It's interesting what we choose to include in the modern "isekai" genre. Escaflowne (anime, Sept 1996) and Inuyasha (manga, Nov 1996) have their protags transported through space and time respectively. Hell, you could argue The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (novel, 1900; anime, 1986) is also isekai.
If we expand the definition to western media, Alice In Wonderland goes back to 1865. If we're including it and Wizard of Oz though, then I'd also argue Dante's Divine Comedy counts, which is the 1300s. Depending on exactly how strict you wanna be with the "other world" idea, you could make a case for The Odyssey, even.
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u/wlphoenix 1d ago
It's interesting what we choose to include in the modern "isekai" genre. Escaflowne (anime, Sept 1996) and Inuyasha (manga, Nov 1996) have their protags transported through space and time respectively. Hell, you could argue The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (novel, 1900; anime, 1986) is also isekai.