Afro Ken is a Japanese character created by the San-X

San-X

is a Japanese company that specializes in the creation, production and marketing of goods featuring cute characters such as Tarepanda, Rilakkuma, Kogepan and Afro Ken. The characters are usually anthropomorphic representations of animals or inanimate objects; the character Tissue-san was modelled...

 company, which creates other anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

-style characters such as Kogepan

Kogepan

' is a Japanese character from the company San-X, who, like Sanrio creations Hello Kitty and Badtz Maru, can be found in books, anime, toys, stationery, and a number of other formats. The character is a burnt red bean bread bun who lives in a panya , trying to fit in and make friends with the other...

. He is a dog

Dog

The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...

 with a rainbow-coloured afro

Afro

Afro, sometimes shortened to fro and also known as a "natural", is a hairstyle worn naturally by people with lengthy kinky hair texture or specifically styled in such a fashion by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair...

. He is innocent and blameless and always in a good mood. Afro Ken is always willing to try new things. Afro Ken is attracted to objects that look like he does. His hair changes to look like these things as he gets close to them.

There is an Afro Ken Family Tree with other dog characters who have similarly descriptive names, such as Techno Ken, Funky Ken, Lord Ken, Super Afro Ken, and Normal Ken. Unlike the others, Normal Ken does not have afro hair.

In 2001, Bandai Visual

Bandai Visual

, is a Japanese anime, film production and distribution enterprise, established by Bandai Co., Ltd. and a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings, Inc., which is based in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Since the reorganisation of Namco Bandai Holdings in 2006, Bandai Visual now heads the group's Visual and...

 and Sunrise

Sunrise (company)

is a Japanese animation studio and production enterprise. It is a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise, and prior to that, Sunrise Studios...

 produced a 3DCG

3D computer graphics

3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...

 OVA adaptation based on the character. The OVA was also broadcast worldwide by the anime satellite television

Satellite television

Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...

 network Animax

Animax

is a Japanese anime satellite television network, dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. A subsidiary of Japanese media conglomerate Sony, it is headquartered in in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with its co-founders and shareholders including Sony Pictures Entertainment and the noted anime studios...

.

Stuffed toys of Afro Ken are available with various, often changeable hairstyles.