Feline Facts 5:

The two most popular names given to feline citizens of the United States are "Tiger" and "Samantha"!

The ancient Egyptians first referred to cats as mau , while the Syrians, from their neighboring empire, chose to call this new creature qato!

In the Danish and Dutch languages, the term kat was selected, and in France it became chat!

Cats are known as katze in German, and in Spanish and Italian, a cat is known as a gatto!

While the Russian alphabet makes their word for cat look strange to us, the pronunciation for cat is kot!

Cat people seem to use more imagination and creativity when choosing a name for their pet than do dog fanciers!

Famous mystery writer Raymond Chandler named his black Persian "Taki"!

The name of Pope Leo XII's treasured tabby was "Micetto"!

Do you know why George Burns, famous comedian, chose to call his cat companion of many years "Willie"? Explains Mr. Burns, "When you told the cat what to do, it was always a question of will he or won't he!!"

Most of us have heard these popular alternative words for "cat"... feline, tabby, tom, tomcat, pussy, kitty, and kitten. But, have you ever heard of grimalkin? The dictionary explains that a grimalkin is an old, female cat - OR, an elderly woman! And, what about a gib? Gib was the old English term for a neutered male cat. This name took on its meaning from a man named Gilbert who...(!!)

People who like cats are called ailurophiles. This word comes from the ancient Greek language.

Not surprisingly, Adolf Hitler was known to despise cats. However, his mortal enemy in World War II, Sir Winston Churchill of England, absolutely adored them! Churchill used to refer to his cat, whom he named "Jock", as his special assistant, and "Jock" was reported to be lying on the bed with his master on the day the great British statesman died.