Of a jolly disposition, tanuki have a love of alcohol, which might go some way to explaining their absentmindedness and foolish nature.

Tanuki (狸) is the name for the 'Japanese Raccoon Dog', a very much real animal. Bake-danuki (化け狸) more specifically refers to the shape-shifting creature of folklore.
Nowadays most people use 'tanuki' to describe both🤔

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