The fascinating origins and history of tabby cats: they link to Prophet Muhammad and Virgin Mary

When it comes to tabby cats, most people think of a mini tiger with wild stripes. It is not a separate breed, but a coat pattern that can appear in different breeds and in different color combinations. The pattern gene is present in all domestic cats, many believe that their ancestor may have been the Egyptian Mau.

But what does the mysterious personage of tabby cats have to do with the Prophet Muhammad, the Virgin Mary or an expensive silk fabric? We will get to that in a moment.

They warmed baby Jesus in the manger

According to a Biblical legend, a tabby cat lay next to baby Jesus in the manger when Mary asked the stable animals to surround her son’s birth place and keep him warm. The cat cuddled the boy with soothing warmth, for which Mary was so grateful that she put her initials, the letter “M” on the cat’s forehead. Hence the characteristic pattern on the forehead of tabby cats.

Prophet Mohammed, the cat lover

Islamic legends also tell how the Prophet Muhammad loved cats. He once cut off the sleeve of his outerwear when he had to go to pray, so as not to wake up the cat, Muezza, who was napping on the sleeve. However, in this story, it was not Mary who gave the letter “M” on the foreheads of the tabbys, but Muhammad, to symbolize his love for them. Even today, cats are generally protected and respected in the Islamic religion; they can also be taken into the mosque.

The eponym is an elegant fabric

The word tabby, in English was originally the name of a striped silk fabric in the 17th and 18th centuries. This was a silk material from the Attabiy district of Baghdad was later changed to ‘atabis’, which became ‘tabis’ and finally ‘tabby’.

According to sources, it was first used in the 1690s to describe tabby cats. In 1871, a respectable 9.5 kg English tabby was mentioned, who was featured in the world’s first cat show, held at the Crystal Palace in London.

These are the variants

There are 4 main subtypes of the tabby pattern.

Mackerel patterned cats have long, narrow, parallel stripes. This type of marking  – which is the most common –, can resemble a fish skeleton. In the case of the classic pattern, wider, curved stripes appear, as well as three larger stripes that run from the shoulders to the tail. A great example of this is the pattern of the American Shorthair. The spotted tabby pattern is also called lynx. Among others, the Ocicat and the American Bobtail can be like this. While ticked (agouti) is less pronounced than the other types. These kitties hardly have tabby markings moreover these are also thin and tiny.

It is the most common pattern overall, it can even occur in calico cats. There are a good number of them probably because this pattern served as excellent camouflage in the wild.

According to the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA), a tabby pattern is allowed in these breeds

• Abyssinian (agouti)
• American Bobtail
• American Curl
• American Shorthair (classic pattern)
• American Wirehair
• Birman (tabby points, also known as lynx points)
• Colorpoint Shorthair (lynx points)
• Cornish Rex
• Devon Rex
• Egyptian Mau (the original spotted tabby)
• Exotic Shorthair
• Javanese (lynx points)
• LaPerm
• Maine Coon
• Manx
• Norwegian Forest Cat
• Ocicat
• Oriental Shorthair (112 tabby combinations)
• Persian
• Ragdoll (lynx point)
• Selkirk Rex
• Scottish Fold
• Siberian
• Singapura (agouti)
• Somali (agouti)
• Turkish Angora (14 tabby patterns/colours allowed)
• Turkish Van(6 tabby patterns/colours)

Their character is also complex and varied

Since they have such a long history and are mixed with so many breeds and variants, their temperament and size vary greatly due to their genetic makeup. However, if you ask cat lovers, most will agree that tabbies are sociable, friendly and curious. What is your experience with them?