Socks is a black and white domestic shorthair cat.
He is not a god, angel, demon, deva, djinn or spirit. He is a smart mammal, without thumbs or a human vocal apparatus. He is a force of nature, like ball lightning or Bigfoot. Whether or not you believe in reincarnation, the theory of metempsychosis remains an important tool for the study of the phenomenon. This just means you lived in a world or land where English wasn't spoken.