Literal translations: "Ita-daburi" (意大不利), "Ita-deli" (意呆利), "completely useless Italy," "waste-of-space Italy," etc.
The term "Axis" refers to the Axis Powers. The name "Hetalia" is supposedly derived from a modification of "Italia" (Italy).
The title "Hetalia" (ヘタリア) originates from slang used on online forums like 2ch by some military history enthusiasts to refer to Italy (イタリア). This nickname came about due to the perceived incompetence ("ヘタレ" meaning clumsy or useless) of its army during WWII and earlier conflicts.
With cumulative sales reaching an astonishing 30 million copies, the wildly popular web comic *Hetalia* by Hidekazu Himaruya is set to be adapted into a TV anime! *Hetalia* was originally published as a webcomic by teacher Hidekazu Himaruya...