Have you ever heard about superstitions connected with cats? Maybe you have been told that if a black cat crosses your path, something bad is going to happen to you. Or perhaps your culture believes that cats are lucky?
You might be surprised how many stories and beliefs there are about cats.
From the moment people connected with these beautiful animals, and long before cats were domesticated, many different cat legends sprung up and some of them became very popular.
Every culture has different folktales or beliefs, and cats feature in many of them. In some stories, cats are associated with bad or good luck, and in others they’re associated with evil, witches, or dark magic, especially black cats.
Even though these legends were more popular in the past, there are some cultures that still believe in these tall tales and superstitions.
Don’t worry, despite some of the scary stories, your cat is not something to fear! Here are some of the most fascinating cat myths and legends from the past.
1. Norwegian Forest Cat And The Fairy/Goblin World
Most cultures consider cats to be magical and mystic creatures. One of the most famously “magical” cat breeds was the Norwegian Forest Cat. Their large size and beautiful long hair makes them really special.
People from certain cultures believed that these cats were actually goblins or fairies in disguise because of their incredible appearance.
That’s not the whole story! According to tradition, if you stare long enough into the eyes of the Norwegian Forest Cat, you can actually see into a magical world full of fairies, goblins, and other magical creatures.
2. Cats As Creatures From The Sea
Have you ever heard of the cat from the sea? Well, the legend says that there was a woman who knew everything.
The woman was actually a witch who sailed with her betrothed who was a fisherman.
While they were sailing, the ship’s crew thought that having a woman on board was bad luck, and therefore they wanted to drown her.
The witch would not surrender and instead she cursed them by calling upon a huge storm to wreck the ship.
She turned into a cat with four eyes and continued to haunt the ocean. Her fisherman lover continued to throw her morsels of food to calm her and satisfy her so that she would never do the same thing again.
In some cultures, even nowadays, some fishermen believe that if a cat falls overboard, it means that a storm will appear and bad things will happen. On the other hand, in many traditions, sailors consider a cat aboard a ship to be a good luck charm.
3. Imagine Being A Cat’s Christmas Dinner…
This legend is particular to Icelandic culture, which has several savage Christmas stories.
The legend talks about how the people of Iceland were afraid of the fierce Yule cat, Jólakötturinn, who wandered around the countryside during the Christmas period, looking for people to eat.
However, this wildcat monster didn’t look for naughty children, but for people of all ages who didn’t have new clothes for Christmas eve.
This tale was highly popular among farmers who made their workers work faster to finish processing the wool before autumn so that everyone would have new clothes by Christmas eve.
That way, they would appease the cat monster and escape being the cat’s Christmas dinner.
4. Do Cats Represent Good Luck In Japan?
Unlike many other cultures, cats are considered to be good luck in Japan.
The most famous story is about the maneki-neko, also called the “beckoning cat”. It’s believed that these cats bring good luck to their owners, especially when it comes to money.
The origin for this belief is a legend that tells of how a Japanese cat once waved a paw to its owner to beckon him in the house.
It turned out that this gesture saved the owner from being struck by lightning, and since then a cat beckoning its paw is considered as a sign of good luck.
In Japanese culture, tortoiseshell cats, especially males who are extremely rare, are considered to be a sign of good luck.
5. Legends Behind The “M” Marking
There are a few legends behind the famous “M” shaped marking in the tabby pattern of the cats. The first legend comes from the Islamic tradition.
According to Islam, cats were protected and respected creatures, and the Prophet Mohammed liked cats very much. Of all the cats, his favorites were tabby cats.
The story says that a cat fell asleep on his robe, so he cut off his sleeve in order not to wake the cat.
From this story, many people believe that the “M” marking stands for Mohammed and that it appeared when he laid his hand on his cat.
Another legend says that the cat got the “M” marking from the Virgin Mary as a sign of gratitude after a cat stopped baby Jesus from crying.
In Egypt, the land famous for their passion for cats, there is another explanation for the “M”. As “Maus” is the Egyptian name for a cat, it’s believed that the M marking is given to cats by the gods to represent their name Mau.
6. Cats In Ancient Egypt
It’s well known that cats were very popular animals in ancient Egypt. The Egyptian name for cats is Mau and ancient Egyptians respected them and protected them in law.
One of the main reasons why they were so sacred was that they were connected to Bastet, the goddess of protection and good health. They were so sacred in Egypt that any person who hurt a cat would be fatally punished.
Egyptians were among the first societies who kept house cats as pets. It’s believed that many cat breeds that exist nowadays actually evolved from these domestic cats from Egypt.
That cats were sacred in Egypt can be seen from the fact that the family would mourn the cat that passed away and they would mummify them and bury them in a special cat cemetery.
Another myth believed to originate from Egypt says that Egyptian gods gave each cat nine lives because of their different abilities, such as landing on their feet.
7. Do Black Cats Mean Good Or Bad Luck?!
In many cultures, black cats have always been connected to the devil, witches, and dark magic. That may be the main reason why they’re considered bad luck by many people.
For example, one of the most popular superstitions is that if a black cat crosses your path, something bad will happen to you. Another superstition says that if a black cat goes on a ship and then gets off of it, the ship will be destroyed on its next journey.
However, the black cat has a completely opposite meaning in some other countries such as Ireland and Britain, where they’re often thought to bring good fortune.
8. Cats Pulling A Goddess’ Chariot – Scandinavia
In Norse mythology, Freyja was the popular goddess of love, beauty, war, fertility, and gold. According to Russian folklore, her son Thor gave her two blue male cats called Trjegul and Bygul to pull her chariot.
Freyja is said to love cats very much. Therefore the people would respect cats in order to keep Freyja on their side and have a good life.
To show their obedience, Scandinavian farmers would leave food for the male cats outside their homes, in the hope that Freyja would provide them with a calm and rich harvest in return.
In addition to that, according to Norse Mythology, if you fed your cat well, you’d have nice weather on your wedding day. If a cat appeared at your wedding, it was considered a sign of good and happy marriage.
9. The Royalty Of Siamese Cats
Siamese cats have been one of the most popular family cats for centuries. A popular story about these cats says that when a member of the royal family dies, a Siamese cat receives that soul. This explains why they would be located in a temple, living the rest of their lives in luxury.
These Royal Siamese cats feature in many stories about the special characteristics that can be found in this breed of cat.
Siamese cats with kinked tails and cross eyed Siamese cats are very common. These conditions happen due to genetic mutations.
However, there are many stories to explain these common features such as the kinked tail of the Siamese cat was because the cats kept the princesses’ rings on their tails and they would kink them to prevent the rings from falling off!
Another story says that Siamese cats were tasked with guarding a royal vase so they would curl their tail around it and stare at the vase until their eyes crossed.
10. Cats Predicting The Weather
Another interesting belief says that cats can actually predict the weather. For example, according to the Welsh people, if the cat’s pupils widen, it means that rainy weather is coming.
Other signs for rain are if the cat washes its ears constantly, or if it keeps looking out the window.
Moreover, some people say that if a cat sleeps with her paws tucked underneath her, that cold weather is coming.
On the other hand, in England they say that when a cat paws at the carpets or curtains then windy weather is coming.
So, apparently, you don’t need to watch the weather forecast, just pay attention to your cat and her behavior, and you’ll know what to expect!
11. A Cat As A Cacti Who Likes Booze
A famous story about a living cat form of cactus originated from Mexico and Arizona. This cactus-like cat used to go around and destroy the real cacti.
It would cut the base of the cacti with its knife-like paws and collect the juices from it. These juices would ferment into an alcoholic drink called pulque. Finally, after the cacti cat collected enough pulque, it would drink it until it got drunk, and then go cause problems all around the area!