines › Kodomo and general-audience manga titles*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license