History of Cats As Told By a Cat: Greece

Hi hoomans! Ready to travel with me to Greece? I’m keeping this one short because I feel like it. Also, wanna hear a bad geography joke?

“If I invaded Djibouti, would Greece help?” 🤭😹🫣

Anywaaaaayyyyy, anyone who’s been following my series has purrobably learned one thing. Us cats are either seen as Gods or are associated with the Gods. Religious leaders have worshipped us (maybe except for that Pope Gregory XI, who deserves a good gutting). We have many cultures wrapped around our furry little paws. Well, Greece is no different.

So what are you waiting for? Grab yourself a tube of Churu and follow me to the place where cats run the show!

Connection Between Us and Athens

Our roots to Greece, date all the way back to ancient times. My ancestors made sure we live a good life even to this day and age. Athens was once the centre of trade and culture. Obviously, with that, we know rats love to hang around. So these hoomans called in the expurrts—us—to protect their homes.

We were valued for our hunting skills and admired for our grace, agility and independence. But it wasn’t always that way. Did you know that at one point, these hoomans valued the weasel?! Yes, those stinking weasels! They were believed to be the best for hunting mice and rats and were widely kept as pets.

It was later that we were recognized as the SUPURRIOR hunters! That dethroned the weasel (as it should). These hoomans can thank the Phoenicians for introducing us. They brought us to Greece in the fifth century.

Credit: Britannica Encyclopedia

Greek Meowthology

You heard of the goddess Artemis, right? Well, if you haven’t, let me tell me you. She is the goddess of wild animals, hunting, vegetation and childbirth. She was the daughter of Zeus and Leto (yes, that guy seem to breed with everybody). Anyway, the hoomans in the rural areas love this goddess because I guess praying helped their crops grow better.

So why is she associated with us? Well, legend has it that she could transform into us to evade detection while hunting in the forest. You just know how good we are when a literal goddess would turn into us. Who’s the gods/goddesses now?!

Another goddess that is associated with us is the beautiful Hecate. She was the goddess of magic and was often accompanied by cats! See a pattern? The most badass women and men across the world were accompanied by one of us.

Greek Literature

Like every other culture I’ve covered, the Greeks wrote about us. My ancestors were immortalized through tales of meowthology and literature. Some old guys named Aristotle, Plutarch and Pliny the Elder (that even sounds old) all mentioned us in their writings.

We were portrayed as lecherous, clean and lustful. I always thought it was goats, pigs, rabbits and dogs that were associated with lust… but okay!

The was a playwright named Aesop who wrote about my ancestors in his famous fables, emphasizing our level of cunning and resourcefulness. And trust me, he’s not wrong.

Symbols of Luck

We are symbols of good luck. Despite what the English thought of us black cats, other cultures all saw us as good luck, no matter what colour we are. If you were a lucky hooman in Greece, we would protect you from evil spirits.

Book Yourself a Kitty Tour Guide

If you’re a cat lover, because if you’re not, you’re probably a walking red flag. *ahem* But yes, if you’re a cat lover, Greece should be another destination on your bucket list. We’re not just in Athens, we’re EVERYWHERE. From Mykanos, to Santorini, to the Aegean Islands, to Hydra and so on, you can expect to see many of us.

A lot of us are strays here, but we’re not treated badly. Just like in Turkiye, the locals and tourists all take care of us. Just because we’re not confined to one home, doesn’t mean we’re homeless. The entire country is our playground and we have numerous hooman employees working for us around the clock.

And you’ll be happy to hear that there are many of us who would be willing to accompany you on your adventures for a short while. Just remember some of us are feral and hate you, so don’t force yourself on us. If we come and hang out with you, then consider yourself lucky.

Shameless Purrmotion

Well, they say you can’t sell your book if you don’t talk about it. Soooo I’ll talk about it. For anyone new here, I have spent my year ghostwriting and meowdeling for this book! It’s the newest instalment of the “What if Cats Wrote” series, you can grab a copy HERE!

For more stories, you can check out our blog!