Fanon

Fanon is an unconfirmed belief held by fans of a series. Such beliefs may be based in canon (the things that have been confirmed), or they may not be. Fanon is not restricted to the anime, but most instances of fanon are related to it.

For instance, in Pokémon, it is canon that Delia Ketchum is Ash's mother. This is said in no uncertain terms; it is an indisputable fact. However, any conjecture of Ash's father is purely fanon, as the only mention of such a man in canon is how long it took him to get to Viridian City, and that he is supposedly a great trainer. Everything else is speculation.

Most Shippings are fanon, although some are canon. For instance, Norman and Caroline are a confirmed couple, whereas, say, Jessie and James (RocketShipping) are not in the anime, though they are in the Dengeki Pikachu manga, which has its own canon.

Fanon can mean lots of existing things just named or changed. Also it is often a name only. Not to be confused with fan made things such as stories and Pokémon.

Fanon is a way for fans to express their own beliefs about the games or anime and speculate about future episodes or games. For example, many people hope for a remake of Gold and Silver, yet Nintendo has never said anything on that issue. As long as Pokémon exists in some form, there will always be fanon. But fanon is by no means restricted to Pokémon, and there is a fanbase with their fanon for most books, games, movies, etc.