Yes, Hello Kitty is indeed a cat.

Earlier this week it was reported by the Los Angles Times that in preparation for an art exhibit of Sanrio’s famed Hello Kitty character, University of Hawaii Anthropologist Christine R. Yano, was “very firmly” corrected by Sanrio that Hello Kitty was not a cat, but actually a little girl.

“That’s one correction Sanrio made for my script for the show. Hello Kitty is not a cat. She’s a cartoon character. She is a little girl. She is a friend. But she is not a cat. She’s never depicted on all fours. She walks and sits like a two-legged creature. She does have a pet cat of her own, however, and it’s called Charmmy Kitty.” said Yano.

A look on Sanrio’s profile of the character states her full name is Kitty White, and she lives in London England.

Several news outlets including MSNBC, Time, and CNN reported this statement however Asian news website Rocket24 news contacted Sanrio’s Public Relations department in Japan for some clarification. The rep responded that “We never said she was a human.”

Upon further clarification to the website, the rep explained that Kitty is anthropomorphization. That the character is similar to Mickey Mouse in that she is not human, but she is not quite a cat either.

Rocketnews24, Time.com