Catgirl

Wikipe-tan as a catgirl.

A catgirl is a female with cat ears, a cat tail, or other feline characteristics on an otherwise human body. Catgirls may be found in Japanese anime and manga where they are more commonly referred to as Neko (猫) or Nekomimi (猫耳), in cosplay activities both in Japan and around the world, in video games ^[1], and in online virtual world communities such as the Nekos of Secondlife. ^[2]

The majority of catgirls are depicted as primarily human in form, with minimal feline characteristics, such as cat ears, tail, and eyes with vertical pupils; some wear over-sized mittens and shoes that look like paws. Other catgirls are more animal-like in appearance, with full body fur and claws being their most prominent aspects.

Unrelated characters include those whose hair sticks out and resembles cat ears, but do not actually wear cat-like ears, as well as other animal combinations such as bunnygirls, foxgirls and (more rarely) doggirls, referred to as kemonomimi.

Personality traits

Catgirls in character typically exhibit a more cat-like attitude, and may sometimes include cat gestures or sounds in written or verbal communications. A frequent running gag among catgirls is that, when talking, they habitually end their speech lines with the catchphrase nya, the Japanese onomatopoeia for a cat's meow.

Catgirls In anime and manga will sometimes sprout cat ears or a tail in order to illustrate their excitable personalities. This is similar to the phenomenon of becoming super deformed and is mostly a stylistic quirk derived from manga. They may momentarily develop a catlike mouth to emphasize mischievous thoughts or comments by a character.

In certain anime and manga series, a boy may be compared to a cat in a similar way that catgirls are. These characters are referred to as catboys. Bishōnen catboys are typically associated with shōjo manga and yaoi. Rebellious boys are more often compared to dogs or wolves. The "lone-wolf" characterization is very common for brooding, aggressive, socially isolated males, while comparisons to dogs usually refer to adorably rebellious but ultimately harmless boys.

In shōnen series, a (usually villainous) catgirl may be portrayed as the leader of a band of anthropomorphic animals.

Western

Catgirl characters are also found outside of anime, manga, and video games. Examples include Catwoman from the Batman series (dating back to 1940), Josie_and_the_Pussycats_(TV_series) in the early 1970s, and characters from the Broadway Cats_(musical). Other less humanoid catgirls include Cheetara from ThunderCats, and the Khajiit from The_Elder_Scrolls series. Fantasy games catgirl characters include Magic: The Gathering's Mirri and Purraj, and the cat girl monster in the d20 Munchkin Monster Manual. Western television examples include Teenage Catgirls in Heat, and Cordwainer Smith's cat-derived Underperson C'Mell (who appears in Norstrilia and The Rediscovery of Man). The British science fiction series Doctor Who features a religious sect called the Sisters of Plenitude, who somewhat resemble Cheetara from Thundercats, but are distinctly more feline than human. See Cat People for more information.

Another form of catgirl is the werecat -- shapeshifters who only sometimes have a cat-humanoid appearance, analogous to werewolves and other lycanthropes. These creatures are portrayed as predominantly female and often have the stereotypical catgirl personality and habits. They tend to appear in more realistic settings in the fantasy or horror genres, rather than in the anime world of catgirls more commonly referred to as Neko or Nekomimi.

See also

• Anthropomorphism
• List of catgirls
• Werecat
• Neko

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Catgirl

• The Catgirl Research Foundation Catgirl info center - art, fiction reference, science, mythology, discussion forum, links database.