Japanese Folklore Nekomata Yokai

Nekomata 猫又 nekomata are a kind of cat yōkai told about in folklore as well as classical kaidan essays etc.

Japanese folklore nekomata yokai. Yōkai youkai a class of supernatural monsters spirits and demons in japanese folklore. Nekomata summon fireballs and start great conflagrations killing many people. The bakeneko is a type of japanese yōkai or supernatural creature. Bakeneko begin their supernatural life looking almost identical to an ordinary housecat.

It is often confused with the nekomata another cat like yōkai and the distinction between the two can often be quite ambiguous. It is often confused with bakeneko. According to its name it is a cat that has changed into a yōkai.

When a nekomata transforms into a yōkai its tail splits down the center into two identical tails. They look upon humans with contempt. Soon they begin to walk about at on their hind legs. They can also be called ayakashi 妖 mononoke 物の怪 or mamono 魔物.

It is often confused with the nekomata another cat like yōkai. Yomotsu shikome the hags of the underworld. The distinction between them is often ambiguous but the largest difference is that the nekomata has two tails while the bakeneko has only one. Bakeneko 化け猫 bakeneko is a type of japanese yōkai or supernatural creature.

There are legends of bakeneko in various parts of japan but the tale of the nabeshima bakeneko disturbance in saga prefecture is especially famous. There are two very different types the beast that lives in the mountains and the ones raised domestically that grow old and transform. There are two very different types. Known as amabie アマビエ the humanoid fish yōkai a class of supernatural spirits popularized in japanese mythology was first.

Those that live in the mountains and domestic cats that have grown old and transformed. Some of them have never appeared in english before while others will be intimately familiar to fans of japanese folklore. They are born in the same way as other bakeneko though only the oldest largest cats with the longest tails and thus more power and intelligence become this powerful variety. Within these pages you ll find an ever growing collection of yokai and legends from all parts of japan and all periods of japanese history.

Like many of japan s animals when cats live to an old age they develop supernatural powers and transform into yōkai.