Have you ever noticed the mark that your tabby cat has on its forehead? That’s right, me neither!

I was talking to my classmate at school, all happy that I had gone to an animal shelter to adopt a kitten when she asked me what breed it was. When I told her It was a tabby, she immediately said “oh, those have the M mark on their foreheads !”.

“I never noticed it,” I said. Curious as I am, I wanted to know more about this unique feature of these adorable felines.

The presence of this sign is related to the color of the cat’s fur and genetic issues. This phenomenon is also linked to some really interesting legends. Some believe that the frontal M spot is a sign that it is an Abyssinian cat, a breed of mysterious origin. Others still believe that the origin of the stain is related to myths and religious traditions.

Until we had Daisy, (my first ever cat I had at home) I didn’t know that this breed of cat has the particularity of having this M mark on the forehead.

So I decided to do some research on this particularity and today I’ll be explaining what I found. You’re going to be surprised. 

Keep reading!

The M Mark And It’s Beliefs

Even though your cat may or not be a tabby cat, it might have the unique M mark on its forehead! 

You will find it very interesting and curious about how in the ancient days, people saw this type of cat in their own vision and how the mysticism and the beliefs of the people influenced their way of living because of them! 

In short, since they have their chic M mark on them, many people, (a long time ago), believed that the mark had a significant meaning! 

Here I am going to show you some of the most known myths and beliefs about this uniqueness in this cute kitty:

Muhammad and his cat, Muezza

Well the story starts like this, long time ago when Muhammad’s cat, Muezza, was sleeping on one of his sleeves. 

Muhammad didn’t want to wake up his kitty accidentally so he ended up cutting out his sleeve (in which the cat was sleeping on). So he can go pray without waking up his cat! 

In another story, it was believed that a snake crawled into Muhammad’s sleeve into his robe, so Muezza jumped into action: he killed the snake and kept Muhammad safe! 

Later on, this prophet was extremely thankful so he also placed his hand on his cat to stroke him as he ended up making a mark, which is today, the M mark, for Muezza!

This famous story is very popular in Islamic culture and religion.

M for Mary

Even though there is no cat in the nativity scene, we just see the cow, the donkey, the sheep. 

But for sure, we are going to find a cat on a farm though, because they are used until today in stables and farms to control the mouse population ruining food stocks for the animals.

So what does a cat have to do with the story of Mary and her son Jesus?

Well, many people who were Catholic and religious thought that a tabby cat helped baby Jesus stay warm after he was born in the manger! How is this possible? I’ll explain the story:

He was crying because he was so cold even though the hay, Mary’s blanket and the body heat of the animals in the stable couldn’t warm him up.  

But a tabby cat who was observing from afar, came in and warmed the baby up by sleeping and purring in the manger with Jesus. 

The baby calmed down and was sleeping sound fully to the purrs and so, Mary stroked the cat on the head, leaving the M mark on the kitty!

M for a mark of the moon

Since some cats (or most tabbies) have the M on their heads and so, Egyptian people worshipped.

But it’s not just because of their M, representing Mau (the sound of what cats make in Egyptian) but also the reflection in their eyes at night!

Since a cat’s eyes can reflect with light, this phenomenon is most visible at night. 

The Egyptians thought this was linked to the moon, as some sort of relationship, which can also explain the M letter on their foreheads!

Know More About Tabby Cat

In a world full of cats, there are lots of different breeds but patterns as well. A Tabby Cat has a specific pattern on its coat. Even with different colours, as long as it has a specific pattern, that cat is a tabby. 

Remember that a Tabby cat is not a breed but a normal cat, it’s simply called a tabby because of its coat. Here’s what one looks like:

(Picture of tabby cat here) 

So, it’s important to identify which type of coat your tabby cat has. The big majority of them will have a significant M on their foreheads.

What Breeds Of Cats Have The M Mark?

It can be hard to spot but if you look hard enough, right above your kitty’s eyes, there will be some arrows, like this ^ ^, if you put them together, the letter M forms! 

Pretty cool right? I was fascinated when I discovered this really cute fact. But I started wondering, do all cats have the M mark on their foreheads?

As well as some other different patterns, all over their fluffy bodies, let me explain the different types of coats, in which the particular M can be visible on your tabby.

Classic Tabby Cat

Think about a tabby, usually, you’d imagine a cat with long stripes. That can be the most classic type of tabby you can spot!  A “classic” tabby cat has stripes all over its face, body and tail. 

Usually, on its tail, it circles around it, looking just like rings! Adorable, I know! 

Most classic tabbies have a mashup of different colors as well. Brown, grey, orange, white and black are the most common colors in a tabby. 

There will be one dominant color on the body of your kitty too. Especially around the mouth, nose, eyes, ears and paws, that’s where the colors pop out the most, making your kitty striking visually. 

Even though your tabby might look like a brown cat from far away, its paws can be mixed with oranges and white sometimes when you look up from close, isn’t it interesting? 

People like to link classic tabbies to tigers which I think is a very cute thing to do, how can you not resist a little tiger in your own home?   

(enter a picture of a classic tabby cat here, along with a picture of a tiger)

Blotched Tabby Cat

You might not have heard about this type of tabby before… Blotched. Sounds unfamiliar right? It might be, but blotched tabbies are definitely something, trust me. 

Blotched kitties are very similar to classic tabbies but instead of stripes looking like a tiger… it mostly just swirls! 

They do have some stripes especially around their necks and tails but it’s on their bodies where the swirls are the most visible. It’s really stunning! Don’t you think?

Most of the time, these uniquely creative patterns are dark-colored, contrasting with their dominant light grey color. 

Sometimes, the color can be different, some blotched tabby cats have brown instead of light grey! 

This is the case with some Bengals but not all of them.

The blotched kitties don’t necessarily have swirls all over their bodies as well, sometimes, there can be some splashes of dark colors too! 

Making it look like someone splashed them with some paint! 

Mackerel Tabby Cat

When you look up a picture of a Mackerel Tabby cat, it will show cats that look just like classic ones right?

Yes, but there are some unique features with this coat than with any other. Mackerel kitties have a long stripe on their spine and they mostly have small circles and stripes on their bodies as well! Doesn’t it seem similar?

They are the type of coated cats that are mostly the same as the classic tabby cats. I mean, you can even say they are the same! Don’t you agree?

Like my Daisy, she has lots of different colors combined all over her fluffy body but she doesn’t just have stripes… she has spots as well!

(photo of daisy from Instagram)

Isn’t she pretty, my sweet little Daisy?

Spotted Tabby Cat

Ever heard of Bengals? Yeah, those expensive pure-breed tabbies that look like wild felines? Well, cats that look just like them are called spotted tabby cats!

Spotted tabbies have a long stripe on their spine, alongside all the other types of tabbies.

 But their stripes on the rest of their bodies are replaced with spots. You can even think of it as a math equation!

(Classic Tabby Cat – stripes) + spots = Spotted Tabby Cat

A lot of our bred cats are considered spotted tabbies because of their cute round spots on their fluffy fur coats.

Even though they have lots of spots on them, they still have some visible stripes around their chests, legs, tail and face!

These breeds of cats have the same unique characteristics as a typical tabby but they look just like a serval or a leopard. Isn’t that wild?

Ticked (Agouti) Tabby Cat

Hm… Ticked? You might not have heard of this type of tabby before (alongside with blotched kitties). But they still are considered tabbies because of the stripes that are all around their chest. 

Ticked cats have a “mixed” fur on their body coat. This type of Tabby doesn’t necessarily have any pattern on their body. 

Instead, it’s typically a gradient of brownish colors… (in some cases it can be grey too!)

Usually, darker colors start off the spinal area of their body and lighter colors are more in the bottom of their coat. 

One of the most common breeds of cats that has this type of unique coat is the Abyssinian cat or. 

Even though this breed doesn’t have any stripes whatsoever, they still look pretty rad. 

Orange Tabby Cat

Remember Garfield? He is a very famous orange tabby cat!

Orange tabby cats are very well known, from drawn comics to movie stars, this orange kitty is probably one of the cutest of them all!

What makes orange tabbies so unique from any other tabby is that their coat consists of spots, swirls and mostly stripes. 

But all of them are a dark orange color, contrasting their light orange colored bodies!

Not to mention, in some cases, orange tabby cats are known to also have some white around their chest, belly and paw areas.

The famous M mark on their forehead is known to be dark orange.

What makes them so unique is that 80% of all orange tabby cats are… you guessed it, male! The links of chromosomes are what make this type of tabby different from the rest!

So that means that female orange tabbies are a rare sight, isn’t that interesting?

Conclusion

Tabby cats are beautiful creatures, and it’s interesting to know the story behind their markings.

While we may never know the true origins of the tabby cat’s M mark, it is clear that this marking has become one of the most iconic features of these felines. And for a good reason — the tabby cat is a beloved and popular pet due to its unique markings and personality.

So, there you have it! The mystery of the M-mark on tabby cats is solved. Now you can go around and amaze your friends with this knowledge. And if you’re still curious about some other cat markings, be sure to check out our post on why cats have whiskers.