Tabby

A tabby is any domestic cat that has a coat featuring distinctive stripes, dots, lines or swirling patterns, usually together with a mark resembling an 'M' on its forehead. Tabbies are sometimes erroneously assumed to be a cat breed. In fact, the tabby pattern is found in many breeds, as well as among the general mixed-breed population. The tabby pattern is a naturally occurring feature that may be related to the coloration of the domestic cat's direct ancestor, the African wildcat, which (along with the European wildcat and Asiatic wildcat) has a similar coloration.

The English term tabby originates from the translation of the French phrase "striped silk taffeta", the root of which is tabis, meaning "a rich watered silk." This can be further traced to the Middle French atabis (14th century), which stemmed from the Arabic term attabiya. This word is a reference to the neighborhood in Baghdad, Attabiy (named for Prince Attab of the Umayyad Caliphate), where such silk cloth was first made. Tabby is also comparable to the Spanish word ataviar, which means "to decorate or to dress or wear" and often implies luxurious clothing. Usage of the term tabby cat , which means "one with a striped coat", began in the 1690s and was later shortened to tabby in 1774. The notion that tabby is indicative of a female cat may be a reference to the feminine proper name Tabby, as a shortened form of Tabitha.

There are four tabby patterns that have been shown to be genetically distinct: Mackerel, Classic, spotted, and ticked.

A fifth includes tabby as part of another basic color pattern. The "patched" tabby is a calico or tortoiseshell cat with tabby patches (also known as "caliby" and "torbie", respectively).

All those patterns have been observed in random-bred populations. Several additional patterns are found in specific breeds. A modified Classic tabby is found in the Sokoke breed. Some are due to the interaction of wild and domestic genes. Rosetted and marbled patterns are found in the Bengal breed.

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