Where Did Smurf Cat Come From? Explaining the Internet Meme

While cat memes are no stranger to the internet, the Smurf Cat has left many feeling confused and scratching their heads about how it became so viral. As with many memes, images of the Smurf Cat seemed to have started popping up on people’s social media accounts overnight with no context or traceable reason for its sudden popularity.

While the exact cause of the Smurf Cat meme’s virality remains a mystery, we do know where the meme image originates from. The original image is concept art created by a talented artist named Nate Hallinan. He hadn’t intended for his artwork to go viral, but it was certainly a welcomed surprise that it ended up gaining global recognition.

Origins of the Smurf Cat Image

The original image of Smurf Cat was created by Nate Hallinan. Hallinan is a concept artist and illustrator who has created many concept art pieces of fantasy and sci-fi creatures and animals. Included in his portfolio is Smurf Sighting, which is his take on a realistic rendition of a Smurf. While Hallinan didn’t explicitly say that his artwork was modeled after a cat, many people viewed his version of a Smurf as having a cat-like face and features.

The Rise in Popularity of the Smurf Cat Meme

Hallinan created Smurf Sighting on September 9, 2014, but it didn’t reach internet notoriety until nearly a decade later. It’s unclear who first started using this image as a meme, but the image started getting reposted in August 2023. It was first circulating on Russian social media with the hashtag “Шайлушай,” which translates to “Shailushai” in English. This meme eventually made its way to TikTok, where it was also paired with the lyrics “We live. We love. We lie.” from the song “The Spectre” by Alan Walker.

It was only a matter of time before the Smurf Cat meme started taking over TikTok, and its popularity trickled to other platforms, including Instagram and YouTube. Discourse about Smurf Cat also started appearing on Reddit.

True to the course of viral memes, the Smurf Cat meme evolved as people added their personal takes to it. It became such a sensation that you could even find people creating their own versions of it on Minecraft and other popular games.

The Smurf Cat meme reached peak popularity in the fall of 2023. While the craze over the meme has died down since then, it’s still worth noting its impressive reach. The hashtag #smurfcat has over 3.4 billion views, and #Шайлушай has over 1.1 billion views on Russian social media.

Why Did the Smurf Cat Meme Go Viral?

It’s unclear why the Smurf Cat Meme became so popular so fast. However, most speculations revolve around the idea that its appeal had to do with many people not understanding its appeal. While posts of the meme started cycling, many people took to social media to ask why the meme was so popular or to ask people to stop reposting it. These types of posts and complaints only seemed to cause others to create even more posts featuring Smurf Cat.

Conclusion

Whether you love the Smurf Cat or are confused by it, there’s no denying that the internet loves cats and creating cat memes and content. While its peak in popularity has passed, it still remains a widely recognized meme. Considering that the original image was created almost a decade ago, we wouldn’t be surprised if this meme resurfaces again and causes another stir across social media platforms in the future. It would be an amazing feat for it to become relevant again in another 10 years’ time.

Featured Image Credit: Property of Deviant Art. All rights reserved to the copyright owners.