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History of Burmese | About Burmese | Caring for Burmese

The Burmese is an "established breed". The history of the Burmese in North America dates back to 1930 when Dr. Joseph Thompson of San Francisco acquired a walnut-colored cat

from the Orient. This cat, named Wong Mau, was described as a "rather small cat, fine boned but with a more compact body than that of a Siamese, with a shorter tail, a rounded, short muzzled head with greater width between round eyes." She was to become the "mother" of the Burmese breed.

All North American Burmese cats can trace their heritage back to Wong Mau. Dr. Thompson, along with other well-known breeders, Virginia Cobb and Billie Gerst and geneticist Dr. Clyde Keeler, developed a breeding program to identify and study the genetic characteristics of Wong Mau. Through their studies, the Burmese gene was identified and isolated. The first ever article published on the genetics of the domesticated feline was the result of this early breeding experiment.

The Burmese breed was born. The breed was proposed to CFA in 1934 and accepted for studbook registration in 1936. Siamese were used in the early breeding programs of the Burmese. In 1947, CFA suspended registration of the breed until this practice was eliminated. The breeders took this seriously, stopped using Siamese, developed a more defined standard and was reinstated for registration in 1953 and accepted for championship in 1957 and adopted the standard in 1959. This standard has remained essentially unchanged since then. For a breed, which has started in the US with just one cat in 1930, the Burmese has solidly established themselves as a highly popular and successful member of the cat fancy.

According to the Cat Fancier's Association 2002 registration statistics, Burmese is the 10th most popular breed. CFA recognizes 36 different breeds for championship competition.

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