Hikonyan (ひこにゃん) is amascot created by the city government ofHikone,Japan. He was created in 2007 to mark the 400th anniversary of the founding ofHikone Castle. The character design is derived from a legend concerningmaneki-neko andIi Naotaka, the 3rdLord of Hikone.[1][2][3] Thedaimyō was beckoned by awhite cat to seek shelter from a storm in a temple, and thus saved from a lightning strike.[4] InJapanese, "nyan" is anonomatopoeia for a cat's meow. Hikonyan's samurai helmet is based on a Ii family helmet currently in the Hikone Castle museum. Hikonyan's popularity increased tourist visitation of Hikone by over 200,000 annually. The estimate of Hikonyan's effect on the tourist industry is 17.4 billion yen (approximately US$218 million) and the overall economic effects total 33.8 billion yen (US$425 million). Total merchandise sales reached about 1.7 billion yen (US$21 million) as of 2008.[5] In 2010, Hikonyan won first place in the Yuru-chara Grand Prix competition against 168 other mascots, collectively known asyuru-chara (ゆるキャラ).[6]
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