Felis sapiens

Felis Sapiens are a strange humanoid life form who evolved from a man's cat.

Physiology
In terms of appearance, felis sapiens seem to resemble humans. However they are still known to have many common habits of cats, such as obsessions with sleeping and eating.

Origins
At some point in an unidentified century, a man named Dave Lister was serving aboard the mining starship Red Dwarf. He was caught smuggling his pregnant cat aboard, and consequently sentenced to 18 months in stasis. Unfortunately, during that time, there was a radiation leak that resulted in the deaths of every save Lister and the cat, who was safely sealed in the cargo hold when she gave birth.

Evolution
Somehow over time the species continued to reproduce and evolve. They developed a mythology centered around "Cloister the Stupid" (Lister), a civilization, and even their own style of writing based on different smells. It was believed that when a cat died, they would travel to a place called Fuchal (originating from Lister's plans to move to Fiji) where they would open a temple of food.

However, at some point, a the people began to dispute on the colour of the hats that would be worn by those who worked in the temple of food, and a holy war broke out between the faction that believed that hats should be red, and the the faction that believed they should be blue (they were actually supposed to be green). In the end they called a truce and set out to find Fuchal. The faction that believed the hats should be blue followed what they believed to be holy text (actually a laundry list) and crashed into an asteroid. The fate of the other faction is unknown, though it is possible that they eventually colonized another world.

Only a handful of Felis Sapiens remained behind, and gradually they all died out until only one was left, at which point Lister finally woke from suspended animation.

Religion
The Felis Sapiens created and entire mythology which originated from Dave Lister, the owner of the cat they are descended from. They worship a deity known as "Cloister the Stupid" (Lister), and believe that he shall lead them to the promised land of Fushal (originating from Lister's plans to move to Fiji). There they would open a temple of food (Lister planned to open a hot dog stand). Apparently it was also believed that Lister's laundry list was a star chart that would them to Fushal (the group that tried to follow them crashed into an asteroid).

Language
Despite evolving from a cat, Felis Sapiens speak English. However, they have a very complex written language made up of scents. Letters are respresenting by specific smells, and to read one would run their nose along the page, and interpret the sentence based on the scent.