And the CATegories are...

History & Folklore

The Mind

The Body

Soul & Purrsonality

Where did the word "cat" come from?
Where did tabbies get their name?
How did cats first get to America?
When did cats first become house pets?
Are cats domesticated?
What is the origin of the "cat's cradle?"
Why were cats associated with witchcraft?
Do superstitions about cats still persist?
Did cats ever play a role in war?
How did the cat-o'-nine-tails get its name?
Why are so many cats named "Kitty"?
Where did the nine lives theory come from?
Where does "catgut" come from?
What's the connection between cats and the weather?
Why do we say "it's raining cats and dogs?"
Who is the richest cat?
Who loves cats more - men or women?
How big was the biggest cat?
What is the greatest number of mice killed by a cat?
Where did the name pussy willow come from?
Who is the best known cat of recent times?
Cat haters. Can you imagine?
Which famous folks were cat lovers?
Why do cats suck wool?
Why do the pupils of a cat's eyes shrink from circles to vertical slits?
Do cats get lonely?
Which cat had the most unusual job?

Where did the word "cat" come from? The word "cat" is similar in almost all European languages: in French it's chat ; in German, katze ; Italian, gatto ; Spanish gato ; in Swedish, katt; and in Polish, kot . The original source, however, may be Arabic - from quttah - since all domestic cats originally descended from the North African wild cat due to Egyptian domestication.

The ancient Egyptians called their domestic cats miaw and adorned them with jewels and gold earrings. The word cat first came into popular use during the fourth century and could have originally derived from the Nubian word kadis. It is likely that the word was then passed on , as well as the cat himself, - through Mediterranean and European trade routes. Back to top.

Where did tabbies get their name? The term "tabby" actually comes from the Spanish word tabi , which was used to describe a watered silk cloth from the East. The cat's mottled fur - with stripes and bar markings - resembles the markings of that tabi-cloth and hence came to be called tabby . Back to top.

How did cats first get to America? Long ago relatives of today's cats sailed to the New World during the early 1600's (despite the widespread superstition that they caused shipwrecks). The first domestic cats to reach America were a pair of ratters given as a gift from a French missionary to a Huron Indian chief. The chief didn't know what to do with these cats, so he ignored them. They died without reproducing. It wasn't until 1749 that cats actually were imported from England specifically to control the rat population. Back to top.

When did cats first become house pets? The first felines to regularly live with humans probably came of their own free will - attracted by the large amounts of mice and rats that infested the grain storehouses of early Egyptian civilization. We know this from he carved or painted images of cats that were found on ancient Egyptian tomb walls. The scenes showed that cats eventually came to share the Egyptians' homes.

But that was only 5,000 years ago, a very short period of time relatively. Dogs, for instance, have been human companions for more than 10,000 years - one reason why they're far more well behaved. Back to top.

So are cats domesticated? Technically speaking, cats still are in the early stages of becoming a domestic animal. It's hard to say why some of kitty's ancestors became domesticated in the first place. Desmond Morris suggests that there may have been a genetic change that altered the wild cats' behaviour. For example, there might have been a quirky gene that eventually turned aggressive wildcats into the kitten like creatures we know today. This may have been the first step toward domestication. Once these less aggressive cats began associating with people, they may have grown smaller in size too. Back to top.

What is the origin of the "cat's cradle?" Eastern European custom believed that cats could increase a couple's fertility. After a wedding, a ceremony was performed in which a cat was placed in a cradle that was then carried into the newlywed couple's house. The cradle - cat and all - was rocked back and forth in their presence. The ritual was an attempt to ensure a quick pregnancy for the bride.

Another explanation says that games similar to our string game are played by Eskimos and Congo tribesmen, but their games have a magical significance. In the stiflingly hot Congo the game is played to encourage the sun to rest; in the frigid North is is to trap the sun in order to shorten the winter. In both cultures, the sun is believed to be a "solar cat" symbolically caught in the string patterns. Back to top.

Why were cats associated with witchcraft? Cats were never mentioned in the Bible (except once in the Catholic version), and have long been viewed with suspicion by the early Christian church. They probably were first associated with pagan religions. In the 13th century, the first witchcraft trials were held, and maybe because cats are such mysterious animals, very superstitious people believed that witches could turn into cats. Black cats in particular were thought to be the devil in disguise.

Cats were were blamed for everything: from souring beer to spreading disease. It was commonly believed that their teeth contained venom, their flesh was poisonous and their breath could cause disease and infection. Their habit of prowling around at night further connected them to the devil and witchcraft. Any cat who was in the company of an old woman was assumed to be a witch's evil associate. Hundreds of unfortunate cats were burned alive by people who believed they did the work of the devil. Back to top.

Do superstitions about cats still persist? Yes, even today actors believe that yelling at a cat brings bad luck to a performance. If a cat walks on stage, it is said to bring bad luck to the entire cast.

There are those who believe you can harness the soul and spirit of a cat. Claire Nahmad's Cat Spells features a collection of spells that bring luck, health and love.

Simply dreaming of a cat is said to have a magical meaning. If you dream of a black cat you'll be lucky in anything you do; if you dream of a tortoise shell cat you'll be lucky in love; dreaming of a ginger cat indicates luck in money and business. Dream of a black and white cat and you'll have luck with children; a tabby means luck with your home. Dreaming of a multicolored cat means luck making friends.

It is still widely believed that a cat leaving a sick person's house and refusing to return is an omen of the person's death. Back to top.

Did cats ever play a role in war? Yep, and practically since the beginning of history. When the ancient Persians were warring with the Egyptians, they hit on a strategy that defeated Egypt. At the time, Egyptians were well known cat worshipers. The Persians strapped cats to their shields when they stormed an Egyptian fortress. The Egyptians could not offend their cat goddess Bastet and were forced to lay down their arms.

Years later during WWII the British in Burma did something similar. They painted cat images on their army vehicles and kept white cats on Army bases. When the Burmese saw this they believed the cat's sacred spirit must be with the British, so they quickly switched alliance to "the side of the angels".

During WWI, 500,000 real cats were used by the British to give soldiers an early warning of gas attacks. Back to top.

How did the cat-o'-nine-tails get its name? This instrument of punishment actually has its roots in the same place where cat worship began. This painful whip was invented in ancient Egypt and was made from the skins of sacred cats. A flogging with the cat-o'-nine-tails was actually intended to help unfortunate wrong doers. During the painful lashings, the strength and intelligence of the cat were transferred to the person being punished, so it is said.

The whip wasn't actually called the cat-o'-nine-tails though. This name came later when a similar whip was used to discipline seamen, but it wasn't made of cats' tails. When early British sailors were punished , their lashes were delivered by a nine strop whip that left marks similar to the scratches from a cat attack. So the whip commonly came to be called cat-o'-nine-tails.

The use of this whip even generated another common phrase. Sailors couldn't be lashed indoors on a ship, there wasn't room. Today, we still describe a tiny place by saying, "there isn't enough room to swing a cat in here." Back to top.

Why are so many cats named "Kitty"? The reason is quite simple, there's a better chance your cat will respond more readily to her name if it ends with an "ee" sound. So, the next time you're picking a name for your cat, and feel inclined to name her Duchess Letitia von Scissorpaws, consider nicknaming her Kitty. Back to top.

Where did the nine lives theory come from? This nine lives thing may have come about as a result of people noticing how often cats manage to have all sorts of accidents and still come out intact.

Nine has always been a mystical number, and it's possible that the aura of mystery and magic that has always surrounded cats led to this theory. Just consider the cat's righting reflex, and imagine how weird that might have seemed to a cat owner in the Middle Ages - who had no clue to a cats biology. They definitely would have thought it was supernatural. Back to top.

Where does "catgut" come from? Not from cats, phew. Except for the name, it has nothing to do with cats at all. Catgut is a tough cord made from the organs of mostly sheep, hogs and horses - but not cats. It is used mainly for making surgical sutures and for strings of tennis rackets, archery bows and musical instruments. Back to top.

What's the connection between cats and the weather? People have long believed that cats have an uncanny ability to predict the weather - particularly bad weather.

In Scotland and Japan, tortoise shell cats were believed to be able to predict storms. In England, cats were thought to be able to predict floods. When a cat jumped up onto a shelf or beam, country people swore that high water was on the way.

In the Ozarks, if a cat lies curled up with her head and stomach facing upward, it is thought to indicate bad weather, but if she yawns and stretches, good weather is on the way.

In many eastern European countries, it was believed that evil spirits took possession of cats during thunderstorms, and that lightning bolts were the angels' way of driving the evil out of the these cats. Because of this, many poor cats found themselves tossed outdoors during storms to guarantee that the owners' homes wouldn't be struck by lightning . Back to top.

Why do we say "it's raining cats and dogs?" A few centuries back, most towns and cities had really narrow and dirty streets, and some of the worse sewer systems. Drainage was so awful that during very heavy rainstorms there would be major flooding.

There were also a lot of stray cats and dogs living on the streets. Without shelter, many of them drowned during the flooding. When the rains ended, and townsfolk came back out into the streets, there were all these dead animals lying in the streets. One explanation says the townspeople wondered "Where did they come from?" and someone replied "It must have rained cats and dogs." Sounds pretty unbelievable, but that's the story.

Another explanation is suggested by students of language. The Greek word for a waterfall is catadupa . If some classical Greek compared a heavy rainfall to a waterfall, he might have said "raining catadupa" and the phrase may eventually have evolved into "raining cats and dogs." Back to top.

Who is the richest cat? According to the Guinness Book of World Records , Hellcat and Brownie, two 15 year old cats, were left nearly $415,000 in the early '60's from the estate of their owner, Dr. William Grier of San Diego. However, they had to share their fortune at $207,500 each. Charlie Chan - a white alley cat - got an $250,000 inheritance all to himself! Back to top.

Who loves cats more - men or women? Women have always been known as the most passionate cat lovers. Many men will argue this, and love cats too, but wholly as a gender they don't seem to get quite as nuts about cats as women do.

This "women love cats more" theory may have roots in our own cultural biology. Since prehistoric times men banded together and survived based on their group hunting instinct. So even today they don't identify with the single hunter - the cat. More than likely, men will prefer animals that are group hunters - like dogs.

However, cats are completely gender neutral in their affections. Back to top.

How big was the biggest cat? The average cat weighs about 12 pounds. Picture these cats: the heaviest cat on record was Himmy, an Australian cat who weighed a whopping 45 pounds, 10 ounces. He was the Guinness Book of Records ' official world heavyweight champ in 1986. The previous title holder was Spice, a ginger and white tom from Ridgefield CT, who weight 43 pounds . Back to top.

What is the greatest number of mice killed by a cat? 28,899. The magnificent mouser who performed this feat was Towser, a tortoise shell tabby who was in charge of rodent control at the Glenturret Distillery Ltd. in Scotland. Towser caught about 4 mice per day until she died at the age of 21. Pretty impressive. Back to top.

Where did the name pussy willow come from? This type of plant has the same name throughout the world, in different languages, and the name may have come from the following Polish legend:

Long ago, a mother cat was crying on the bank of a river in which her kittens were drowning. The willows at the river's edge longed to help her, so they swept their long graceful branches into the water in order to rescue the tiny kittens. Gripping on tightly, the kittens were brought safely to shore. Every springtime since, says the tale, the willow branches bring forth their tiny buds at the tips, where the kittens originally clung. Those buds have the same silky feel as a kitten's soft fur. Back to top.

Who is the best known cat of recent times? Morris, doesn't everyone know Morris the Cat? Morris was 'discovered'. Before he began advertising in the 9-Lives cat food commercials he was living in a stray animal shelter. In 1973, Morris won "Best Animal Actor in TV Commercials" and even had a biography published. Morris died in 1978.

Morris the Second was also found in an animal shelter. He works about 20 days a year filming commercials and flies first class over over the US in support of adopt-a-pet programs. Back to top.

Cat haters. Can you imagine? Cat haters are called 'ailurophobes', from the Greek ailouros , which means "tail waver." Among the most famous cat haters were Julius Caesar, Adolph Hitler, Napoleon and Mussolini. Gee, surprised?
Surprisingly though, Dwight D. Eisenhower, WWII general and former President of the United States was also famous for his cat hating. He issued orders to the staff at his Gettysburg home to shoot any cats seen on the grounds. Back to top.

Which famous folks were cat lovers? Winston Churchill's cat Jock, a ginger tomcat, slept in his bed every night and was even taken to all the wartime cabinet meetings. Mohammed's cat Muezza once fell asleep on the prophet's sleeve. When Mohammed was called to prayer, he decided to cut the sleeve off rather than wake Muezza. Dr. Albert Schweitzer, Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1952 became ambidextrous because of his cat Sizi. When Sizi would fall asleep on the doctor's arm, he began writing prescriptions with his other hand - the origin of doctors' illegible handwriting? Back to top.

Why do cats suck wool? Boredom, loneliness and nutritional deficiencies all have been suggested as the cause of this behaviour. Most experts agree though that the reason for this behaviour is easy to pinpoint. When kitty settles down onto a nice wool blanket or sweater, her movements are identical to those of a kitten nursing. She presses her mouth against the soft fabric, sucks or chews in pleasure, and kneads it. This is just how a kitten stimulates her mother's milk flow. Back to top.

Why do the pupils of a cat's eyes shrink from circles to vertical slits? The rounded pupils of your cat's eyes reduce in size the for same reason that all animals' eyes do; to cut down on the amount of light entering them. But wouldn't it seem more logical that rounded pupils would reduce into smaller circles, like human's pupils do? Nature gives kitty a unique advantage by reducing the pupils to slits, not even lions' eyes can do what your kitty's eyes do. As a night stalker, kitty's pupils reduce to a vertical slit so that she can use the closing of her lids to control the light input even further. If her pupils reduced to round dots, slightly closing her eyes would block out the light altogether. Back to top.

Do cats get lonely? Too many cat owners think of their cat as an unfeeling object. Most cats can get along fine on their own for a while, but many would rather have human or feline companionship and actually come to depend on having us around for socialization if no other cats are present. In the wild, it is true that cats are solitary creatures and only seek out other cats to fight or to mate, but even in the wild they have other cats to socialize with. Owners who leave their cats for long absences often end up with lonely cats - and the loneliness can show in many ways, destructive or aggressive behaviour, sickness, and depression. Yes, cats get lonely. Back to top.

Which cat had the most unusual job? While many cats 'work' as mousers, one kitty who was nameless actually helped build a dam! When engineers were building the Grand Coulee Dam, they had trouble threading a cable through a pipe. Someone suggested a cat would do the trick. Engineers tied a rope to the cable, tied a string to the rope, and tied the string to this kitty's tail. This nameless kitty crawled through the pipeline and finished the job that the humans couldn't manage to do. Back to top.