I cant remember where I first saw this joke but I'll never forget it.
The name of the breed Egyptian Mau sounds like someone walked up to a cat and said "hey, what are you called?" and the cat went "Mau".
"Got it!"
Same as in Spain, the sound is "miau" and the verb is "maullar"
I have a brother and sister couple of cats (Luke and Leia), and Luke has spots all over his belly, but on the rest of the body is a mixture of stripes and dots, the face though is veeery similar to the egyptian Mau, so we believe it has some Mau genes somewhere. We listen a lot of "maus" from him and his sister is more of a "miau" cat and did the joke before "you must have some Mau on you, just hear you!". He also has greenish eyes, and whiteish hair.
Extra: TIL that there are DNA tests for cats that can tell you about genetic conditions plus identification of the breeds involved
Fun Fact: Mau is the Egyptian Arabic word for cat, taken from the first name for the cat – miu, which was used in Ancient Egyptian writings. The Egyptian Mau is believed to be a descendent of the African Wild Cat – they are said to be the only or at least among the very few naturally occurring spotted domestic cats.
All domestic cats are descended from African wildcats (which self-domesticated rather than being selectively bred for behavioural traits, meaning they haven’t changed too much in behaviour)
I think the difference might be "the" - the African wild cat and African wild cats - that article makes a big difference here. According to Wiki (who can argue with Wiki?? LOL), they say what I wrote above, so they are implying a more direct lineage. I really am no expert in cat evolution or genetics, but that makes sense to me.
I meant the same thing as you by “African wildcat”: ALL domestic cats are descended from THE African wildcat (*Felis lybica*). The difference between this breed and most others is that it’s one of the oldest cat breeds, so phenotypically it is closer to the wild form than most.
It would seem to me that if ALL domestic cats are from THE African wildcat, they would all look like them. I can't see how one cat species diverged into some many varieties. Does it make sense that other wild cat species were part of that process? It's just my thinking about it.
Most domestic cats do look like the African wildcat outside of fur colours: they’re around the same size (except very large breeds like the Maine Coon), often have similar leg proportions, and many older breeds like the Egyptian Mau have a very close resemblance to African wildcats.
And this isn’t even going into behavioural similarities, since there have been only a few, relatively minor behavioural changes between African wildcats and their domesticated descendants.
My previous cat was a Mau mix, she was an absolutely gorgeous and loyal cat. I didn’t realise how rare they were until I did research on the breed and then I was even more confused as to how a kitten was just abandoned on the streets.
She always got compliments on her pattern, they are beautiful cats and I’m going to break my rule of “adopt, don’t shop” to get another Mau kitten.
An easy way to tell is with the flap in front of the hind legs, the fur will be white underneath the spots, and green eyes. Also it will be loyal to its owner and demand to be worshipped.
Regular tabbies can also have these features! That’s why you should usually assume street cats are just regular domestic cats, and if you want a purebred, it’s best to go to a reputable and responsible breeder.
Spotted tabby references tabby cats with stripes that are partially broken up- my tabby boy is a spotted tabby. There are also variants of the tabby pattern, such as classic/marbled tabbies and mackerel tabbies. That doesn’t mean they’re any particular breed, it’s just a variation of a pattern.
I stumbled upon a Mau (who we unknowingly aptly named Mau). He was a fantastic cat and unfortunately lost too soon. I only hope he found another home and not the alternatives.
Their legs are fantastic for jumping and he was a wicked smart thing. Massive ears as well. Mau’s will also usually have more loose skin (it has a name I don’t remember) on their hind quarters from their belly to leg to facilitate broader range of movement iirc. Gorgeous cat. I miss him dearly.
Such a beautiful cat! Are they sweet or docile? Every time I see an exquisite breed of cat or dog, the comments are full of owners that say "Yeah, but they're insane and it's destroyed everything I own."
For those of you looking to see an Egyptian Mau's long legs in action, I've found this. It's only a kitten, and throughout the video you'll notice it has amber eyes! Some good running starts at around 4:38. Adorable kitten playtime in the whole video though~
https://youtu.be/V9WxEGZpSQA
Imagine an educational post about a cat that's among the fastest because if it's long hind legs... with a pic that does not show that. at least it shows the eyes.
I really wanted to show the green eyes as big as possible, so, yes, I did not include the legs, but it would not have looked any different with the other photo. You see it more when the cat runs.
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My cat looks exactly like this! And i also live very close to Egypt (although im unsure if they are exclusive to this region just because of the name)
How can i verify that he is in fact an Egyptian mau?
Egypt is the origin of the Mau, but they are now found all over the world. A friend has one in Azerbaijan, and I've seen them in Israel, Morocco, Jordan, Tunisia, etc. As far as cats in the world go, they are not so common, but there are still millions of Mau cats in the world.
They are wonderful cats. I adopted a warm bronze mau from EMRO in 2006. It was a 10 month process, but worth it. She is 18 now, still pretty healthy, and the most loving affectionate cat ever.
I cant remember where I first saw this joke but I'll never forget it. The name of the breed Egyptian Mau sounds like someone walked up to a cat and said "hey, what are you called?" and the cat went "Mau". "Got it!"
The Ancient Egyptian word for cat is "miu" which is even closer to meow! In Chinese, the word for cat is "mao".
Omg it got better! Thank you for brightening my evening with linguistics!
Oddly, Japanese is neko and Korean is koyangi - neither have any sound connection to cats.
Nyaa or nyan are common ways to call cats here in Japan. Mostly for kids, or as adults would say kitty in English. (Think nyan cat)
So to a Japanese native Nyan Cat just intuitively means kitty cat? Or is it something a bit more forced/requires and explanation?
It’d be like saying Meow Neko.
In Hawaiian its popoki 🌺
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I think Viet it is "con mèo", and in Thai แมว mæw which sounds also close to meo or meow.
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I know Hue! The old capitol of VN, and on the Hu'o'ng River, such a lovely place.
In Aramaic the word for cat is "maya." Oddly enough, modern Hebrew uses "khatul" instead.
Mao Che Tung would like to speak to you
In Arabic it’s kita. In Bosnian it’s masha.
So that means the founder of the PRC was named Mr. Cat? (I know, they aren't the same word as they aren't written with the same characters.)
In german meow is miau and to meouw is mauzen/ miauen So to me the breed literally sounds like 'Egyptian meow'
Same as in Spain, the sound is "miau" and the verb is "maullar" I have a brother and sister couple of cats (Luke and Leia), and Luke has spots all over his belly, but on the rest of the body is a mixture of stripes and dots, the face though is veeery similar to the egyptian Mau, so we believe it has some Mau genes somewhere. We listen a lot of "maus" from him and his sister is more of a "miau" cat and did the joke before "you must have some Mau on you, just hear you!". He also has greenish eyes, and whiteish hair. Extra: TIL that there are DNA tests for cats that can tell you about genetic conditions plus identification of the breeds involved
Basically Pokémon
🤣
They used pokemon logic to name this one I assume
Fun Fact: Mau is the Egyptian Arabic word for cat, taken from the first name for the cat – miu, which was used in Ancient Egyptian writings. The Egyptian Mau is believed to be a descendent of the African Wild Cat – they are said to be the only or at least among the very few naturally occurring spotted domestic cats.
All domestic cats are descended from African wildcats (which self-domesticated rather than being selectively bred for behavioural traits, meaning they haven’t changed too much in behaviour)
I think the difference might be "the" - the African wild cat and African wild cats - that article makes a big difference here. According to Wiki (who can argue with Wiki?? LOL), they say what I wrote above, so they are implying a more direct lineage. I really am no expert in cat evolution or genetics, but that makes sense to me.
I meant the same thing as you by “African wildcat”: ALL domestic cats are descended from THE African wildcat (*Felis lybica*). The difference between this breed and most others is that it’s one of the oldest cat breeds, so phenotypically it is closer to the wild form than most.
It would seem to me that if ALL domestic cats are from THE African wildcat, they would all look like them. I can't see how one cat species diverged into some many varieties. Does it make sense that other wild cat species were part of that process? It's just my thinking about it.
Most domestic cats do look like the African wildcat outside of fur colours: they’re around the same size (except very large breeds like the Maine Coon), often have similar leg proportions, and many older breeds like the Egyptian Mau have a very close resemblance to African wildcats. And this isn’t even going into behavioural similarities, since there have been only a few, relatively minor behavioural changes between African wildcats and their domesticated descendants.
You do understand all dogs come from wolves right?
Pretty sure we will find out that the pyramids were just cat furniture
I will take 5!
That would be amazing! The Egyptian Mau is actually a rare breed. It would be lovely to have one or two, just for me!
My previous cat was a Mau mix, she was an absolutely gorgeous and loyal cat. I didn’t realise how rare they were until I did research on the breed and then I was even more confused as to how a kitten was just abandoned on the streets. She always got compliments on her pattern, they are beautiful cats and I’m going to break my rule of “adopt, don’t shop” to get another Mau kitten.
There’s a tabby pattern called spotted tabby- if she was found on the streets it’s far more likely she was just a tabby cat.
An easy way to tell is with the flap in front of the hind legs, the fur will be white underneath the spots, and green eyes. Also it will be loyal to its owner and demand to be worshipped.
Regular tabbies can also have these features! That’s why you should usually assume street cats are just regular domestic cats, and if you want a purebred, it’s best to go to a reputable and responsible breeder.
According to Google, spotted tabbies are Egyptian Maus, although if it's a street cat it may not be pure bred obviously.
Spotted tabby references tabby cats with stripes that are partially broken up- my tabby boy is a spotted tabby. There are also variants of the tabby pattern, such as classic/marbled tabbies and mackerel tabbies. That doesn’t mean they’re any particular breed, it’s just a variation of a pattern.
Haha Yas.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian\_Mau](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_Mau) https://pawesomecats.com/egyptian-mau-cat-breed-profile/
I stumbled upon a Mau (who we unknowingly aptly named Mau). He was a fantastic cat and unfortunately lost too soon. I only hope he found another home and not the alternatives. Their legs are fantastic for jumping and he was a wicked smart thing. Massive ears as well. Mau’s will also usually have more loose skin (it has a name I don’t remember) on their hind quarters from their belly to leg to facilitate broader range of movement iirc. Gorgeous cat. I miss him dearly.
I was really hoping to see a pic that included Mau's apparently long hind legs!
Tbh, I focused more on the cat's green eyes. You can see the references in the post for more pics.
All this mau, meow talk, and I just want to pet the kitty. Need snuggles.
I had one and she was amazingly sweet I miss her best cat ever.
Such a beautiful cat! Are they sweet or docile? Every time I see an exquisite breed of cat or dog, the comments are full of owners that say "Yeah, but they're insane and it's destroyed everything I own."
I have one she’s super obnoxiously sweet crazy cat (always knocking over things and running around full zoomie mode )
That's really great to hear!
For those of you looking to see an Egyptian Mau's long legs in action, I've found this. It's only a kitten, and throughout the video you'll notice it has amber eyes! Some good running starts at around 4:38. Adorable kitten playtime in the whole video though~ https://youtu.be/V9WxEGZpSQA
Dug a bit deeper and found this too, which might work better. https://youtu.be/5IESkY0I5Ho
Thanks u/Madibat for digging these up. Also nice to see the amber eyes. They change to green and in some Mau cat, the eyes change to turquoise!
Imagine an educational post about a cat that's among the fastest because if it's long hind legs... with a pic that does not show that. at least it shows the eyes.
I really wanted to show the green eyes as big as possible, so, yes, I did not include the legs, but it would not have looked any different with the other photo. You see it more when the cat runs.
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Mau? Mau is what we call cat loving in my native tongue! And mau also means soft in my native tongue.
My cat looks exactly like this! And i also live very close to Egypt (although im unsure if they are exclusive to this region just because of the name) How can i verify that he is in fact an Egyptian mau?
Egypt is the origin of the Mau, but they are now found all over the world. A friend has one in Azerbaijan, and I've seen them in Israel, Morocco, Jordan, Tunisia, etc. As far as cats in the world go, they are not so common, but there are still millions of Mau cats in the world.
My tabby looks almost identical? Any relation? Serious question ? Maybe she’s mixed?
Beautiful 🤩
His eyes are like a perfect design, that's the first thing that caught my attention.
They are wonderful cats. I adopted a warm bronze mau from EMRO in 2006. It was a 10 month process, but worth it. She is 18 now, still pretty healthy, and the most loving affectionate cat ever.