Patterns in the Domesticated Cat

April 23, 2026

Part 1: What is a Pattern?
Also: The Solid Pattern

Pat Jacobberger, CFA Judge Emeritus

What Is a Pattern?

*This Oriental – Longhair Division has a very flashy pattern: blue patched spotted tabby and white.*

Design, arrangement, scheme, configuration, composition, stencil – all these words describe what a pattern might be. A pattern can also be defined as a “template” – a model that can be used repeatedly to duplicate a design.

Once a pattern is defined and described, it becomes the backdrop for the addition of almost any color. While the colors may change from cat to cat, patterns remain essentially the same.

For example, consider the classic tabby pattern. The markings are specifically detailed and described in the classic tabby standard description. It makes no difference if the cat is a silver tabby, a red tabby, or a brown tabby. The swirls, barring – all the markings will essentially be the same.

Many patterns can combine to form several more complex patterns. Examples of complex combination patterns are pointed and white, parti-color and white, and tabby and white. Over the next few months, we will explore these and other patterns further.

Every domesticated cat has a defining pattern. In the organized cat fancy where pedigreed cats are registered, patterns are mainly used to classify those cats within breeds. For some breeds, the pattern can be the most important characteristic that helps to distinguish a breed, such as in the Ocicat, Egyptian Mau, or the Turkish Van. In other breeds, many patterns may be included in the written show standard.

There are six basic pattern groups that are defined and described among domesticated cats. We will examine each one:

Solid (self-colored)
Shaded
Tabby
Parti-color
Bi-color
Pointed
The Russian Blue is one of three breeds which come in ONLY the solid blue pattern. The other two are the Korat and the Chartreux.

The Solid Color or Self-Color Pattern

Most experts consider the brown mackerel tabby shorthair (known as Felis libyca) to be the primary ancestor of the domesticated cat. It is often said that “all cats” are tabbies beneath the many genetic mutations that have occurred over the last several thousand years. The solid color or self-color pattern is among the oldest pattern mutations in the domestic cat. Evidence of it can be seen in artwork and tapestry that is thousands of years old.

In the solid color or self-color pattern, there are no markings or white of any kind. It does not matter what the basic color of the cat is; a solid color cat has no tabby markings, white lockets, or significant changes between the tip of the hair and the skin. The cat may be black, cream (beige), blue (gray), red (orange), white, chocolate (brown), cinnamon, fawn, or lilac colored and may be either male or female.