How to read this list
Rank
Position in the Top 100, sorted by audience size from largest to smallest. Updated weekly.
Audience size
Estimated number of unique people in South Africa who actively engage with this audience, derived from anonymized search-behavior signals.
Country share
Share of the global audience that is active in South Africa. A higher value means the audience is more locally concentrated here.
Avg age
Average age in years across the people who engage with this audience in South Africa, derived from anonymized search-behavior signals. A dash means demographic data is not yet available.
Female share
Share of women among the people who engage with this audience in South Africa. 50% is gender-balanced; values above mean female-skewed, below mean male-skewed.
Ranking
| Rank | Audience | Audience size | Country share | Avg age | Female share | Subtype |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 | SShōnen manga | 95k | 0.1% | 27.0 | 38.5% | Literary genre |
| 27 | EEssay | 80k | 0.6% | 35.6 | 54.0% | Literary genre |
| 28 | SSuperhero fiction | 79k | 0.3% | 29.3 | 40.9% | Literary genre |
| 29 | UUrban fantasy | 61k | 0.5% | 34.7 | 76.8% | Literary genre |
| 30 | GGraphic novel | 58k | 0.2% | 32.7 | 38.6% | Literary genre |
| 31 | PPaperback | 49k | 0.5% | 36.6 | 59.2% | Literary genre |
| 32 | SSketchbook | 49k | 0.2% | 31.6 | 60.3% | Literary genre |
| 33 | EEnglish literature | 48k | 0.6% | 39.1 | 58.3% | Literary genre |
| 34 | AApocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction | 47k | 0.2% | 35.6 | 41.6% | Literary genre |
| 35 | AAutobiography | 41k | 0.8% | 44.2 | 47.7% | Literary genre |
| 36 | DDark fantasy | 39k | 0.2% | 34.4 | 66.4% | Literary genre |
| 37 | SShōjo manga | 31k | 0.1% | 28.0 | 55.6% | Literary genre |
| 38 | RRomantic thriller | 28k | 0.6% | 42.1 | 70.3% | Literary genre |
| 39 | RRomantic poetry | 24k | 0.5% | 35.0 | 67.0% | Literary genre |
| 40 | DDystopia | 22k | 0.9% | 31.3 | 47.1% | Literary genre |
| 41 | HHistorical romance | 22k | 0.2% | 37.2 | 59.5% | Literary genre |
| 42 | FFan fiction | 22k | 0.4% | 33.0 | 62.5% | Literary genre |
| 43 | EEnglish poetry | 20k | 0.7% | 40.2 | 65.2% | Literary genre |
| 44 | GGothic fiction | 20k | 0.4% | 41.9 | 52.5% | Literary genre |
| 45 | MMemoir | 17k | 0.2% | 45.5 | 54.2% | Literary genre |
| 46 | CComic science fiction | 17k | 0.3% | 35.8 | 52.9% | Literary genre |
| 47 | PPolitical satire | 16k | 0.2% | 37.7 | 35.3% | Literary genre |
| 48 | JJapanese literature | 15k | 0.2% | 31.5 | 27.6% | Literary genre |
| 49 | SSeinen manga | 13k | 0.0% | 26.6 | 44.9% | Literary genre |
| 50 | SSupernatural fiction | 12k | 0.3% | 40.8 | 53.2% | Literary genre |
Want the full picture for any of these audiences?
Open any profile to see psychographics, top regions, peer affinities and demographic splits — all derived from the same anonymized signals.
Frequently asked questions
How is this list of the most popular literary genres compiled?
Rascasse aggregates anonymized search-behavior signals across South Africa and ranks each literary genre by its estimated audience size. Only entries with at least 5 measured entities are listed.
How often is the list updated?
The ranking is refreshed weekly from the latest search-behavior data and re-published as a static page.
What is the largest literary genre in South Africa?
Humour currently leads with an estimated audience of 2.7M people in South Africa.