What Is the El Gato Meme? Origin, Meaning, and Why the Internet Loves It

“El Gato.” Two words. One language. One…cat. And still, this tiny phrase has transformed into a full-fledged meme explosion. It’s popping up in TikToks, YouTube Shorts, Discord chats, and even in posts where it makes no sense – like Fortnite streams and presentations for class.

So, why is everyone insisting on shouting “El Gato”? More importantly, what are we all laughing at?

At GrumpySharks, we are diving had-first into this odd cat chaos to discover how one simple Spanish phrase became one of the most bizarre (and funniest) meme trends of recent time.

#1 What Is the El Gato Meme?

“El Gato” is just “The Cat” in Spanish. But online? It’s something far more absurd.

The meme exploded when TikTokers misheard a scene in Demon Slayer Season 3, where the character Suma cried “arigato” (Japanese for “thank you”). But to many ears—especially if you didn’t have subtitles—it sounded pretty clearly like she was saying…”El gato.”

That’s it. That’s the joke. A sincere anime moment turned internet punchline, just because someone thought they heard, “The Cat.”

And because the internet never lets a dumb idea die, this misheard phrase quickly became paired with papercraft cats, real cats, and bizarre cats montages, and thus, a meme was born—and the internet hasn’t stopped meowing ever since.

#2 Where Did The meme Come From?

The “El Gato” meme started on March 1st, 2022, via TikToker @kirigiritereamo. The video featured an emotional moment from Demon Slayer, where the character Suma is crying and saying, “arigato.” However, the caption was mischievously changed to “El Gato” and the internet took it upon itself to meme that audio into madness.

Then on April 4th, 2022, creator @spacecadetval posted a video using the sound but instead of anime, it was of a paper cutout of a Munchkin cat, being put together. That post ended up getting 1.4 million likes in one week, thus birthed the meme trend.

Before long creators were using the sound to show:

• – Paper cats hangin’ from ceilings
• – Actual real life cats chilling with their paper crafted version
• – Cats doing literally anything cute… all while the audio quietly whispers “El Gato…”

#3 The Secret Sauce: Why It’s Funny

Right now you’re saying: “Fine, but what is the actual punchline?”

Introducing Gen Z’s understanding of meme logic. The randomness is the joke.

“El Gato” is funny because:

• It is completely absurd and outrageous.
• It taps into multilingual humor (especially for English speakers who kind of know Spanish).
• It sounds like it should mean something profound… but it does not.
• It lends itself to manipulated reaction memes and chaotic edits.

Cats are the internet’s most beloved animal. A dramatic Spanish title? Extreme meme power.

It’s a perfect alignment of low-effort, high-reward humor – something Gen Z lives for.

#4 “El Gato With the Chapo”: A Meme Evolution

Let’s explore one of the most absurd variations of this meme—“El Gato With the Chapo.”

What starts as a cat meme develops into an over-the-top action movie trailer. Imagining this is funny enough, but right now, it’s still a bit vague. It starts as:

• A stock photo of a cat.
• Photoshop sunglasses and a gold chain on him.
• A pixelated AK-47 over the stock photo.
• Background music to the video: some trap remix.
• The text: El Gato with the Chapo.
• This is beyond ridiculous; it’s almost crazy—but that’s the goal.

This story about “El Gato with the Chapo” works to show how meme culture isn’t just about an idea. Meme culture is about evolving that idea that is funnier, stranger, and ultimately more shareable.

#5 Expert Take: Why the Meme Works

 Dr. Lisa Palmer, professor of Media Psychology at UMass, told Mashable in a 2023 interview:

“Short-form meme content thrives when it combines surprise with cultural remixing. ‘El Gato’ hits that sweet spot—visually bland, audibly exaggerated, and completely shareable.”

Meanwhile, KnowYourMeme noted:

“The phrase ‘El Gato’ has become a kind of shorthand for chaotic humor that resists explanation.”

Translation? If you try to explain it, you’ve already missed the joke.

#6 Conclusion

“El Gato” isn’t standing in for Grumpy Cat—but it might very well be the Gen Z variation of it. It is fast and chaotic, multilingual, and layers of deep irony. Grumpy Cat used deadpan captions, El Gato runs on dramatic nonsense.

The meme may die tomorrow, and it may (we hope) transition into “El Gato Cinematic Universe” we will take it either way.

So the next time someone sends you another random video of a cat with dramatic music and a voiceover yelling “EL GATO”… just nod and echo back:

“…With the Chapo.”