Norwegian Forest Cats: The Pets of the Vikings

The “mystic wildcat of fairy tales” is quickly becoming a favorite family pet in Northern Europe. The Norwegian forest cat (or scogkatts in Norwegian) originated between 1500 and 4,000 years ago, as a result of natural selection.

Though they almost went extinct during World War II, the ancient cats are making a comeback in Norway, Sweden, Iceland and even France. Their exact origin is up for debate. One theory is the Vikings brought short-haired from the British archipelago that mixed with long-haired cats brought by the crusaders. Another claims they are a hybrid of Siberian forest cats from Russia and Turkish Angoras.