is a series of

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to imp ...

characters created by the Japanese company

San-X is a Japanese stationery company known for creating and marketing Kawaii, cute characters such as Tarepanda, Rilakkuma, and Sumikko Gurashi. The characters are usually anthropomorphic representations of animals or inanimate objects. Each charact ...

. The prefix ''mame'', meaning ''bean'' in Japanese, is used to refer to miniature versions of things; the suffix ''goma'' is an abbreviation of ''gomafuazarashi'', or ''sesame seed-mottled seal'', which is the Japanese name for the

spotted seal The spotted seal (''Phoca largha''), also known as the larga seal or largha seal, is a member of the family Phocidae, and is considered a "true seal". It inhabits ice floes and waters of the north Pacific Ocean and adjacent seas. It is primaril ...

. Mamegoma are available in a variety of different colors including, white, blue, pink, yellow, and black. The seals are often depicted as being small enough (12 cm, weighing around 200 g) to live in a common goldfish bowl, usually with a few ice cubes to keep the water nice and cool. They are also shown in advertisements and merchandise in bath tubs and relaxing on a wheel in a hamster cage among other activities. The mamegoma characters are available as plush toys from UFO catcher machines. There are also many different products with the Mamegoma seals as a decoration, like stationery, calendars etc.

Media

The 2009 anime is based on Mamegoma, revolving around 'Mameta' the Shiro-goma and some other seals going by Soda-kun, Cherry-chan, Candy-chan, Samantha-chan, Daigorou-kun, and Lemon-chan. Four Nintendo DS games have been released in Japan featuring Mamegoma: ''Mamegoma: Honobono Nikki'' ( :ja:まめゴマほのぼの日記), ''Mamegoma 2: Uchi no Ko ga Ichiban!'', ''Qupu!! Mamegoma!'', and ''Mamegoma 3: Kawaii ga Ippai!''. Two 3DS games featuring Mamegoma have been added: "Mamegoma: Yoiko Maruko Genkinako!" and "Mamegoma: Happy Sweets Farm".Mame Goma: Honobo no Nikki for DS
GameFAQs (2007-07-26). Retrieved on 2012-03-10. Several Mamegoma-themed picture books have also been released in Japan.

References

External links

San-X's official site
* {{TMS Entertainment San-X characters Fictional pinnipeds 2009 anime television series debuts TMS Entertainment