Manga like Aoki Balkanalia

Tenmaku no Jaadugar

Also known as A Witch's Life in Mongol.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Adventure , Drama

In the harem of the Khan, wisdom is beauty.

The time: the thirteenth century. The place: Yeke Mongol Ulus, the greatest empire the world has ever known. The woman: Fatima, hailing from Persia, where medical technique and scientific knowledge have been perfected beyond all precedent.

Fatima's desire for a stage where she can put all her knowledge to work has brought her to the palace of the Mongols, where she falls under the wing of Töregene, the sixth wife of Ögedei, the second Great Khan—a mighty woman with complicated feelings about the direction of the empire. These two women are the axle upon which the politics of the palace, and soon the very world, will turn...



Notes:
Ranked 1st in the Women's Division of Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! 2023 guidebook.
Ranked 5th in the 16th Manga Taisho Awards in 2023.
Ranked 5th in the 17th Manga Taisho Awards in 2024.
Winner of the Overseas Work Award at the 2024 Bucheon International Comics Festival.
Nominated for the Best New Manga category at the 2025 American Manga Awards.
Winner of the Grand Prize in the Comic Division at the 55th Japan Cartoonists Association Awards in 2026.

Tags: Historical , Female Protagonist , Foreign , Revenge , Espionage , Biographical , Kingdom Management , Indigenous Cultures , Josei , Slavery , War , Educational , Royal Affairs , Military , Politics , Tragedy , Religion , Desert , Time Skip , Orphan , Conspiracy , Arranged Marriage , Travel , Class Struggle , Middle East , Ensemble Cast

Otoyomegatari

Also known as A Bride's Story.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

A Bride’s Story tells the tale of a beautiful young bride in nineteenth-century Asia. At the age of twenty, Amir is sent to a neighboring town to be wed. But her surprise at learning her new husband, Karluk, is eight years younger than her is quickly replaced by a deep affection for the boy and his family. Though she hails from just beyond the mountains, Amir’s clan had very different customs, foods, and clothes from what Karluk is used to. As the two of them learn more about each other through their day-to-day lives, the bond of respect and love grows stronger.



Note: Won the Prix Intergénérations ("Intergenerational Award") at the Angoulême International Comics Festival in 2012 and the 7th Manga Taishou award in 2014.

Tags: Ensemble Cast , Historical , Marriage , Female Protagonist , Heterosexual , Travel , Seinen , Foreign , Indigenous Cultures , Arranged Marriage , Iyashikei , Desert , Environmental , Family Life , Age Gap , Educational , War , Cohabitation , Rural , Matchmaking , Middle East , Military , Food , Religion , Unrequited Love , Language Barrier , Twins , Archery , Nudity , Animals , Female Harem , Polyamorous , LGBTQ+ Themes , Large Breasts

Yume no Shizuku, Kin no Torikago

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance

Beginning of 16th century, Alexandra was captured by slave traders in Ukraine during one of their many raids. When the traders arrived in Greece to sell the female slaves, a young handsome man named Mateus bought her and promised to give her true freedom. He hired countless teachers, scholars, and palace ladies to train her into the one perfect woman of her time. Mateus's kindness has caused Alexandra to deeply fall in love with him, and she secretly wishes to be his concubine. But cruel fate! Mateus has already promised her to his best friend, who is Suleiman the Great, Emperor of the Ottoman Empire! Mateus promised Alexandra of true freedom, but where is freedom when she is in another man's harem and can only look at the one she loves from afar?

Not willing to endure this agony, Alexandra promises herself that one day, she will free both of them from their bird cages. But Mateus is the Grand Vizier, a power only second to the Emperor himself. So Alexandra must become the most influential concubine in order to have any hope—which also means bearing Suleiman's son. However, Suleiman already has a son by another concubine, and this woman is determined to keep her son as the only prince and only heir.

Thus begins the story of a slave that becomes the story of one of the greatest empresses of all time, Alexandra, the woman who would one day be known as Roxelana, Empress of the Ottoman Empire.

Tags: Historical , Josei , Politics , War , Kingdom Management , Biographical , Coming of Age , Parenthood , Female Protagonist , Foreign , Slavery , Love Triangle , Royal Affairs , Unrequited Love , Arranged Marriage , Assassins , Class Struggle , Crime , Espionage , Maids , Marriage , Time Skip , Revenge , Indigenous Cultures , Nudity , Female Harem , Heterosexual , Tragedy , Middle East

Shoukoku no Altair

Also known as Altair: A Record of Battles.

Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Fantasy

For generations the Torqye Pashalu and the Balt-Rhein Empire have stood in stern opposition of each other. Then one night, when an Imperial minister is found assassinated, the two nations are plunged into a potentially explosive situation. As the generals of Torqye's council cry for war, Mahmut comes to discover the devious truth behind the assassination. Thus the young pasha's battle for his country and peace and trust in his fellow man begins...



Note: Includes 5 extra chapters.

Tags: War , Historical , Foreign , Politics , Military , Shounen , Male Protagonist , Desert

Tenju no Kuni

Also known as Blissful Land.

Status: Finished
Genres: Romance , Slice of Life

Khang Zhipa is a 13-year-old doctor’s apprentice living in a mountain village in 18th-century Tibet. One day, when he gets back from collecting medicinal herbs, he finds a bride-to-be and her wedding party will be resting at his home for the night. The bride’s name is Moshi Rati and it turns out she’s actually Khang Zhipa’s fiancee from another land, here to stay! Enjoy this heartwarming slice-of-life tale woven by a kind-hearted boy and his mysterious bride.



Tags: Medicine , Rural , Iyashikei , Marriage , Family Life , Arranged Marriage , Foreign , Indigenous Cultures , Historical , Heterosexual , Animals , Primarily Child Cast , Male Protagonist , Educational , Shounen , Food , Nudity

Aoi Horus no Hitomi: Dansou no Joou no Monogatari

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama

This manga tells the story of Hatshepsut, a woman who reigned successfully over Egypt for many years. The story begins when she is a young woman, marrying her half-brother Thutmose II and thus ensuring his rise to Pharaoh. Hatshepsut is a woman with a strong will, who is not going to accept the restrictions others might try to place on her as a woman.

Tags: Historical , Seinen , Female Protagonist , Politics , Royal Affairs , Tomboy , Biographical , Religion , Arranged Marriage , Crossdressing , Heterosexual , Swordplay , Nudity , Slavery , Desert , Gore , Gods , Incest ,

Golden Kamuy

Also known as Golden Kamuy.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Drama

In the early twentieth century, Russo-Japanese War veteran Saichi “Immortal” Sugimoto scratches out a meager existence during the postwar gold rush in the wilderness of Hokkaido. When he stumbles across a map to a fortune in hidden Ainu gold, he sets off on a treacherous quest to find it. But Sugimoto is not the only interested party, and everyone who knows about the gold will kill to possess it! Faced with the harsh conditions of the northern wilderness, ruthless criminals and rogue Japanese soldiers, Sugimoto will need all his skills and luck—and the help of an Ainu girl named Asirpa—to survive.



Note: Won the 9th Manga Taisho Award in 2016 and the 22nd Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2018. Nominated for the 20th and 21st Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize and the 40th Kodansha Manga Awards in 2016.

Tags: Historical , Conspiracy , Military , Outdoor Activities , Indigenous Cultures , Seinen , Ensemble Cast , Politics , Food , Educational , Surreal Comedy , Primarily Male Cast , Travel , Snowscape , Found Family , Primarily Adult Cast , Gore , Survival , Guns , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Male Harem , Revenge , Language Barrier , Anti-Hero , LGBTQ+ Themes , Slapstick , Crime , Prison , Wilderness , Trains , Animals , Male Protagonist , Nudity , Archery , Swordplay , Disability , Suicide , Tanned Skin , Transgender , Twins , Cannibalism , Heterosexual , Zoophilia , Yakuza , Time Skip , Dissociative Identities , Crossdressing

Arslan Senki

Also known as The Heroic Legend of Arslan.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Supernatural

In the prosperous kingdom of Pars lies the Royal Capital of Ecbatana, a city of splendor and wonder, ruled by the undefeated and fearsome King Andragoras. Arslan is the young and curious prince of Pars who, despite his best efforts, doesn’t seem to have what it takes to be a proper king like his father. At the age of 14, Arslan goes to his first battle and loses everything as the blood-soaked mist of war gives way to scorching flames, bringing him to face the demise of his once glorious kingdom. However, it is Arslan’s destiny to be a ruler, and despite the trials that face him, he must now embark on a journey to reclaim his fallen kingdom.



Tags: Historical , War , Military , Foreign , Politics , Male Protagonist , Found Family , Royal Affairs , Religion , Swordplay , Gore , Slavery , Revenge , Primarily Male Cast , Archery , Shounen , Desert

Ookami to Koushinryou

Also known as Spice & Wolf.

Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Romance , Supernatural

With his carthorse as his only companion, the young merchant Kraft Lawrence slowly wends his way through dusty back roads in search of profitable trade. But this monotony screeches to a halt when, one night, he encounters a harvest goddess in the guise of a beautiful young girl…with wolf ears and a tail! Longing for the northern lands of her birth, Holo the Wisewolf joins Lawrence as he follows the ebb and flow of trade through the countryside. And when the two come across a compelling but suspicious opportunity for profit, will Lawrence with his mercantile chops and Holo with her ancient instincts be able to separate the truth from the lies — and make some coin while they’re at it?!



Tags: Economics , Seinen , Gods , Medieval , Animals , Heterosexual , Kemonomimi , Nudity , Politics , Historical , Religion , Rural

Hengoku no Schwester

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery

"Iron Maiden" is an instrument of torture modelled after Mother Mary's form. The interior is full with long nails, and people who are enclosed in it would be pierced to death. But the "Iron Maiden" that exists nowadays is simply a counterfeit made by us based off of old tales. The "maiden" who possesses a gentle, loving face as well as a violent "body"... Did the "Iron Maiden" really exist in the past?

This is a story revolving around "her".

Tags: Primarily Child Cast , Female Protagonist , Revenge , Survival , Religion , Witch , Tomboy , Nun , Seinen , Gore , Historical , Dystopian , Sadism , Torture , Conspiracy , Medieval , Tragedy , Anti-Hero , Nudity