Egyptian cat names are great for exotic looking cats. Maybe your cat looks like the cats featured in ancient Egyptian art with a triangular face and long, slim limbs? An Egyptian cat name could be a great choice for such a cat. Maybe your cat is a sphinx cat or an Egyptian Mau and needs a suitable regional name to go with their breeding? Maybe your cat is just more exotic looking than your normal everyday cat and needs an exotic name to go with their look? Maybe you want to invoke the character and spirit of a classical figure when you name your cat? Perhaps you just want something cool you can shout across the neighborhood?
I bring to you names that evoke Egypt – the history, culture, geography, and folklore. I am not going to bother with hundreds of names along the lines of the Egyptian word for “beautiful”, “graceful” or “hunter” or such like – to a western ear they just won’t make much sense. Instead, we are aiming for cool, interesting, and individual – and preferably, a name that can be shortened if necessary! So without further ado, here you go:
Nile – Self-explanatory really – Egypt has a famous river called the Nile and it happens to be a short enough word to make a catchy name! Probably best used on a male cat.
Delta – Not strictly Egyptian, but inspired by the Nile delta! Kind of makes a badass cat name that could work for a male or female cat – how many cats do you know of called Delta?
Osiris – Clearly Egyptian, exotic, and enigmatic. Unfortunately, this name is linked to the Egyptian lord of the underworld and judge of the dead. On the other hand, the phrase also comes from the word for powerful or mighty. Perhaps a suitable name for a male, big, black, hunting cat? Of course, you can always shorten the name to Osi if you want to take a more laid back approach.
Ra – A name linked to the most powerful of ancient Egyptian gods – Ra the sun god. A great name for ginger or fair colored cat with the golden, sun association, and all that. Ra, the god, was also the most important god in ancient Egypt. If you’re the type of owner that worships the ground your cat walks on, then this could be quite an apt name. Easy to shout or call and just pretty cool for a cat!
Isis – a great name for a female cat. Nice a short and easy to say! Isis was an Egyptian goddess of life and magic and had a reputation for protecting women and children and healing the sick – an all-round good egg! A name that conjures the mysticism of the east.
Giza – Short and easy to say. Giza, as in the plateau the pyramids are located on, makes a good, exotic name for a cat and evokes scenes of the pyramids and eastern mystery… Of course, in anglo-saxon vernacular geezer(s) are men, so all told this might be a good name for an exotic-looking male cat!
Cairo – This one will work whether your cat is male or female. A good short name for a cat that might come from that area of the world or at least look like it does. You could even pair it with a normal name to add a twist – Cairo Joe or Cairo Jane….I will leave that one to you!
Cleopatra – I used this for my own cat. She was a moggy that had the looks of the ancient Egyptian cats – long legs, slender form, pointed ears, and triangular face. And being female, Cleopatra seemed to fit the bill. It wasn’t till I was asked if it was because I am Anthony that I chose the name that I even thought of history’s greatest lovers Anthony and Cleopatra – but there you go, such things were not top of my unromantic mind. Shortens to Cleo, obviously, so pretty easy to use on a cat in my experience…
Tut – As in King Tut, otherwise known as Tutankhamun. Perhaps the most well known Pharaoh in the history of Egypt given that his tomb was discovered filled with huge treasures. Anyway, Tut seems to be a pretty easy going name for a cat that you could easily shout out the door. Great name for a male cat with an exotic look going on – or maybe one with a regal, unflustered air going on about him.
Xerxes – Pronounced “zercksees”, strictly speaking, this dude was a Persian king, but Egypt was in Persia’s empire during his lifetime and he had to go and crush rebellions in Egypt so I think we could just about pull him in as evoking something of Egypt. From what I have said, you can imagine this is a great name for a male cat who rules the roost and doesn’t let you forget it! Plus, it is cool sounding, powerful and exotic name anyway…
Rosetta – A nice soft, female name for a gentle lady cat with an exotic look. But what is the Egyptian link? The Rosetta Stone is the link. The stone was a famous tablet, re-discovered by Napoleon B, which had a decree inscribed on it in three different languages. The fact it was in three languages allowed academics to understand hieroglyphs for the first time as they could compare examples on the tablet with ancient greek also found on the tablet. Could easily be shortened to Rosie if required…
Hiero or Glyph – Calling a cat hieroglyph after the carved symbols would be slightly odd… but you could shorten the phrase to hiero or glyph and come up with a cheeky cat name that references Egypt. Cats feature heavily in Egyptian carving in general and the letter L in the language is represented by a lion symbol so you could draw some comparisons… I think this could be a set of unisex cat names – good for boy or girl cats.
Lotus – Did you know the Egyptian Lotus was the national flower of Egypt? No? Well, you learn something new every day. Lotus could be an unusual name for a female cat with regional ancestries like a mau or sphinx cat, but I am not sure a male cat could, or should try to pull it off!
Papyrus – Slightly left field, but definitely Egyptian. The papyrus is a rush/reed that the Egyptians famously turned into paper parchment and created document scrolls from, that seemed to last for thousands of years. It is a bit of a mouthful for a cat’s name in full length but I like the flexibility in that it could work for a male cat if you shortened it down to an informal Rus or Papy…
Hapi – Great, Egyptian-style name for a good-humored, easy-going cat. However, Hapi was the name of two different gods – the god of inundation or flooding and the protector god of Osiris’ underworld throne – so the name does not really relate to an upbeat mood and state of mind as you might think! Still, a good light-hearted name if you are not so bothered about the actual Egyptian gods that carry the name (might be an apt name for a spraying cat though or a cat with possessive tendencies that follows you everywhere!).
Hathor – The god Hathor was a female goddess of the sky, fertility, women, and love. So for an outgoing, human-friendly, lady cat with exotic or regional looks this might make for a very apt name. It can always be shortened down to Hatty if you don’t want to be mistaken to be calling out for a Viking warrior or Egyptian goddess by your neighbors…
Alexandria – A famous Egyptian port city named after Alexander The Great. It definitely evokes magical and mystical visions of bustling seaside life. A decent name for a female cat that can be shortened to Alex and if you decide you don’t want to name your cat after a city you can always decide you named your cat after the greatest military leader that graced the pages of history…
Mau – All you cat lovers will know there is a breed of cats that originates from Egypt called the Egyptian Mau. They tend to be relatively short cats with long bodies and a spotted coat. Thought to have been around since the time of the pyramids and pharaohs. The name is thought to originate or derive from the miaow of the cat ( but with an Egyptian accent). Even if your cat is not directly of the breed it could make an easy-going name for a cat – nice and short and easy to say – the problem is people might think you named your cat after the infamous Chairman Mao!
Onuris – This name is as Egyptian as it gets. This chap, back in ancient Egypt, was a god of war and a hunter. This could be the perfect Egyptian cat name for a physically assertive male cat that throws his weight about and hunts! Not sure you could successfully shorten it down to something more informal though.
Tutu – In Egyptian mythology, the god Tutu actually took the form of a winged lion. He was a particularly popular god with common people of the time as he was believed to watch over and keep the sleeping safe from bad dreams, which were thought to be brought about by demons at that time. He was also believed to help prolong life and protect the living from the dead! A pretty useful type of god if you are that way inclined! It could be a great name for a cat if you want Egyptian influence and, of course, protection from the dead!
Khufu – Think your cat is regal and sophisticated? A cut above the rest? You could name them after this pharaoh. Khufu was the dude who commissioned and had the great pyramid of Giza built in about 2500BC. Not much is known about him, apart from the pyramid project but his name would make a great cat name – unusual, but exotic and easy to pronounce. Kind of unisex as well…
Ramses – A number of different pharaohs carried this name but the most famous was Ramses II, also known as Ramses the Great. This guy was famous for his success in numerous battles, for having over 200 wives and over 100 children. He really did keep himself busy! Might make a great name for a cat with a certain type of regal character!
Pharaoh – Of course, you could just call your cat Pharaoh instead of actually picking a historic holder of the title…
Bastet – This one could easily be misheard if you called it out in public and you might attract some odd looks but it makes the list because Bastet was the name of the Egyptian cat goddess. She also happened to be the goddess of home, domesticity, fertility, and childbirth and was reputed to protect the home from sickness and evil spirits. You could shorten it down to Baz if you didn’t want to be misheard but still wanted a cat that could protect your home from evil! Probably best used on a female cat.
Tau – Another easy, short name that could be easily used with either a male or female cat. But where does it come from? Tau is the Egyptian word for lion. Pretty apt for a cat…
Nefertiti – Think your cat is beautiful? You could name them after one of the most famous Egyptian queens of all time. Queen Nefertiti was famous for religious goings-on in ancient Egypt, but it is her bust that has seen her fame spread down the centuries. The reference to beauty? Nefertiti means “a beautiful woman has come” in the Egyptian language. Nice, exotic Egyptian name for a female cat…
Nubia – This could be a good name for a ginger cat or a fairer colored cat as well as a sphinx cat or Egyptian Mau. Nubia is an area of Egypt which is how it comes to fall in this list and as for the reference to the color of your cat – the word “nubia” is thought to originate from the Egyptian word for gold. Feels like a female name to me but it could work as a unisex style name.
Memphis – Memphis in Egypt was the ancient capital of Egypt. It also lends itself well to be used as a cat name and as the city was in Egypt it of course makes this list. So if you have a cat that needs an Egyptian name this could work as a good choice. It could work as a cat name for a male or female cat…
Tivali – You might be thinking how does this make the list? It has a sort of Italian sound to it. The connection with Egypt is that that famous Egyptian queen, Cleopatra, liked cats and what was Cleopatra’s cats name? Tivali. Apparently, Tivali means “gift of god” for those that need to know. Would make a great name for a female cat.
So there are 30 great potential Egyptian cat names to get you thinking. Of course, there are lots more that you could go for like Anubis or Horus or modern names like Salah as in the world-famous footballer or you could just go for straightforward Egyptian words like Dalila (which means gentle) – but these are my favorite options and there is enough there to give you some inspiration. Good luck choosing!