Love Hina (Rabu Hina?) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ken Akamatsu. It was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine by Kodansha from October 21, 1998 through October 31, 2001 and was published in 14 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The series details the daily life of Keitaro Urashima as he attempts to find the girl he made a childhood promise to and enter Tokyo University. The manga is licensed for an English language release in North America and the United Kingdom by Tokyopop, in Australia by Madman Entertainment and in Singapore by Chuang Yi. Two novelizations of Love Hina, written by two anime series screenwriters, were also released in Japan by Kodansha. Both novels were later released in North America and the United Kingdom by Tokyopop.
A twenty-four episode anime adaptation of the anime series, produced by Xebec, aired in Japan from April 19, 2000 to September 27, 2000. It was followed by a bonus DVD episode, a Christmas and a Spring television special, and a three episode original video animation (OVA) entitled Love Hina Again. The anime series, special, and OVA were licensed for release in North America by Bandai Entertainment. In July 2007, the license was acquired by Funimation Entertainment, who released a boxset of the TV series in February 2009. The series is also licensed in Australia by Madman Entertainment and in the United Kingdom by MVM Films.
The series has proved popular around the world, both commercially and critically. The manga sold over 6 million copies in Japan, and the English release has been reprinted many times. Both the anime and manga received several industry awards in Japan and North America