What does Felis catus mean?

What does Felis catus mean? It's the scientific name for the domestic cat.

Felis is a Latin word derived from an older Latin word "felix" which in English means "happy". However, it means 'cat' in Latin while catus means intelligent, sly or cunning. It seems that felis is interchangeable with feles. Both mean 'cat' in Latin.

Skulls of a wildcat (top left), a housecat (top right), and a hybrid between the two. (bottom-center)

The taxonomic classification of the domestic cat until 2017 was: Felis silvestris catus as in 2007, it was considered a subspecies of the European wildcat (F. silvestris). The word "silvestris" is Latin for "wooded" or "wild".

Domestic cat doing what they do best. Photo: Pixabay.

However, following results of phylogenetic research in 2017, the IUCN Cat Classification Taskforce followed the recommendation of the ICZN in regarding the domestic cat as a distinct species, and the scientific name Felis catus adopted. As at 2022, this is the correct scientific name of the domestic cat.

The process of classification is called taxonomy. It remains in flux to a certain extent. DNA testing changed things considerably whereas in the past the species were classified by their appearance, a far less precise method.