I mean no. “Anime” is a cartoon. The name literally comes from the English word “animation.” In the country of origin- Japan- the original Snow White is “anime” the same as chainsaw man. American or foreign comics will also generally be referred to as “manga”
It just so happens that when some teen somewhere gets upset at their mom calling “anime” a cartoon, in Japan somewhere some mom is calling Southpark or Rick and Morty “anime.” Outside of Japan we often use words like anime to refer specifically to Japanese cartoons or cartoons that share a similar style or are seen as similar. China, Korea, and several other countries also have their own cartoons that often get called “anime” in places like America but dedicated fans and such often will use the native terms or some other differentiator to refer to animation from other parts of Asia or elsewhere even if it bears some perceived similarities to Japanese animation.
In Japan cartoons are often perceived a bit differently than many places like America.
It wasn’t until fairly recently that animation started to be perceived as other than “kids stuff” in the US, and even computer animation didn’t start being taken too seriously until very recent history. Animation like cartoons is often still considered “for kids” despite works like the Simpsons and all the many deep, moving, serious, artistic animated works that have come out.
While the “kids only” attitude to animation has eased in the Us and many other places as “Anime” and other adult animations have entered mainstream acceptance, animation is still generally not considered a serious artistic form of expression for the most part here.
I won’t go into the complexities of animation in Japanese culture. It is somewhat accurate to say there is or can be perceptions that “cartoons” are more for younger audiences, but it is generally the case that a wider slice of the population watches animation- especially popular animation, just not as avid or vocal fans. It’s a touch more nuances than all that but it isn’t really accurate to say animation is considered only for kids but it also isn’t accurate to say that every single person or most even watch animation regularly and buy merchandise and follow plots. The general take away is that serious artistic works of animation like moving and very mature stories etc. are generally more socially acceptable for a broader demographic to enjoy.
We could say animation comes closer to being considered not far apart from other Tv and movies- where in the USA for example, there are live action television shows that are made for younger or more “all ages” audiences so you might have a show like a Disney Channel show about knights and dragons with no remotely harsh language or anything remotely offensive and simple plots that are easy to follow but then have something like the LOTR films that are a little more intense and “scary” and serious and violent but not generally with anything most kids can’t watch, then you have something like GOT that is far to inappropriate for most people to think that kids or perhaps even young teens should be watching it. Anime is a bit similar in that sense where some shows would generally be very much considered kid shows and it might be seen as odd for an older person to watch or follow the show.
But some anime are like GOT where it seems like almost every adult is watching it and people talk about it and it has tie ins and promos and adults buy items and even dress up at appropriate times like Halloween etc. as characters and for the most part other adults don’t think it childish or “dorky” etc. but watching the show and knowing the “deep lore” or constantly discussing it etc. could be seen as a bit much. So it’s vaguely similar I guess to make a comparison.
It wasn’t until fairly recently that animation started to be perceived as other than “kids stuff” in the US, and even computer animation didn’t start being taken too seriously until very recent history. Animation like cartoons is often still considered “for kids” despite works like the Simpsons and all the many deep, moving, serious, artistic animated works that have come out.
While the “kids only” attitude to animation has eased in the Us and many other places as “Anime” and other adult animations have entered mainstream acceptance, animation is still generally not considered a serious artistic form of expression for the most part here.