Friday, April 3, 2009

Other CatGirls!

  • Neko (a staff member) and the species Kera'sha from the book series Dragon Tamers
  • Neko from "Keroro Gunso" is a cat that transforms into a catgirl in two episodes and the cat humanoid alien Space Kumiko Watanabe
  • Nekoko from Kannazuki no Miko
  • Norn from Atelier Iris
  • Nuku Nuku (also known as Atsuko Natsume), title character of All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku (a cat/human Android)
  • Miss Nyako and her niece, Konyako, from Eden's Bowy
  • Odd Della-Robbia from Code Lyoko (while not technically a cat/human hybird, Odd's form on the virtual reality Lyoko includes over-sized 4-fingered paw-like hands and a prehensile tail - he also displays cat-like-reflexes and mannerisms, has called himself 'a giant purple cat' and has been seen to meow)
  • Para-dice from Oban Star Racers (a biomechanical-looking catlike alien)
  • Rena, or Reena, from Genesis of Aquarion Even though she is not a catgirl in the usual sense, she has cat-like teeth, and the ribbon she wears in her hair resembles cat ears.
  • Sekhmet (also spelt Sachmet, Sakhet, and Sakhmet; Greek name: Sacmis), The Egyptian goddess of war and protector of the Pharaoh. She was envisioned as a fierce lioness, and in art, was depicted as such, or as a woman with the head of a lioness, dressed in red, the colour of blood.
  • Teekl from the Batman mythos (a cat who can transform into a hybrid humanoid form, familiar of Klarion the Witch Boy)
  • Thornn from X-Force
  • Tigra (Marvel)
  • Tiger Cub from Night Watch (2004 film)
  • Ropponmatsu model 2 from Excel Saga
  • A race of sapient genetically engineered catpeople has appeared in several episodes of the newest Doctor Who series in the episodes dealing with the setting of New New York

Western catgirls

Catboys

Girls who are seen wearing catgirl costumes regularly!

Girls who transform into catgirls

  • Kisa Sohma from Fruits Basket transforms into a tiger from the zodiac when hugged by a guy or whenever her body is under a lot of stress.
  • Rose from +Anima, a Cat +Anima; her fingernails turn into claws and she gains catlike speed. She also has two tiger like stripes on her cheeks and a stripe on her forehead.
  • Shampoo from Ranma 1/2 transforms into a cat when splashed with cold water.
  • Shina from Bloody Roar 2 and subsequent games
  • Starfire from Teen Titansextraterrestrial creatures; additionally, she becomes a cat in the anime in the episode Bunny Raven. transforms into a cat in the comics when hit with a ray that causes evolutionary regression, suggesting that her race evolved from cats, or cat-like
  • Sumire Shoda from Gakuen Alice'
  • Uriko from Bloody Roar 2 and subsequent games (not a catgirl in the first game)
  • Yoruichi Shihouin from Bleach has the ability to transform herself into a black/dark blue cat as a matter of will (ironically, she is often mistaken for a male in this form as a result of her cat form's deep voice).
  • Momomiya Ichigo from Tokyo Mew Mew transforms in her mew mew form, which gives her black cat ears and a black cat tail, and transforms entirely into a cat when under immense stress .

Catgirls who always have real cat ears!

Nekomusume!

Nekomusume (猫娘 ?), meaning "cat-girl".

  • Shunran, Karan and Toran panther demon from Inuyasha
  • Nekonneru one of the Daimon created in Sailormoon

Catgirls who always have real cat ears and a tail!

Kemonomimi!


Kemonomimi (獣耳 or けものみみTemplate:call?) is a Japanese slang describing humanoid characters that possess animal-like features.Template:Dubious



What is Anthropomorphism?!

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of uniquely human characteristics to non-human creatures and beings, natural and supernatural phenomena, material states and objects or abstract concepts. Subjects for anthropomorphism commonly include animals and plants depicted as creatures with human motivation able to reason and converse, forces of nature such as winds or the sun, components in games, unseen or unknown sources of chance, etc. Almost anything can be subject to anthropomorphism. The term derives from a combination of the Greek ἄνθρωπος (ánthrōpos), "human" and μορφή (morphē), "shape" or "form".

Humans seem to have an innate capacity to project human characteristics in this way. Evidence from art and artifacts suggests it is a long-held propensity that can be dated back to earliest times. It is strongly associated with the art of storytellingfable tradition with anthropomorphised animals as characters that can stand as commonly recognised types of human behaviour. The use of such literature to draw moral conclusions can be highly complex. where it also appears to have ancient roots. Most cultures possess a long-standing

Within these terms, humans have more recently been identified as having an equivalent opposite propensity to deny common traits with other species—most particularly apes—as part of a feeling that humans are unique and special. This tendency has been referred to as Anthropodenial by primatologist Frans de Waal.

Bakeneko in Anime & Manga!

Japanese popular culture contains a large number of two-tailed cat characters based on the nekomata. Some of these include:

  • In the series InuYasha, Kirara (the demon companion of Sango), is a type of nekomata that can transform from a cute two-tailed cat like creature into a large demon surrounded in flame and capable of flight.
  • In the anime series Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales and Mononoke
  • In the manga Shaman King, Hao Asakura's spirit ally from 1,000 years ago is a nekomata named Matamune.
  • In the manga/anime series Hyper Police the character Natsuki Sasahara is half-human/half-nekomata.
  • In the anime Inukami!, the character Tomekichi is a benevolent nekomata who honors an obligation to a deceased priest who once took care of him.
  • In the Pokémon game series, the Psychic-type Pokémon Espeon is a lavender cat-like creature with a forked tail.
  • In the video game Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne Beast Nekomata appear as recruitable allies in Ginza and Ikebukuro.
  • In the video game Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3, Nekomata is one of the main Protagonist's summonable Personas.
  • The character Yurine in the animation Karas appears as both a human and a white cat with a forked-tail.
  • In the series Claymore, Luciela, the abyssal one of the South, has an awakened form resembling a two-tailed cat demon.
  • In the video games Disgaea: Hour of Darkness and Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories, the player has the ability to create nekomata characters.
  • The Bakeneko was featured in episode 10, 11, and 12 of the series Mononoke.
  • Chen, from Touhou Project, is a nekomata shikigami.
  • Rin, also from Touhou Project, is a nekomata, but she is also a kasha.
  • In the manga/anime series Naruto, Kakuzu and Hidan find the two-tailed bijuu which has the appearance of a giant nekomata when fully materialized.
  • An artist by the name Nekomata Master is present in multiple KonamiBEMANI series. related video games, especially in the BEMANI series.
  • In the Digimon Series there is a Digimon named Persiamon who takes the form of a two tailed cat woman.
  • In the anime series Xam'd: Lost Memories, there is a small, green and white, rabbit-like creature called a nekomata adopted by two children who name it Roppa.

More information about Bakeneko!

In Japanese folklore, any cat that lives over thirteen years old, reaches one kan (eight pounds) in weight or is allowed to keep a long tail can become a bake-nekobake-neko is a cat that gains paranormal powers after certain circumstances. The breeding of the Japanese Bobtail may have some connection with this superstition. After a bake-neko tail grows long enough it forks into two tails, then the bake-neko is no longer called a bake-neko, but a neko-mata. Other forms of bake-neko are Maneki-neko (Addis 2001). Most of the stories about the bake-neko are told orally in Japan. ( 化け猫 ) or Ghost Cat (Addis 2001). A

History

In the early 17th century the Japanese used cats to kill off the rats and mice that were threatening the silkworms. During this time it was illegal to buy or sell cats. Most of the cats in Japan were set free to roam around the cities. Stories about these street cats became legends over time. There are many stories about the supernatural abilities of the bake-neko: talking, walking on their two rear legs, shapeshifting, and even resurrecting the dead. Because of the stories about the bake-neko the Japanese people may cut their cat’s tail off to stop them from becoming a bake-neko. Cats that were caught drinking lamp oil were also considered to be bake-nekos. Cats may have regularly been caught drinking lamp oil due to the fact that old fashion lamp oil was made from fish.

Description

The bake-neko looks like an ordinary cat; however, a bake-neko can walk on his two rear legs, talk and assume human form. It is said that when the bake-neko tail grows long enough its tail can fork in two, the bake-neko is then called a neko-mata or forked tail.

Legends

There are many legends about the bake-neko. One in particular may have given birth to the Japanese Bobtail. As the legend goes, a cat was warming itself near the fire and set its tail on fire. The long-tail cat then ran through the town burning many buildings to the ground. For retribution the Emperor decreed that all cats should have their tails cut off.

Another famous bake-neko story is about a man named Takasu Genbei, whose mother’s personality changed completely after his pet cat went missing for many years. His mother avoided the company of friends and family and would take her meals alone in her room. When the family peeked in on her they saw a cat-like monster in the mother's clothes, chewing on animal carcasses. Takasu, still skeptical, slew what looked like his mother and after one day his mother's body turned back into his pet cat that had been missing.

Not all bake-neko are bad; in some stories they are faithful and good-hearted to their owners; three stories in particular tie benevolent bakeneko to the legend of the maneki neko. One such story is about a bake-neko named Tama. Tama's owner was a very poor priest who lived in a rundown temple in Setagaya, west of Tokyo. The priest would tell Tama, “I’m keeping you in spite of my poverty, so couldn’t you do something for this temple?” One day the lord of the Hikone district, Naotaka, was standing under a big tree in front of the temple to avoid the rain. Naotaka became aware of a cat calling him to the temple gate. As he began to walk to the temple gate the tree was struck by lighting. The cat who called out to Naotaka was Tama. After the incident, Naotaka became friends with the priest of the temple. Naotaka chose the temple to be the family temple and change its name to Goutokuji. Because of Tama's help the priest became prosperous.

Another good bake-neko story is about a cat whose owner was a high-ranking geisha. Every time she would try to go to the toilet, the cat would claw at her robes to keep her away from the toilet. Because of the cat’s strange behavior the geisha killed it. After that she proceeded to the toilet. As she begin to use the toilet, the ghost of the cat bit to death the snake that was lurking near the toilet, saving its owner from harm.

Sometimes the bake-neko had the power to enter someone’s dreams. There is a story about a bake-neko who entered her owner's dream to tell her to manufacture its image in clay in order to bring her wealth. Other stories tell about how a bake-neko may sometimes shape-shift into a beautiful girl, so that their owner would be able to marry them and have children.

Bakeneko!

A bakeneko (化け猫 ?, "monster cat") is, in Japanese folklore, a cat with supernatural abilities akin to those of the fox or raccoon dog. A cat may become a bakeneko in a number of ways: it may reach a certain age, be kept for a certain number of years, grow to a certain size, or be allowed to keep a long tail. In the last case, the tail forks in two and the bakeneko is then called a nekomata(猫又 ?, ,猫叉, or 猫股 "forked cat"). This superstition may have some connection to the breeding of the Japanese Bobtail.

A bakeneko will haunt any household it is kept in, creating ghostly fireballs, menacing sleepers, walking on its hind legs, changing its shape into that of a human, and even devouring its own mistress in order to shapeshift and take her place. When it is finally killed, its body may be as much as five feet in length. It also poses a danger if allowed into a room with a fresh corpse; a cat is believed to be capable of reanimating a body by jumping over it.

Personality traits of CatGirls!

Ordinary human characters 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 from manga.

Characters in anime and manga may momentarily develop a catlike mouth. This is usually used to emphasize mischievous thoughts or comments by a character. 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 certain anime and manga series, a boy may be compared to a cat in a similar way catgirls are. They are referred to as catboys. Bishōnen catboys are typically associated with shōjo manga and yaoi.

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

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.

The CatGirls! Dx

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 are found occasionally in anime and manga either as a form of cosplay or actual body parts, as well as in a few video games. Catgirls may wear over-sized mittens and shoes that look like paws. In Japan, catgirls are usually called nekomimi (猫耳) — literally, "cat ears" — rather than the literal term nekomusume (猫娘). Sometimes characters do not actually feature cat-like ears or such an accessory but their hair sticks out and resembles cat ears. Such characters do not fit the definition of catgirls. Other animal combinations, usually mammals like bunnygirls, foxgirls and (more rarely) doggirls, are referred to as kemonomimi.

Eastern catgirls are usually depicted as having minimal feline characteristics, such as eyes with vertical pupils, tails, and ears (often with different color ear-fur than their hair). Western catgirls are more often portrayed as more animal-like in appearance, with full body fur and claws being their most prominent aspects, though not true for all cases.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Cat Pictures! DDx







Cats in Mythology!

Cats have been kept by humans since ancient Egypt. In ancient Egypt, the cat god, Bast, was a goddess of the home and of the domestic cat, though she sometimes took on the war-like aspect of a lioness. She was the daughter of the sun god Ra, although she was sometimes regarded as the daughter of Amun. She was the wife of Ptah and mother of the lion-god Mihos. Her cult was centered on her sanctuary at Bubastis in the Nile Delta, where a necropolis has been found containing mummified cats. Bast was also associated with the "eye of Ra," acting as the instrument of the sun god's vengeance. She was depicted as a cat or in human form with the head of a cat, often holding the sacred rattle known as the sistrum.

It has been suggested that because of circumstantial evidence (to date unproved by DNA testing) cats resident on Kenya's Islands in the Lamu Archipelago may be the last living direct descendants of the sacred cats of ancient Egypt. The suggestive evidence is: similar body conformation, archeologically proven history of 1000 years habitation, ancient Red Sea trade between Lamu and Egypt, genetic insular isolation.
According to Norse legend, the fine ribbon used to bind Fenrir was crafted by dwarfs from, among other items, the sound a cat makes when walking.

There are many ancient religions believe that cats are exalted souls, companions or guides for humans, that they are all-knowing but are mute so they cannot influence decisions made by humans.

Common lore says that cats have nine lives. It is a tribute to their perceived durability, their occasional apparent lack of instinct for self-preservation, and their seeming ability to survive falls that would be fatal to other creatures.

Why Cats purr?! b.b

Cats can produce a purring noise that typically indicates that the cat is happy. Less typically it can also can mean that it feels distress. Cats purr among other cats—for example, when a mother meets her kittens. There were many competing theories to explain how cats purr, including vibration of the cat's false vocal cords when inhaling and exhaling, the sound of blood hitting the aorta, vibration of the hyoid apparatus, or resonation directly in the lungs. But currently, it is believed that purring is a result of rhythmic impulses to the cat's larynx.

Purring may also be a way for the cat to calm itself down. For example, some cats have been known to purr when hurt. Though not proven, research has suggested that the frequency of the vibration produced by purring may promote healing of bones and organs in cats, explaining why cats may purr when hurt.

Purr - Cat FactsPurr - Cat Facts

Why Cats Make the sound:: "Meow"?!


















The sound a cat makes is unique and is rendered onomatopoeically as "meow" or similar variants ("miaow", "miau" etc.) in most European languages as well as Mandarin Chinese. Japanese has it as "nyaa" or "nyan"; Korean as "yaong" or "nyaong". In Arabic the sound is transcribed as "mowa'a".

Reason for the "meow" can vary. Cats can call out to indicate pain, request human attention (to be fed or played with, for example), or even as a greeting. Cats can be very vocal, yet others rarely call out. Cats are capable of as many as 100 different vocalizations, compared to about 10 for dogs.

A kitten's call first starts out as a high-pitched squeak-like sound when very young, but then deepens over time. However, some cats do not exercise their voices often, so their call may remain similar to that of a kitten through adulthood.

Names with which you could call your Cats! ^_^

Actual People Names

Vicki
Jerry
Krystle
Anais
Kato (a TV character performed by Bruce Lee)
Soren
Doris
Lizzie


Cats Named for Looks or Personality Characteristics

Bubba
Malcolm
Clawed
Agrippa
Trouble
Mayhem
Paranoia
Snow Balls
Tyranny
Cassidy
Jasmine
Tequila
Dexter
Oreo (a natural for black and white cats)
S'Mores


Names from TV Shows, Cartoons, and Video Games

Bonkers
Guido
Strider
Kimba (Named after a cartoon character named 'Kimba the White Lion' from the 60's)
Chynna
Gallifrey, or Gally
Tailchaser
Simba (Named after the character in "The Lions' King")
Gizmo
Barnabas
Sloopy
Garfield
Sylvester
Arthur
Alfie

CatBreeds! Dx

Longhair Cat Breeds Shorthair Cat Breeds

American Bobtail
American Keuda
Angora
Asian Semi-longhair
Balinese
Birman
British Longhair
Chantilly/Tiffany cat
Exotic cat
Himalayan
Javanese
Maine Coon
Nebelung
Neva Masquerade
Norwegian Forest Cat
Oriental Longhair
Persian
Ragdoll
Siberian
Snow Cat
Somali
Sterling
Turkish Van
Turkish Angora
York Chocolate cat

Abyssinian
American Shorthair
Australian Mist
Bahraini Dilmun Cat
Bombay
British Shorthair
Burmese
Burmilla
Chartreux
Colorpoint Shorthair
Cornish Rex
Egyptian Mau
European Shorthair
Havana Brown
Korat
Oriental Shorthair
Russian Blue
Russian Blue II
Savannah
Siamese
Tonkinese


Other Cat Breeds

American Curl
American Wirehair
Bengal
California Spangled Cat
Chausie
Cymric
Desert Lynx
Devon Rex
Don Sphynx
Foldex Cat
German Rex
Japanese Bobtail
LaPerm
Manx
Munchkin
Ocicat
Ojos Azules
Peterbald
Pixie-bob
Selkirk Rex
Serengeti
Singapura
Sphynx
Scottish Fold
Snowshoe
Sokoke
Toyger
Ussuri