Asuka (あすか), formerly Monthly Asuka , is a bimonthly Japanese shōjo manga magazine published by Kadokawa Shoten. The magazine was established in 1985. It is released on the 24th of every odd-numbered month as of May 2021. Much like its sibling publication Shōnen Ace, it places some emphasis on anime tie-ins and spinoffs. Manga serialized in Asuka are published in tankōbon format under the Asuka Comics imprint.
Cover of the magazine's July 2008 issue
Shōjo manga is an editorial category of Japanese comics targeting an audience of adolescent females and young adult women. It is, along with shōnen manga, seinen manga, and josei manga, one of the primary editorial categories of manga. Shōjo manga is traditionally published in dedicated manga magazines, which often specialize in a particular readership age range or narrative genre.
Shelves of collected volumes of shōjo manga under the Margaret Comics imprint at a bookstore in Tokyo in 2004
Actress Hideko Takamine, portraying an archetypal shōjo wearing a sailor fuku in the 1939 film Hana Tsumi Nikki [ja]
Cover of the first issue of Shōjo-kai, 1902
A four-panel manga from the November 1910 issue of Shōjo (artist unknown). Note the henohenomoheji in the final panel.