Hello Kitty may have whiskers and cat ears, but she is not a cat.

On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Times reported that Hello Kitty was a little girl.

"She's a cartoon character. She is a little girl. She is a friend. But she is not a cat," Christine R. Yano, an anthropologist from the University of Hawaii, said. "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."

On Thursday, online news site Kotaku called Hello Kitty producer Sanrio and asked for an elaboration on Hello Kitty's species.

A spokesperson said that a better way to describe her is "gijinka," which means "anthropomorphization" or "personification."

"Hello Kitty was done in the motif of a cat," the spokesperson said. "It's going to far to say that Hello Kitty is not a cat. Hello Kitty is a personification of a cat."

Kotaku argues that Hello Kitty's profile doesn't officially say she is human. In Japan, cat lovers do call their cats boy or girl, which helps set them apart from just pets.

This is somewhat similar to what Disney has done.

For example, Minnie Mouse is a mouse, but she has a pet cat. Goofy is a dog, but he is not a pet.

"Goofy was created as a human character, as opposed to Pluto, who was a pet, so he walked upright and had a speaking voice," Disney stated.

Hello Kitty has been around since the 1970s.

Kitty has a twin sister named Mimmy. Her boyfriend is Dear Daniel, and she is as tall as five apples. She also loves her mom's apple pie.

The popular little girl will be the headliner for Hello Kitty Con 2014, which takes place Oct. 30 to Nov. 2.