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Feline Folklore
Folklore, Superstitions, and Nursery Rhymes
"It is in their eyes that their magic resides."
~ Arthur Symons ~
There are many proverbs and folk sayings which refer to cats. Many have superstition entwined within the words and some are just sweet little ditties remembered from childhood. We've listed a number of folk sayings, superstitions, proverbs, and nursery rhymes here.
Feline Folk Sayings, Superstitions, and Proverbs:
When the cat's away, the mice will play.--Folk Saying
Rub a cat's paws with butter and it will never leave home.--Folk Saying-Remedy
Whenever the cat of the house is black, the lasses of lovers will have no lack.--Folk Saying
Nobody can truly own a cat.--Old British Saying
A cat's a cat and that's that.--Folk Saying
The cat is mighty dignified until the dog comes by.--Southern Folk Saying
It is bad luck to see a white cat at night.--American Superstition
Dreaming of a white cat means good luck.--American Superstition
A cat sleeping with all four paws tucked under means cold weather ahead.--English Superstition
A cat sneezing is a good omen for everyone who hears it.--Italian Superstition
When moving to a new home, always put the cat through the window instead of the door, so that it will not leave.--American Supersition
If a cat washes behind its ears, it will rain.--English Superstition
When you see a one-eyed cat, spit on your thumb, stamp it in the palm of your hand, and make a wish. The wish will come true.--American Superstition
It is bad luck to cross a stream carrying a cat.--French Superstition
To see a white cat on the road is lucky.--American Supersition
A strange black cat on your porch brings prosperity.--Scottish Supersition
When the pupil of a cat's eye broadens, there will be rain.--Welsh Supersition
To kill a cat brings seventeen years of bad luck.--Irish Supersition
If cats desert a house, illness will always reign there.--English Supersition
The dog for the man, the cat for the woman.--English Proverb
All cats are bad in May.--French Proverb
Happy owner, happy cat. Indifferent owner, reclusive cat.--Chinese Proverb
When the cat and mouse agree, the grocer is ruined.--Iranian Proverb
A cat pent up becomes a lion.--Italian Proverb
A cat has nine lives. For three he plays, for three he strays, and for the last three he stays.--English/American Proverb
A house without either a cat or a dog is the house of a scoundrel.--Portuguese Proverb
Cats hide their claws.--English Proverb
If stretching were wealth, the cat would be rich.--African Proverb
The cat was created when the lion sneezed.--Arabian Proverb
Let sleeping cats lie.--French Proverb
It is too much to expect of a cat that she should sit by the milk and not lap it.--German Proverb
A cat is a lion in a jungle of small bushes.--American Indian Proverb
Let the female cat run; the tomcat will catch her.--German Proverb
All cats are grey in the dark.--English Proverb
Curiosity killed the cat, Satisfaction brought it back!--English Proverb
A bashful cat makes a proud mouse.--Scottish Proverb
A cat may look at a king.--English Proverb
Wake not a sleeping cat.--French Proverb
Old cats mean young mice.--Italian Proverb
A scalded cat dreads even cold water.--French Proverb
An old cat will not learn dancing.--Moroccan Proverb
He that denies the cat skimmed milk must give the mouse cream.--Russian Proverb
The cat loves fish, but hates wet feet.--Italian Proverb
The cat sees through shut lids.--English Proverb
To live long, eat like a cat, drink like a dog.--German Proverb
Dogs remember faces, cats remember places.--English Proverb
In a cat's eyes, all things belong to cats.--English Proverb
An old cat laps as much milk as a young.--English Proverb
The cat is a good friend, only she scratches.--Portuguese Proverb
A cat bitten once by a snake dreads even rope.--Arabian Proverb
Don't buy a cat in a sack.--Dutch Proverb
He's as honest as the cat when the meat is out of reach.--English Proverb
A cat is a lion to a mouse.--Albanian Proverb
No one likes to bell the cat.--German Proverb
The cat laps moonbeams in the bowl of water, thinking them to be milk.--Hindu Proverb
Books and cats and fair-haired little girls make the best furnishing for a room.--French Proverb
It is better to feed one cat than many mice.--Norwegian Proverb
A lame cat is better than a swift horse when rats infest the palace.--Welsh Proverb
A bon chat bon rat. (A good cat deserves a good rat.)--French Proverb
I gave an order to a cat, and the cat gave it to its tail.--Chinese Proverb
The three merriest things in the world are a cat's kitten, a goat's kid, and a young widow.--Irish Proverb
Whatever is born of a cat will cat mice.--Irish Proverb
Cats, flies and women are ever at their toilets.--French Proverb
A cat on the doorstep in the morning brings bad luck.--Norwegian Proverb
Beware of people who dislike cats.--Irish Proverb
Feline Nursery Rhymes:
Little Robin Redbreast sat upon a tree,
Up went the Pussy-cat, and down went he,
Down came Pussy-cat, away Robin ran;
Says little Robin Redbreast: "Catch me if you can!"
Little Robin Redbreast jumped upon a spade,
Pussy-cat jumped after him, and then he was afraid.
Little Robin chirped and sang, and what did Pussy say?
Pussy-cat said: "Mew, mew, mew," and Robin ran away.
Two little kittens, one stormy night,
Began to quarrel, and then to fight;
One had a mouse, the other had none,
And that's the way the quarrel begun.
Who's that ringing at my doorbell?
A little pussy cat that isn't very well.
Rub its little nose with a little mutton fat,
That's the best cure for a little pussy cat.
Six little mice sat down to spin;
Pussy passed by and she peeped in.
"What are you doing, my little men?"
"Weaving coats for gentlemen."
"Shall I come in and cut off your threads?"
"No, no, Mistress Pussy, you'd bite off our heads."
"Oh no, I'll not; I'll help you to spin."
"That may be so, but you don't come in.
Pussy cat, pussy cat,
Where have you been?
I've been to London
To look at the Queen.
Pussy cat, pussy cat,
What did you there?
I frightened a little mouse
Under her chair.
Ding, dong, bell
Pussy's in the well.
Who put her in?
Little Johnny Green.
Who pulled her out?
Little Tommy Stout.
What a naughty boy was that
To try to drown poor pussy cat,
Who never did him any harm,
And killed the mice in his father's barn.
Dame Trot and her cat
Sat down for a chat;
The Dame sat on this side
And puss sat on that.
"Puss," says the Dame
"Can you catch a rat
Or a mouse in the dark?"
"Purr," says the cat.
The Kilkenny Cats
There once was two cats of Kilkenny.
And I thought there was one cat too many;
So they quarrelled and fit,
And they scratched and they bit,
Till barring their nails
And the tips of their tails,
Instead of two cats, there weren't any.
I'll pat pretty pussy, and then she will purr;
and thus show her thanks for my kindness to her.
But I'll not pinch her ears, nor tread on her paw,
Lest I should provoke her to use her sharp claw.
I never will vex her, or make her displeased --
For puss don't like to be worried and teased.
As I was going to St. Ives,
I met a man with seven wives.
Each wife had seven sacks,
Each sack had seven cats.
Each cat had seven kits.
Kits, cats, sacks, wives,
How many were going to St. Ives?
(Answer: One - only I was going to St. Ives;
everyone else was coming from St. Ives.)
A cat came fiddling
Out of a barn,
With a pair of bagpipes
Under her arm:
She could sing nothing
But "fiddle-cum-fee,"
The mouse has married the bumblebee;
Pipe, cat; dance, mouse!
We'll have a wedding at our good house.
Three little kittens lost their mittens;
And they began to cry,
"Oh, mother dear,
We very much fear
That we have lost our mittens."
"Lost your mittens!
You naughty kittens!
Then you shall have no pie!"
"Mee-ow, mee-ow, mee-ow."
"No, you shall have no pie."
"Mee-ow, mee-ow, mee-ow."
The three little kittens found their mittens;
And they began to cry,
"Oh, mother dear,
See here, see here!
See, we have found our mittens!"
"Put on your mittens,
You silly kittens,
And you may have some pie."
"Purr-r, purr-r, purr-r,
Oh, let us have the pie!
Purr-r, purr-r, purr-r."
The three little kittens put on their mittens,
And soon ate up the pie;
"Oh, mother dear,
We greatly fear
That we have soiled our mittens!"
"Soiled your mittens!
You naughty kittens!"
Then they began to sigh,
"Mee-ow, mee-ow, mee-ow."
Then they began to sigh,
"Mee-ow, mee-ow, mee-ow."
The three little kittens washed their mittens,
And hung them out to dry,
"Oh, mother dear,
Do you not hear
That we have washed our mittens?"
"Washed your mittens!
Oh, you're good kittens!
But I smell a rat close by,
Hush, hush! Mee-ow, mee-ow."
"We smell a rat close by,
Mee-ow, mee-ow, mee-ow."
by Eliza Lee Follen
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