On Thursday, July 18, Sanrio — the developers of Hello Kitty — confirmed that the beloved character is not a cat during an appearance on the 'Today' show.

(August 28, 2014) – Globally-popular children’s character “Hello Kitty” turns 40 this year — and with that birthday comes a surprise revelation. Her creators say Hello Kitty is not a cat!

Sanrio, the Japanese entertainment company that created Hello Kitty in 1974, said the iconic character is 'not a cat,' but rather a 'little girl.' ...

On the 50th anniversary of Hello Kitty, fans were shocked to learn that their beloved cat-inspired character is, in fact, not a feline at all — she's a little girl.

For the longest time, many thought that Hello Kitty was a cat because of her prominent whiskers, but her creators said that she was actually a little girl born and raised in the suburbs of London.

In honor of Hello Kitty's 50th birthday, here are fun facts about the beloved Sanrio character who, turns out, is not a cat.

The cat’s out of the bag. On the 50th anniversary of Hello Kitty, fans were shocked to learn that their beloved cat-inspired character is, in fact, not a feline at all.

Alongside the new interview, Sanrio confirmed several other factoids regarding Hello Kitty that read as such, Her full name is Kitty White. She is little girl (and not a cat).

Hello Kitty not a cat, 'never has been' ... Published 29 August 2014 1:38am. Updated 29 August 2014 5:42am. Share this with family and friends. Copy link. Share. Get SBS News daily and direct to ...

A Junji Ito x Hello Kitty pop-up store will appear exclusively in Parco locations for a limited time from August 23-September 9 in Tokyo, and September 27-October 14 in Osaka, Japan.