User:Kasedori/Catgirl

The origin of catgirls seems to date back to the Edo Period, when stories of shape-shifting bakeneko prostitutes were popular. However, the oldest mention of the term nekomusume (猫娘) comes from a 1700s misemono in which a woman who appeared to be a cat/woman hybrid was displayed. The popularity of the nekomusume continued throughout the Edo and Shōwa Periods, with many tales of catgirls appearing in works such as the Ehon Sayoshigure (絵本小夜時雨) and Ansei zakki (安政雑記). In 1936, the nekomusume experienced a revival in kamishibai (紙芝居).