The myth of the Cat Sith #AtoZChallenge

E.E. Rawls 14 Comments
myths, legends, creatures, monsters, storytelling, fairy tales, stories, dragons, eagles, China, Japan, America, Europe, Highlands, world myths, world legends, epic fantasy, high fantasy, young adult series, middle grade series,

Part of the A-to-Z blog challenge. My theme is legends and legendary creatures. Every day (except Sundays) this month, a legend beginning with that day’s word will be featured. I hope you enjoy following along!

Cat Sith

Do I mean this kind?

cat, star wars, cat sith, lightsaber, light saber, meow, cat cgi, cat photo, cat image, funny cat, silly cat, cute cats, kitty, kitten, cute, fun,

No.
Or the cat character from the video game Final Fantasy 7?

Vincent Valentine, Cat Sith, FF7, Final Fantasy VII, black cat, secret agent, FF character, final fantasy, cait sidhe,

Haha! But no.
A real Cat Sith, or Kellas cat, is more like this:

Kellas cat, scotland, Scottish, animal, wild cat, Scotland cat, black cat, cat sith, myth, legend, wild animal,

While Cat Siths in myths are fairy-like creatures from Celtic mythology, it’s based on a real wildcat species, the Kellas, that can be found in Scotland (a distinctive hybrid between Scottish wildcats and domestic cats only found there). The Kellas cat is described as being black with a patch of white fur on its chest. According to Wikipedia, it’s size range is twenty-four to thirty-six inches long, with powerful and long hind legs and a tail that can grow to be around twelve inches long; its weight can range from five to fifteen pounds.

Doesn’t sound too cuddly for a cat, does it? XD Read more about Kellas here and more about Cat Sith myths here.

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(Information from: Wikipedia. Art credit: google, no names found)

14 thoughts on “The myth of the Cat Sith #AtoZChallenge”

  2. A Fae cat?! 😀 That’s what I thought as soon as I saw the word “sith.”

    Good job again, E. I don’t think I’ve heard of the Cat Sith / Cait Sidhe myth before, but it’s very interesting, especially the Samhain tradition.

    Which makes me wonder… How did the “don’t let a black cat cross your path” superstition come to be?

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    • Fae cats make me think of something cute, but the actually cat isn’t adorable at all, lol.
      Thanks! The legends theme has been lots of fun and learning, so far. 🙂
      I read in Wikipedia that the real Kellas cat would commonly come near bodies that were being kept for burial until the morning, and the Scots would post people to guard the area from these scavenger cats. I believe that’s how the black cat first became associated with “death” and “bad omens.”

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