It seems like cats are one of the most mysterious creatures on Earth and this is why superstitions, myths and legends surrounded them starting with the ancient times. The majority of these have survived until our days, and there are some that are really well known.
One of the most popular superstitions is related to black cats. The presence of these creatures might mean different things to different people. While according to some cultures they bring good luck, others are afraid of them, saying that they bring misfortune.
As an example, in case of Great Britain if a black cat crosses your path, it is said that you will have good luck. Japanese people seem to agree with this concept, saying that these cats bring luck.
On the other hand, American people think that black cats bring bad luck. The majority of these beliefs started during the Salem witch trials.
In this period the women who had black cats were killed, as well as their animals.
Also in the United States the early colonists believed that killing a cat would bring them bad luck.
In the same location in the colonial times it has been thought that in order to cure tuberculosis, the person in question had to drink a broth made from boiling a black cat.
Nonetheless, this has been done rarely, because as it has been mentioned, they thought that it would bring bad luck.
As we know, Japanese people thought that black cats bring luck, but they have been afraid of the orange cats, because they have been said to cause misfortune. There is a really popular lucky charm known as the Backoning Cat or Maneki Neko.
In order to honor the souls of the departed cats, there have been some religious observances performed.
The Chinese think that cats have special powers, such as being able to see ghosts. Also they believed that they have the power to protect humans from the evil forces.
Europe also has its specific beliefs. For example the Finnish people believed that the cats accompanied the souls of departed people to the next world. On the other hand, Irish people had no doubt that cats are evil. The early inhabitants of these lands thought that tortoiseshell cats are able to give people the power to see the future.
It is a known fact that cats have the ability to see in the dark and they have glowing eyes. These facts besides the fact that they can move stealthily, their quiet presence and their nocturnal activities made people think that they are associated with witches and witchcraft.
In the middle ages people still believed that these animals were evil and that they have been in league with the devil. It has been thought that the devil could take the shape of a black cat in order to be able to walk around humans unnoticed.
By these days all these are considered to be superstitions, and cats are one of the most popular home pets.