In the context of fiction
Apocrypha includes those fictional stories that do not belong within a fictional universe's
canonA canon, in terms of a fictional universe, is a body of material that is considered to be "genuine" or "official", that can be directly referenced as, or as if it were, material produced by the original author or creator of a series...
, yet still have some authority relating to that fictional universe. The boundaries between canon and apocrypha can often be blurred.
The word derives the Greek word 'απόκρυφα', which means "opened", "revealed", or "uncovered". Saint Jerome coined the term to refer to those books of the Old Testament that were not found in the Hebrew Tanakh, and it has since been used to describe religious texts that may not belong to the
canonA Biblical canon or canon of scripture is a list or set of Biblical books considered to be authoritative as scripture by a particular religious community, generally in Judaism or Christianity. The term itself was first coined by Christians, but the idea is found in Jewish sources...
.
Use of the term has extended to non-religious contexts, where an account or anecdote is said to be apocryphal if its authenticity is questionable (more often when the account's veracity is probably questionable).
In the context of fiction
Apocrypha includes those fictional stories that do not belong within a fictional universe's
canonA canon, in terms of a fictional universe, is a body of material that is considered to be "genuine" or "official", that can be directly referenced as, or as if it were, material produced by the original author or creator of a series...
, yet still have some authority relating to that fictional universe. The boundaries between canon and apocrypha can often be blurred.
Etymology
The word derives the Greek word 'απόκρυφα', which means "opened", "revealed", or "uncovered". Saint Jerome coined the term to refer to those books of the Old Testament that were not found in the Hebrew Tanakh, and it has since been used to describe religious texts that may not belong to the
canonA Biblical canon or canon of scripture is a list or set of Biblical books considered to be authoritative as scripture by a particular religious community, generally in Judaism or Christianity. The term itself was first coined by Christians, but the idea is found in Jewish sources...
.
Use of the term has extended to non-religious contexts, where an account or anecdote is said to be apocryphal if its authenticity is questionable (more often when the account's veracity is probably questionable). In recent years it has sometimes been used in the context of fiction.
Apocrypha in Fiction
The word "Apocrypha" is sometimes used to describe works set in a fictional universe that may not belong in the
canonA canon, in terms of a fictional universe, is a body of material that is considered to be "genuine" or "official", that can be directly referenced as, or as if it were, material produced by the original author or creator of a series...
.
These may include tie-in merchandise such as video games, novels and comics, which are sometimes termed '
Expanded UniverseThe term Expanded Universe is generally used to denote the 'extension' of a media franchise with other media...
s'.
Often these materials might contradict the continuity that has already been established by 'canon'. Even when no such contradictions occur, such materials may still be deemed apocrypha possibly because they might have been produced largely independently of the creator of the fictional universe. For example
Joss WhedonJoseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American director, executive producer, occasional actor, and creator and head writer of the television programs Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, and Dollhouse...
, creator of the
Buffyverse"Buffyverse" is a term coined by fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel to refer to the shared fictional universe in which they are set. The term has since been used in the titles of published works, and been adopted by Joss Whedon, the creator of the fictional universe.The boundaries of the...
, has little involvement with the
Buffyverse novelsBuffyverse novels include Buffy novels, Angel novels, Buffy/Angel novels and Tales of the Slayer.-History:-BS1:These Buffyverse tales take place around Buffy Season 1 .-BS2:...
and has never read an entire novel, let alone closely overseen or edited one.
The
Star Trek canon consists of the various
Star Trek television series and movies. All the other
Star Trek stories which have been licensed by Paramount (novels, comics..) are not part of canon, they are instead
apocrypha. Fan fiction is classified as fanon.