A or neko is a female character with feline traits, such as

cat The cat (''Felis catus''), also referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the ...

ears, a tail, or other feline characteristics on an otherwise human body. As a type of ''

kemonomimi is a form of anthropomorphism in anime, manga, and games where '' moe'' qualities are given to non-human beings (such as animals, plants, supernatural entities and fantastical creatures), objects, concepts, or phenomena. In addition to ''moe' ...

'', catgirls are associated with Japanese

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

and

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

but may appear in other genres. The equivalent male character is called a catboy. Catgirls are descended from

Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

and Shōwa period stories of villainous,

shapeshifting In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shapeshifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through unnatural means. The idea of shapeshifting is found in the oldest forms of totemism and shamanism, as well as the oldest existen ...

cat monsters such as ''

bakeneko The (, "changed cat") is a type of Japanese , or supernatural entity; more specifically, it is a , or supernatural cat. It is often confused with the , another cat-like . The distinction between them is often ambiguous, but the largest difference ...

'' or ''

nekomata ''Nekomata'' (original form: , later forms: , , ) are a kind of cat ''yōkai'' described in Japanese folklore, classical kaidan, essays, etc. There are two very different types: those that live in the mountains and domestic cats that have grown ...

'', whose cat traits designated them as antagonists.

Postwar A post-war or postwar period is the interval immediately following the end of a war. The term usually refers to a varying period of time after World War II, which ended in 1945. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum, ...

and more recent media have largely rehabilitated catgirls into docile, '' moe'' characters.

Description

The term ''catgirl'' is applied broadly to characters with some (often minor or superficial) cat physiology, and usually with at least one of either cat ears or a cat tail. Depending on the narrative, a catgirl may have cat-like mannerisms or verbal tics, or the ability to become a cat. A character who wears a cat ear headband, or who is momentarily depicted with cat ears to convey emotion, might also be called a catgirl within that context. Whether a catgirl is correctly categorized as a " furry", or whether a person who appreciates catgirls is considered '' kemonā'', is hotly controversial to fans who do not wish to be associated with both furry and catgirl cultures. This is further complicated by the loose definition of a catgirl as a character who may or may not possess certain cat traits, raising the question of which or how many such traits can be added before a character is better sorted as a furry.

History

The oldest mention of the term comes from an 18th-century ''

misemono During the Edo period, , "shows" or "exhibitions", were an important part of Japanese urban culture. Many of the shows were put on hurriedly and were characterized by their crudeness. The term ''misemono'' dates from the Edo period, although plaus ...

'' in which a cat/woman hybrid was displayed. Stories of shapeshifting ''

prostitutes Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-p ...

were popular during the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

. The ''

ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art that flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock printing, woodblock prints and Nikuhitsu-ga, paintings of such subjects as female beauties; kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers; scenes ...

'' artist

Utagawa Kuniyoshi Utagawa Kuniyoshi (, ; 1 January 1798 – 14 April 1861) was one of the last great masters of the Japanese ukiyo-e style of woodblock prints and painting.Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al'' (2005). "Kuniyoshi" in He was a member of the Utaga ...

(1798–1861) depicted the human forms of cat monsters as retaining cat ears, a trait that made them appear untrustworthy or frightening. The popularity of the ''nekomusume'' continued throughout the Edo and Shōwa periods, with many tales of cat/woman hybrids appearing in works such as the and . The villain in

Kenji Miyazawa was a Japanese novelist, poet, and children's literature writer from Hanamaki, Iwate, in the late Taishō and early Shōwa periods. He was also known as an agricultural science teacher, vegetarian, cellist, devout Buddhist, and utopian social ...

's 1924 work ' is the first example of a beautiful cat-eared woman in modern Japanese literature. In 1936, the ''nekomusume'' experienced a revival in ''

kamishibai is a form of Japanese street theater and storytelling that was popular during the Great Depression of the 1930s and the postwar period in Japan until the advent of television during the mid-20th century. were performed by a (" narrator") who ...

''.

Anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

and

such as ''

Princess Knight ''Princess Knight'', also known as ''Ribon no Kishi'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka. This manga follows the adventures of Sapphire, a girl who was born accidentally with a blue heart of a boy and a pin ...

'' (1953) and '' Star of Cottonland'' (1978) began to reimagine catgirls as cute and approachable characters rather than dangerous monsters, though these mediums can still cast antagonistic catgirls as in ''

Dominion A dominion was any of several largely self-governance, self-governing countries of the British Empire, once known collectively as the ''British Commonwealth of Nations''. Progressing from colonies, their degrees of self-governing colony, colon ...

'' (1985) and ''

Bakemonogatari is a Japanese light novel series written by Nisio Isin and illustrated by Vofan. The plot centers on Koyomi Araragi, a third-year high school student who survives a vampire attack and finds himself helping girls involved with a var ...

'' (2009). By the 1990s, catgirls had become common in Japanese anime and manga. Catgirls have since been featured in various media worldwide. Enough of a subculture has developed for various themed conventions and events to be held around the world, such as Nekocon.

As an aesthetic

In 1980s Japan, cat ears started to appear as a regular accessory in some youth, with limited continuing popularity. Recent cat ear headbands sometimes use motorized ears, which emote depending on the wearer's state of mind as determined by an electrode. Some Japanese trains and train stations are also decorated with cat ears. In the West,

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

youth may adopt the catgirl as an

ideal self The true self (also known as real self, authentic self, original self and vulnerable self) and the false self (also known as fake self, idealized self, superficial self and pseudo self) are a psychological dualism conceptualized by English psych ...

, to be expressed on the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

. In a 2022 survey of trans

software engineer Software engineering is a branch of both computer science and engineering focused on designing, developing, testing, and maintaining software applications. It involves applying engineering principles and computer programming expertise to develop ...

s, 80.5% indicated they were "kinda" or "very" experienced with the catgirl concept. Some

Internet meme An Internet meme, or meme (, Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through Social media, social media platforms. Internet memes manif ...

s flippantly advocate for genetically engineering catgirls; this is not feasible with current technology.

Analysis

Japanese philosopher

Hiroki Azuma (born May 9, 1971) is a Japanese cultural critic, novelist, and philosopher. He is the co-founder and former director of Genron, an independent institute in Tokyo, Japan. Biography Azuma was born in Mitaka, Tokyo. Azuma received his PhD in ...

has stated that catgirl characteristics such as cat ears and feline speech patterns are examples of '' moe''-elements. In a 2010 critique of the manga series ''

Loveless Loveless may refer to: Comics and literature * Loveless (comics), ''Loveless'' (comics), a comic book series by Brian Azzarello, Marcelo Frusin, Danijel Zezelj, and Werther Dell'Edera * Loveless (manga), ''Loveless'' (manga), a manga series by Y ...

'', the

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

writer T. A. Noonan argued that, in Japanese culture, catgirl characteristics have a similar role to that of the

Playboy Bunny A Playboy Bunny is a cocktail waitress who works at a Playboy Club and selected through standardized training. Their costumes were made up of lingerie, inspired by the tuxedo-wearing Playboy rabbit mascot. This costume consisted of a straples ...

in western culture, serving as a fetishization of youthful innocence. According to the Japanese magazine '' Da Vinci'', the fact that cat ears can often be easily added to a character or costume without compromise has made the catgirl trope accessible and quickly popular. It is further suggested that the docile image created by cat ears stimulates the viewer's desire to protect cute animals.

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Portal bar, Animals, Anime and manga 18th-century neologisms Anime and manga controversies Anime and manga terminology Cats in Japan Fantasy tropes Female legendary creatures Female stock characters Fictional cats Fictional human–animal hybrids Fictional hybrid species and races Furry fandom Japanese subcultures Moe anthropomorphism Otaku slang Shapeshifters Therianthropes Transgender culture Yōkai in popular culture