The Abyssinian is a breed of cat with a distinctive "ticked" tabby coat, in which individual hairs are banded with different colours. They are also known simply as Abys.
The first members of the breed to be exhibited in England were brought there from Abyssinia, hence the name. Genetic studies place the breed's origins in Southeast Asia and the coasts of the Indian Ocean, however. It is possible that the breed was introduced to Abyssinia by travelers who had stopped in Calcutta.
Once a comparatively obscure breed, the Abyssinian had become one of the top five most popular cat breeds by 2016.
