The Naming of Cats 



"The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter,
It isn't just one of your holiday games;
You may think at first I'm as mad as a hatter
When I tell you, a cat must have THREE DIFFERENT 
NAMES!..."





"First of all, there's the name that the family 
uses daily....."


This is the easy name, the name your human gives you. As humans have almost no imagination, you most probably will end up with a name like Fluffy, Snowball or Midnight, something that describes your fur, whether it's the texture or colour. Or maybe the name will be like a human name. I know cats named Sarah and Bart and Chester. A lot of humans name their feline masters after famous cats. Names from T.S. Eliot's "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats", like Macavity or Rumpelteezer are often used, as are Egyptian names, like Bast or Cleopatra. Those stupid humans don't always know the sex of their cat, so they sometimes choose unisex names to avoid difficulty. Popular unisex names are Rascal, Ginger, Tigger, Blackie, Socks and Patches. The name your human gives you is the name you most often used, and the one you will join this club with, but it is hardly the most important name. 




"But I tell you, a cat need a name that's paticular,
A name that's peculiar, and more dignified,
Else how can he keep up his tail perpendicular,
Or spread out his whiskers, or cherish his pride?...."


Ah, now this is a better name. Who needs a cutesy name like "Muffin" or "Puffy" or "Pitipoo"? As the rhyme says, we need dignified names! Here are some names you can look at and choose one to use while playing with your friends. If you have an exceptionally bright human, maybe you can even train them to call you this! 


A
Agate, Aileen, Aileuros, Akhe, Akilah, 
Alabaster, Aladdin, Alani, Aleris, Alyce, 
Anemone, Apples, Angle, Aquarius, Artemis, 
Ashes, Auroara, Ayla.



B
Bacon, Bali, Banana, Bijou, Blackberry, 
Black Magic, Blondie, Briar, Bright Eyes, 
Butterpaws.



C
Calandra, Calidore, Carbonel, Cardigan, 
Carnival, Cassidy, Catala, Catkin, Chani, 
Champange, Charis, Cherry, Chiffon, 
China Moon, Chocolate, Chopsticks, Cloud, 
Cocoa, Coffee Cream, Cotton.



D
Dahlia, Daron, Deja Vu, Dominique, Domino, 
Dreamchaser.



E
Ebony, Eclipse, Egypt, Eskimo Pie.



F
Faline, Fidget, Fido Dido, Firefly, Fleta,
Flip Flop, Forrest, Freya, Fudgeface, 
Furface.



G
Gigabyte, G.I. Joe, Ginger Spice, 
Good Fortune, Grimalkin, Growltiger, 
Gummi Bear.



H & I
Heaven, Honeybee, Hopscotch.
Icicle, Inky, Iona, Isis, Ivory.



J
Jade, Jaranda, Jellybean, Jennyfur, 
Jeta, Jewels, Jigsaw, Jingle, Jinx, 
Juneau, Juniper.



K
Kalliope, Kawaii, Ketchup, Keiko, Kendra, 
Kenji, Kilmeny, Kitsen, Kitty Gato, 
Kiwi, Kumquat.



L
La Chatte, Lady Jane Grey, Laine, Leandra,
Leander, Leia, Leigh, Lightfoot, Lilith, 
Ling-Ching, Loki, Lotus Blossom, Luna, 
Lynx, Lyric.



M
Macaroon, Machat, Maia, Malarky, Mandarin, 
Marbles, Maris, Marshmallow, Mau, Miao, 
Mihos, Milky, Minka, Minuet, Mishmash, 
Mistico, Mocha, Monday, Monica, Moriah, 
Mourka, Mozarella, Mulder, Mystery.



N & O
Neith, Neko, Nili, Nine Lives, Niquita.
Oh Henry, Ophelia, Orange Juice, Ouija.



P
Paka, Panda, Pandora, Peanut Butter, 
Pepe le Pew, Phong-Phan, Pickles, 
Ping-Pong, Pixie, Playdough, Powder, 
Psyche, Pumpkin Pie, Pussy Boots.



Q & R
Quicksilver, Quinn
Raine, Reiko, Riona, Rosemary, Rowan, Rrrraul



S
Sage, Sanddollar, Sasparilla, Satin, Scamper, 
Scrabble, Scully, Seal, Sekhmet, Selene, 
Shade, Shadow, Shala, Silenthunt, Silvergold, 
Skittles, Smokey, Snickerdoodle, Snowdash, 
Snow-ling, Snow-on-the-mountain, Soda Pop, 
Sofia, Softpaw, Sonura, Soot, Sorsha, Spice, 
Sparkler, Storm, Sugar, Sylvestpurr.



T
Tailchaser, Tea Cake, Tiny Precise, Topanga, 
Tora, That Cat, Tuxedo.



U
Ula, Una

V
Vanilla Fudge, Velvet, Veruca Salt, Vibe,
Violetta, Viva.



W
What's What, White Shadow, Willy Wonka, 
Winnie-the-Pooh, Wizard.



X Y & Z
Xanalily, Xander
Yada Yada, Ying Yang, Yoda, Yoko
Zebra, Zephyr.






"But above and beyond, there's still one name left over,
And that is the name that you never will guess;
The name that no human research can discover--
But THE CAT HIMSELF KNOWS, and will never confess!"


Well, we can't really discuss this one, can we? It would be entirely against cat principles to even give the humans a glimmering of the kinds of names we use for this purpose-the working of magic, meditation and deep thinking that the human brain is far too shallow to understand. We must always keep this, as the poem says, our "Ineffable, effanineffable, deep and inscrutable singular name." 




If you are interested in knowing the origin of
some of the more unusual names, here they are:

Aileen: Means "light" in Greek

Aileuros: Means "cat" in Greek

Akilah: Means "intelligent" in Arabian

Artemis: Artemis was the Greek Goddess of the
Moon and the hunt and the wild beasts.  

Daron: Means "Great little one" in Gaelic

Faline: Means "cat-like" in Latin

Fleta: Means swift

Freya: Freya was a goddess of Love and Beauty
who rode in a chariot pulled by black cats.

Grimalkin: Means grey cat

Iona: Means "purple jewel" in Greek

Isis: Egyptian Goddess associated with the 
home.

Kalliope: Means "beautiful voice" in Greek

Kawaii: Means "cute" in Japanese

Kitty Gato: Gato is Spanish for "cat".

Leandra: Means "lioness" in Greek

Leander: "Means "lion" in Greek

Machat: Means "My Cat" in French

Mau: Means "to see" in Egyptian.  Their name 
for the cat.

Mihos: The Egyptian lion-god son of Bast

Mistico: Means "mystic" in Italien

Mourka: A popular Russian name.  Derived
from to Russian word "to purr".

Neith: Egyptian goddess of the Night

Neko: Means "Cat" in Japanese

Paka: Means "pussycat" in Kenyan

Pandora: Means "all-gifted" in Greek

Phong-Phan: Means "Beautiful Complexion" in Siamese

Reiko: Means delicate in Japanese

Riona: Means "queenly" in Gaelic

Sanura: Means "kitten" in Kenyan

Sekhmet: Egyptian lion-goddess, Bast's sister.

Shahla: Means "beautiful eyes" in Afghani

Tora: Means "Tiger" in Japanese




All the quotes on this page from T.S. Eliot's "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats" and the poem "The Naming of Cats". If you have any names to add to the list, please email them to Queen Misty.