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The domestication of cats by humans is as much about occupation as it is an unassuming, mutual compromise that developed over thousands of years. Unlike dogs, who were specifically bred from wolves to be utility and companion animals, cats essentially domesticated themselves.
It begins sometime around 9,000 years ago, in the Fertile Crescent, today's Middle East regions, where early agrarian societies were starting to form. When man first began to store surplus grain, the rodents took over, and soon after them, the wildcats, attracted by the easy hunting.
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These wildcats, which in this instance were "Felis lybica" (the African wildcat), were solitary and suspicious of their ways, but some had more amenable attitudes towards men. These approachable cats thrived in the settlements where they enjoyed food and some protection.
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Man was also gainers from the efficiency of the cats as hunters, keeping the rodent numbers down. Over the generations, this loose bond gradually developed to become better known. By around 7500 BCE, remains found on the island of Cyprus, where cats would have needed to be transported by people intentionally, show that cats were already living closely with people.
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Skip forward to Egypt, and the bond had become downright cultural veneration. In 2000 BCE, cats were no longer just tolerated, Egyptians loved them. Egyptians identified cats with divinity and protection, and the cat goddess Bastet symbolized home life, fertility, and graciousness. To slay a cat was to be guilty of a serious offense, and families of cat owners tended to mummify their feline friends, burying them with ritual and love. Their ability to ward off vermin and snakes only increased their sacred standing.
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And from there, cats spread all around the ancient world, on ships, in caravans, by war and trade. The Romans enjoyed them and spread them all over Europe. In Asia, they were introduced to houses and monasteries, often linked with spirituality and good fortune.
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By the medieval period, cats had a more nuanced image in Europe, sometimes even with witches and superstition, but they never completely lost their practical attraction. Along the way, cats were semi-domesticated, to a degree, retaining an independence that would set them apart from other domesticates.
