イーブイ - What is Eevee and What does Eevee mean?

Eevee is a unique Pokémon in the Pokémon franchise. This Pokémon can adapt to changes in its environment unlike any other. Exposure to radiation emitted from certain stones causes mutations in Eevee’s body, leading to its evolution. That’s right, those evolution stones that are responsible for all Eevee evos.

Sure, other Pokémon can evolve but Eevee with its irregular genetic makeup allows it to evolve into 8 different types of Pokémon! No other Pokémon can do that. All forms of Eevee also known as Eevee evo or eeveelution are of different types. There is no other Pokémon as versatile as Eevee.

What is Eevee in Japanese?

The origin of the name Eevee lies in its combination of the two letters EV, drawn from the word evolution. This choice is particularly fitting considering that Eevee can take 8 evolutionary paths. This is more than any other Pokémon. In Japanese pronunciation, イー(ii) represents the articulation of ‘E,’ while ブイ(bui) expresses ‘V.‘ Merging these sounds results in the captivating Japanese name for Eevee: イーブイ. The thoughtful incorporation of linguistic elements adds an intriguing layer to the identity of this versatile and enchanting Pokémon.

Side Note: The official Japanese version represents Eevee’s name in Roman characters as Eievui.

What is Eevee based on?

So what is Eevee anyway? Unraveling this mystery of Eevee is not as state forward as you may think. Of course he is a Pokémon but what is he based off of? In the quest to understand its origins, we turn to Junichi Masuda, the Chief Creative Fellow at The Pokémon Company. He has summed it up better than anyone else.

イーブイのモデル？！イーブイじゃない？
Eevee’s model? Well wouldn’t it be Eevee?

Well that settles it!

While this cryptic tweet from March 20, 2012 sounds unhelpful for Eevee researchers it does shed light on the mystery of Eevee’s design. Basically it means that there is no official consensus on Eevee’s design. Is Eevee a dog? or maybe a cat, fox, rabbit or something entirely different? It is hard to say! The uncertainty only adds to the allure.

Luckily there is still some hope of finding out what Eevee is. The designer of Eevee, Motofumi Fujiwara, provides a glimpse into the creature’s genesis. In an elusive art-book titled EVs released some years back, Fujiwara mentioned his inspiration.

Tasked by Pokémon creator Satoshi Taijiri to create a Pokémon capable of evolving into various elemental types, Motofumi Fujiwara created Eevee. Because this Pokémon, Eevee would have very different forms after evolution Fujiwara wanted Eevee to not look like any specific animal. He drew inspiration from a mysterious animal he had encountered as a child, one whose identity remained unknown.

This revelation unveils Eevee’s connection to some wild creature in Japan. So again, is Eevee a dog or cat? Maybe a fox or some other mammal? So, fans continue to analyze Eevee’s features to determine their closest resemblance, attempting to guess the creature Motofumi Fujiwara saw that day.

But that is ok! Why? Because it is exactly what the developers were intending on. They wanted Eevee to look like something familiar but not so obvious.

Where is Eevee’s Habitat in Pokémon?

Where to find Eevee in the various Pokémon games throughout the series is the next logical place to explore. Throughout the series Eevee shows up in different places, so let’s take a look at them individually.

Where’s Eevee in Pokémon? Red and Green ~ Black and White

In the earlier Pokémon games, finding Eevee in the wild wasn’t as straightforward as stumbling upon it in the grass. Let’s take a journey through some of the classic Pokémon titles to discover where Eevee was hiding.

Where’s Eevee in Pokémon Red and Green?

The first place we will start is from the beginning. In the very first game you can’t find Eevee in the wild. Instead you have to go to Celadon City (タマムシシティ: Tamamushi city). Here if you go to the top of the Celadon Condominiums where creator’s of Pokémon, Game Freak have an office you can find Eevee. You go to the roof-floor to find a Pokeball containing Eevee in the original and LeafGreen and FireRed remakes.

Where’s Eevee in Pokémon Gold and Silver

Now moving on to Pokémon Silver and Gold. Eevee can only be received and is not in the wild. After meeting Bill (マサキ: Masaki) at the Pokémon Center in Ecruteak City (エンジュシティ: Enju City), you can pick up Eevee at Bill’s house in Goldenrod City (コガネシティ: Kogane City).

Ruby and Sapphire

Finally in Ruby an Sapphire you can not even find Eevee! He must be transferred from a different game.

Diamond and Pearl

Again in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl then in the remakes Eevee is not readily available. You have to first get your National Pokedex then Eevee will show up in the Trophy Garden (自慢の裏庭). In the remakes you can receive him from Bebe (ミズキ) in Hearthome City (ヨスガシティ)

Ok, so if Eevee is not even in the wild that does not tell us anything right? Well, not exactly it could mean a few things. Either that Eevee is a rather rare animal that you don’t see that often, or he is based off of some domesticated animal.

For those that prescribe to this idea it becomes plausible that Eevee could be based in part, off of a small dog, a cat or even a mix between the two.

猫柄 – Types of Cats in Japanese

Pokémon Black and White

Originally you could only transfer Eevee from another game to get him in Black and White. However in Black and White 2 you can find him in the grass of Castelia City (ヒウンシティ). This is again a highly populated area with many people. This further gives validity to Eevee being an animal that would be around cities.

Where’s Eevee in Pokémon X and Y ~ Scarlet and Violet

Finally Eevee is able to be found in the wild! Starting from X and Y you can find Eevee instead of having to obtain him from other events. He is still fairly rare in most cases.

X and Y

Finally by the time we get to X and Y we can find Eevee in the wild! You can catch Eevee which is rare in the Kalos region on Route 10. This is a mysterious road with old megalithic like rocks. So, that would be why you have a few different rock-like, robotic Pokémon such as Sigilyph here.

So if the location has any resemblance to the animal Eevee was based on it would need to be some animal that would be close to human populations. Such as squirrels, rabbits, dogs or something else.

Where’s Eevee in Pokémon Sun and Moon?

Here you can find Eevee on Alola Route 4 and 6.

Arceus

Like the other games Eevee is rare but here are the locations you can find him.

黒曜の原野の「蹄鉄ヶ原」
- Obsidian Fields: Horseshoe Plains
群青の海岸の「渡りのなぞえ」
- Cobalt Coastlands: Crossing Slope
純白の凍土の「クレベース氷塊」
- Alabaster Icelands: Avalugg’s Legacy
純白の凍土の「雪崩坂」
- Alabaster Icelands: Avalanche Slopes

So as you can see Eevee can be found in a variety of locations from Plains, by the coast and snowy areas. This just goes to show you that Eevee is very adaptable.

Scarlet and Violet

The best place to get Eevee is near the grassy, cliffs northwest of the Pokémon Center in Cortondo (セルクルタウン: Cercle Town). This is in the Paldea region which is in the South Province.

Because of its low level, you can catch Eevee early on in the game. But be prepared to spend some time looking for our cute friend since he is rather rare. So if you don’t see him, leave the area and come back.

Eevee is very adaptable

Not only does Eevee adapt well biologically with his 8 eeveelutions, but where he lives to can vary. So we learned a few things about Eevee.

Eevee is rare to find in the wild and often requires a special event to catch him
If he is found in the wild most of the time he is close to some city
When in the wild Eevee can live in a variety of environments

Taking these points into consideration let’s look at the possible animals that Eevee may have been based on.

What Animal did Motofumi Fujiwara see?

Again Eevee is an Eevee and not meant to be representative of a specific animal. But Motofumi Fujiwara did see some animal that day that gave him inspiration. We can say with fairly high confidence that he saw some mammal. I don’t think seeing a lizard would inspire someone to create Eevee. Still, even analyzing Eevee’s characteristics, it is impossible to determine which parts came from that mystery animal and which came later.

It is possible that the artists fabricated Eevee’s entire design or their inspiration came from an unknown animal. Nonetheless, lets look at how probably the different animals maybe that inspired Eevee’s design.

エゾリス – Sciurus vulgaris orientis

image of an Ezorisu or Sciurus vulgaris orientis

The Ezorisu is a type of squirrel native to Japan and in my opinion has a high probably of being our wild Eevee. Eevee is officially 0.3m (11.811 inches) and weighs 6.5kg(14.33 lbs). Though the weight is a bit high for a squirrel, the size is close. Ezorisu are about 22 to 27 cm. Eevee then would be just a bit bigger than the largest Ezorisu.

Looking at the Ezorisu though, it is brown has long ears, a bushy tail and a white belly. This aligns up very closely with Eevee. Ezorisu live in forests and woodlands from the plains to the subalpine zone in Hokkaido. We unfortunately don’t know where Motofumi Fujiwara is from or if not Hokkaido if he was there when he saw our Eevee or not. But, out of the other choices this squirrel seems to fit the description the best. Sure there are other squirrels in Japan but this squirrel fits Eevee the best.

ホンドギツネ – Japanese Fox

image of a japanese fox, the hondo gitsune

At first glance Eevee does resemble a fox and it is easy to see how he could be based off of one. He has the long ears and the bushy tale just like a fox. But, a fox would be quite a bit bigger than Eevee. Also there are other Pokemon that actually are based off of foxes. It is less likely, in my opinion, that this is the animal that showed up on that day.

ニホンノウサギ – Japanese Hare

So if Eevee is not a fox, could he be a rabbit? He definitely has long ears and a bushy tale like a rabbit right? That is true but the wild rabbits you see in Japan are actually Japanese hare. They are much bigger than the ones you may see in the United States. The wild hares are a bit more lanky like little kangaroos almost.

Sure Japan also has pet rabbits that are smaller. So maybe someones rabbit got out and ran away?

ニホンイタチ – Japanese Weasel (Mustela itatsi)

Another likely animal Motofumi Fujiwara could have seen is the Japanese Weasel (Mustela itatsi). This animal is very close to Eevees size at 20 to 26 cm for a female and 29 to 37 cm for a male. He has the same brown fur, white belly and bushy tale! the only thing it is missing is the long ears. But, the Japanese weasel lives throughout Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu. The Ezorisu resembles Eevee more in my opinion, but the Japanese Weasel’s habitat calls a broader area of Japan it’s home making it more plausible.

Possible Inspiration for Eevee

We know that the concept of Eevee came from a chance encounter with an unknown creature. It is completely plausible though that Eevee’s design has nothing to do with this animal. It could be that his design’s inspiration arose completely from scratch, or from some other animal outside of Japan.

Fennec Fox

If there is one animal outside of Japan that resembles Eevee the most, it is probably the Fennec Fox. This is a smaller fox that is around 30 to 40 cm that lives in Northern Africa. It has very long ears and of course a bushy tale like Eevee.

Teto from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Kitsunerisu Teto in the Ghibli movie Nausica

An Eevee maybe an Eevee but it does not mean there are no other creatures like Eevee. If you watch a lot of Anime, read Manga or play games you probably have seen your share of cute mammals. Other Anime could have sparked the design for Eevee, at least in part or subconsciously. Specifically one creature we see is the Kitsunerisu (fox squirrel) names Teto from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. both Teto and Eevee have long ears, are small, have a bushy tale, and a little white hair on their chests. It may just be a coincidence. But Teto looks like he could be one of Eevee’s evolutions, or even the other way around.

Putting it all together

In summary, Eevee is a unique and adaptable Pokémon, known for its remarkable ability to evolve into eight distinct forms, or Eeveelutions. Its name originates from the letters “EV,” emphasizing its evolutionary prowess. The mystery of Eevee’s design is purposefully ambiguous, with various speculations ranging from the Ezorisu (Japanese squirrel) to the Fennec Fox. Motofumi Fujiwara, Eevee’s designer, drew inspiration from an elusive animal encountered during childhood, further contributing to the intrigue surrounding Eevee’s origins. This intentional mystery adds to the charm of Eevee, making it a beloved and enigmatic character in the Pokémon universe.

イーブイ – What is Eevee and What does Eevee mean?