210+ Black Cat Names {And Meanings}

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Are you a new pet parent who has been lucky enough to welcome a black cat into your heart and home? Or are you an animal advocate working to find some fun names in advance of one of the many black cat holidays? If you are inspired to name a fur baby after his or her dark coat, we’ve got black cat names for all kinds of interests!

Why It’s So Important for Black Cats to Have Great Names

Black cats are often overlooked in shelters, so much so that the all-too-common fate of longer shelter stays or perhaps not getting adopted at all has been termed “Black Cat Syndrome.”

A great name can help draw attention to wonderful cats who otherwise might get overlooked.

Our Black Cats’ Names

We have three black and black & white cats: Inca, Lucky and Jetty (above)!

And we’ve had five more black or black and white cats who live on in our hearts: Shady, Felix, KitKat, Ochi and Elaine!

Words associated with the color black

• Ash — If your cat’s black coat also features undertones of grey or brown, you might want to name your feline friend after a fire’s remnants.
• Blackbeard
• Blackbird — Fans of The Beatles might want to name their fab feline friend after this Lennon and McCartney-penned tune.
• Blackboard
• Blackjack — It’s a sure bet that your cat will love this name!
• Crow — Did you know that the crow is a symbol of intelligence and adaptability?
• Dahlia — A name for a feline whose pet parent loves flowers.
• Darkling — A word which means growing darkness, Darkling is also the name of the character Alexander Morozov in the Shadow and Bone trilogy by author Leigh Bardugo.
• Ebony — Did you know that this somber shade denotes wealth and elegance?
• Hershey
• Johnny Cash (or just Cash or JC): for the four-legged man in black in your life.
• Limo or Limousine
• Mascara — Not only a lash darkener, mascara is also the Spanish word for “mask.”
• Melanite — A stone which is believed by some to protect and calm.
• Midnight — Just as your cat is enjoying the dawn of a new day in his or her life, so midnight denotes the beginning of a brand new day.
• Nightwing — Are you a cat-loving comic book buff? How about naming your new fur baby after this DC Comics character!
• Obsidian — Did you know that this volcanic glass rock is said to be a protector against negative energy?
• Orpheus — Derived from the Greek word for darkness of night.
• Onyx — There are those who believe that this semiprecious stone brings increased happiness.
• Panther — This regal black cat represents leadership and power.
• Silhouette
• Swarthy
• Tux, Tuxie or Tuxedo — A purr-fect black and white cat name!
• Yin — The dark half of the yin/yang symbol, which is intertwined with its opposite, yet corresponding, light “yang” force. (And yang is a great choice among white cat names!)

Black Female Cat Names

One of the biggest trends in the naming of pets in recent years has been the use of human names for our cats. Here’s a list of girls’ names associated with the color black–would one of them be the cat’s meow for your new feline?

• Abyss (English: A deep or seemingly bottomless pit, often used to describe darkness)
• Amaya (Japanese: Night rain)
• Ash (English: Remains of fire, associated with dark gray/black color)
• Banshee (Irish: A spirit in Irish mythology, often associated with darkness)
• Bella (Italian: Beautiful – a great name for a beautiful black cat)
• Brimstone (English: Dark, fiery, and mysterious)
• Cardew (Welsh: dark)
• Cethin (Welsh: dark, swarthy)
• Charna (Yiddish: dark)
• Chernika (Russian: Blackberry)
• Ciara (Irish: Dark)
• Cocoa (English: A reference to dark cocoa beans)
• Crow (English: A black bird, synonymous with the color black)
• Darkness (English: The absence of light)
• Dusk (English: The darker stage of twilight)
• Ebony (English: A type of dark-colored wood)
• Eclipse (English: An astronomical event that brings darkness)
• Elvira (Spanish: Truth-white, can be associated with contrast and darkness)
• Ember (English: A glowing, hot coal in a fading fire)
• Enigma (Greek: Mystery, often associated with the unknown darkness)
• Espresso (Italian: A dark, rich coffee)
• Fiona (Gaelic: Fair or white, but can be used ironically for a black cat)
• Gothica (English: Pertaining to the dark and mysterious Gothic style)
• Graphite (English: A type of dark mineral)
• Guinness (English: A type of dark beer)
• Hesper: (Greek) Evening star
• Isra: (Arabic) journey of the night
• Inky (English: Resembling ink, which is typically black)
• Jet (English: A type of black gemstone)
• Kali (Sanskrit: Black or dark)
• Kuro (Japanese: Black)
• Layla: see Leila
• Leila (Arabic: night or Persian: dark haired)
• Luna (Italian/Spanish: Moon, often associated with the dark night sky)
• Mamba (English: A type of dark-colored snake)
• Maura (derived from Latin: dark)
• Melaina: (Greek) dark
• Melanie: derived from Melaina
• Midnight (English: The middle of the night, often associated with darkness)
• Mora (Latin: A type of blackberry)
• Mystery (English: Something unexplained or unknown, often associated with darkness)
• Nacht (Dutch and German: night)
• Natt (Swedish):night)
• Nebula (Latin: A cloud in outer space, often dark and mysterious)
• Nero (Italian: Black)
• Nisha (Sanskrit: Night)
• Noche (Spanish: Night)
• Noir (French: Black or coffee drinkers could go for a double name of Cafe Noir.)
• Notte (Italian: night)
• Obsidian (English: A black volcanic glass)
• Onyx (Greek: A type of black gemstone)
• Raven (English: A black bird, synonymous with the color black)
• Sable (Slavic: Black)
• Semira (Arabic: nighttime companion, Hebrew: from the heavens)
• Shadow (English: An area of darkness created when light is blocked)
• Shady (English: Filled with shade or darkness)
• Twilight (English: The time of day when the sky is a mixture of darkness and light)
• Ursa: (Scandinavian and Latin: Little She-Bear)
• Ursula (Derived from the Latin for bear, meaning little bear)
• Velvet (English: A type of fabric, often associated with dark elegance)
• Vesper (Latin: Evening, often associated with darkness)
• Wasabe (Sioux: Black Bear)
• Zara (Arabic: Princess, can imply dark beauty)

Black Male Cat Names

• Adham (Arabic: black)
• Afagddu (Welsh: utter darkness)
• Amavasya (Sanskrit: dark moon, no moon night)
• Aswald (Arabic: Form of Aswad or black.)
• Bärli (Swiss-German: little bear–and the name of our black dog!)
• Bhaaskara (Sanskrit: one who radiates light but also refers to a dark phase of the moon)
• Blake (Old English: dark, dark-haired)
• Cernunnos (Celtic: horned god associated with darkness and fertility)
• Ciar (Irish: black)
• Ciardha (Irish: black)
• Colby (Norse: dark-haired)
• Cole (English: swarthy, coal-black)
• Collis (English: dark-haired)
• Corbin (Latin: dark as a raven)
• Darcy (Irish: dark)
• Devraj (Sanskrit: dark ruler)
• Donn (Irish: dark)
• Dougal (Gaelic: dark stranger)
• Duff (Gaelic: dark)
• Dunstan (Middle English name is formed from two words meaning dark stone)
• Duncan (Gaelic: dark warrior)
• Dusk (English: the dark time of day)

• Erebus (Greek: Greek mythological deity representing the personification of darkness.)
• Gethin (Welsh: dark-skinned)
• Hamil (Old English: scarred, dark)
• Hemakara (Sanskrit: golden-dark)
• Kala (Sanskrit/Hawaiian: time or black/dark)
• Kaliyan (Tamil: a period marked by darkness or a person with a dark complexion)
• Kieran (Irish: little dark one)
• Krishna (Sanskrit: black or dark)
• Lilaach (Hebrew: night, dark)
• Lysander (Greek: liberator, associated with darkness in some literature)
• Maroulis: (Greek: dark)
• Maurice (Latin: dark)
• Maury: form of Mauricio
• Mauricio or Maurizio: (Italian: dark)
• Melan (Greek: dark, black)
• Merle (French: blackbird)
• Moritz (German: form of Maurice)
• Morris: derived from Maurice
• Morrissey (Celtic: choice of the sea, often associated with darkness)
• Nerez (Slavic: dark-haired)
• Nezar (Arabic: scatterer, also associated with darkness)
• Nigel (Irish: dark or black)
• Noir (French: black)
• Orpheus (Greek: the darkness of night)
• Sauda (Swahili: dark complexion)
• Shyam (Sanskrit: dark, black)
• Sullivan (Irish: dark eyes)
• Swartz (common last name was derived from the German word for black)
• Tamas (Sanskrit: darkness)
• Tariq (Arabic: morning star, brings light to darkness)
• Teerthak (Sanskrit: a dark pilgrim)
• Tristan (Celtic: noise, tumult, associated with darkness in literature)
• Vajraja (Sanskrit: hard/dark as a diamond)
• Valin (Sanskrit: fortress in the dark)
• Vritra (Sanskrit: enveloper, a name associated with darkness in Hindu mythology)
• Zalmai (Pashto: young, dark)
• Zerach (Hebrew: shining light or rising of light, can be a contrast to darkness)

Names for Black Cats in Movies

• Bagheera –Meaning “panther” (or “leopard”) in Hindustani, Bagheera is the kind-hearted wild cat who befriends the “man cub” Mowgli in The Jungle Book.
• Berloiz — This cute kitty, who was named in honor of composer Hector Berloiz, is one of Duchess’s litter in The Aristocats.
• Cosmic Creeper — This unkempt, cantankerous kitty lived in the home of apprentice witch Miss Eglantine Price in the movie Bedknobs and Broomsticks, a great Disney cat name!
• Figaro — A name that has become synonymous with “barber” thanks to the comedic opera The Marriage of Figaro, this cute tuxedo cat was Geppetto’s feline friend in Pinocchio.

• Jiji — Phil Hartman lent his voice to an apprentice witch’s familiar in the 1989 animated movie Kiki’s Delivery Service.
• Lucifer — Did you know that this devilishly sneaky tuxedo cat from Cinderella was based on a polydactyl cat called Feetsy? He was feline family member of a Disney animator who was working on the film.
• Mittens — This teeny, tough tuxedo cat helped a dog in search of his human in Bolt.
• Mr. Kittles — If you are a fan of silliness rather than scares, you might want to name your pal with paws after the kitty who starts a tongue in cheek “cat fight” in the horror movie parody Scary Movie 2.
• Oliver — This tiny cartoon tuxedo cat (whose name means both “ancestor’s descendant” and “olive or olive tree”) was reminiscent of Charles Dickens’ famous character from Oliver Twist.
• Plagg — This camembert-loving kitty-inspired kwami helps mild-mannered model/ French student Adrien Agreste transform into Cat Noir in Miraculous: The Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir.
• Scat Cat — TV/movie star and musician Scatman Crothers provided the voice of the purring trumpet player in the 1970 Disney film The Aristocats.
• Tabitha — Actress Dee Wallace of E.T. fame provided the voice of the black cat in My Stepbrother is a Vampire?!
• Thackery Binx — A boy transformed into an immortal black cat after being cursed by a witch in the Halloween season favorite, Hocus Pocus.
• Winky — A black cat who befriends two extraterrestrial children in the 1975 movie Escape To Witch Mountain.

Famous People Named Black

• Cilla Black — Are you a music-loving Anglophile? You might want to name a cat whose love puts a song in your heart after the English chart-topper who was a buddy to the Beatles back in the ’60s.
• Clint Black — Do you like to croon along to country tunes? Why not name the cat who now has a forever home with you after the country music icon who took “Nobody’s Home” to the top of the charts?
• Jack Black — Did you know that the star of Jumanji and School of Rock starred alongside the late philanthropic feline Lil BUB in a PSA about climate change?

Famous Black Cats

• Cole — One half of the Internet famous duo of Cole and Marmalade.
• Gladstone — A rescue cat who took on the tittle of Chief Mouser of HM Treasury in Whitehall, London.
• Henri, le Chat Noir — This philosophical feline, who pondered the meaning of life in purrfect French, brought laughter to his fans thank to the videos of The Thieving Filmmaker (aka Will Braden).
• Hodge — Take a trip to London and you might come across the statue of a black cat named Hodge, who was a purring pal of the creator of the first English dictionary, 18th century writer Dr. Samuel Johnson.

• Homer (the blind wonder cat) — His name a homage to the Greek poet who penned “The Odyssey,’ Homer was the muse for his pet parent to write the New York Times bestseller Homer’s Odyssey.
• Trim — This adventurous cat, who voyaged around the coast of Australia in the early 1800s, was honored with his own statue:

Black Cat Names Inspired by TV shows and literature

• Batman/Batgirl — A name for the cat of a comic book enthusiast.
• Black Panther — Wakanda forever!Comic book buffs might want to name their new feline friend after the Marvel Comics superhero.
• Black Widow — Marvel comics fans might want to name their new fur baby after the super heroine, or call their cat after the character behind the costume, Natasha Romanov.
• Black Pearl — A cat name for fans of Pirates of The Caribbean!
• Black Velvet
• Darth: For the Star Wars fans!
• Felix the Cat — An animated black cat who has made people smile since 1919!
• Kitty Kat — Morticia Adams’ feline in The Addams Family.
• Liebchen — The Grand High Witch’s familiar in The Witches. (Fun fact: The evil witch in the 1990 version of the Roald Dahl tale was portrayed by Anjelica Huston, an animal advocate who is a pet parent to two orange tabbies.)
• Luna — Anime aficionados might want to name their fur baby after the black cat who has the ability to communicate in Sailor Moon.
• Miss Kitty Fantastico — Fans of Buffy the Vampire slayer might remember Willow and Tara’s tiny tuxedo cat.
• Mr. Mistoffelees — You can make ‘Memories” to last a lifetime with a feline friend named after the tuxedo cat conjured up by T. S. Eliot for his poetry book Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, who would go on to be immortalized on stage and screen in CATS.
• Plagg — This camembert-loving kitty-inspired kwami helps mild-mannered model/ French student Adrien Agreste transform into Cat Noir in Miraculous: The Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir.
• Pluto — Although there would be those who think that you’ve named you feline family member after a Disney dog, you (and all those who love tales of terror) will know that you’ve named your cat companion after a character in Edgar Allen Poe’s The Black Cat.
• Salem Saberhagen — A cat who had dreams of world domination, this kitty character is familiar to anyone who watched Sabrina The Teenage Witch.
• Snowball II — One of The Simpsons noir-shaded feline friends, each of whom was named Snowball.

Cute black cat names from characters associated with black cats

• Adrien — Meaning “rich,” Adrien Agreste is the secret identity of Cat Noir in the animated series Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir.
• Cat (or Chat) Noir — Even Madonna is a fan of Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir, the animated series which includes mild-mannered teenage fashion model Adrien Agreste, who can transform into a feline-like fighter of foes with help from his cat-styled kwami, Plagg.
• Catwoman — Cat-loving DC Comics fans can name their new purring pal about the anti-heroine from the Batman universe, or after one of the many actresses who have portrayed her on the big and/or small screen: Halle Berry, Camren Bicondova, Eliza Dushku, Anne Hathaway, Eartha Kitt, Zoe Kravitz, Sanaa Lathan, Lee Meriwether, Jennifer Morrison, Julie Newmar, Michelle Pfeiffer and the late Naya Rivera.
• Coraline — While the black cat in this 2009 sop-animation fantasy doesn’t have a name, you could name your cat after the movie’s title character.
• Eglantine — Meaning “wild rose” or “sweetbriar,” the name Eglantine is known by Disney fans as belonging to an apprentice witch portrayed by Angela Lansbury in Bedknobs and Broomsticks.
• Gillian — Meaning “child of the gods,” the name Gillian was chosen by Practical Magic author Alice Hoffman for her novel’s free-spirited witch.
• Sabrina — Meaning “river goddess,” thanks to ABC’s TGI Friday line up in the ’90s Sabrina Spellman became everyone’s favorite teenage witch.
• Sally — Brought to life on the big screen by Sandra Bullock, in the best selling novel Practical Magic author Alice Hoffman described the character of Sally Owens as having hair “as black as the pelts of the ill-mannered cats the aunts allowed to skulk through the garden and claw at the draperies in the parlor.” The name Sally means “princess.”
• Samantha Stevens — Generations of fans have watched an animated black cat transform into Samantha Stevens as the theme music of Betwithed plays.
• Zorro

Famous Fictional Characters Named Black

• Billy Black — Are you a film fan who is searching for a Twilight cat name for your black cat? Billy means “resolute protection”– a good name for both tribal leader Billy Black…and your cat!
• Chantay Black — A character from DeGrassi: The Next Generation.What are the Cat Names in Harry Potter?
• Jacob Black –Is your new kitty companion loyal and warm-hearted? You could name him after him after every Twihard’s favorite stalwart shape-shifter! The name Jacob means “supplanter.”
• Sirius Black — Known as the Dogstar (Alpha Canis Majoris) in the night sky, Sirius was an appellation for a wizard whose Animagnus was a dog. Also one of many great Harry Potter cat names for pets!

“Black” in Different Languages

• Danish — Sort
• Dutch — Zwart
• Finnish — Musta
• French — Noir
• German — Schwartz
• Hawaiian — Ele’ele
• Italian — Nero
• Japanese — Kuro
• Maori — Pango
• Portuguese — Preto
• Somanli — Madow
• Swahili — Nyeusi

Food-Inspired Names

• Anise — Also known as aniseed, the name would be a good fit for a feline who is sowing the seeds of a new life as part of a forever family
• Black Bean
• Blackberry
• Charcoal
• Coffee
• Cola
• Espresso
• Java
• Licorice — Because your cat is sweeter than candy!
• Nori — a red seaweed that turns to black when dried.
• Pepper — The purrfect name for the cat who spices up your life!
• Raisin
• Sloe

Nature-Inspired Names for Black Cats

• Ash
• Baby Bear
• Bat — Did you know that the Chinese word for bat means “good luck?
• Bear
• Blackbird
• Carbon
• Charcoal — A deep gray that borders on black.
• Coal or Cole– Used as a fuel source, the name for this sedimentary rock would be a good fit for a feline with boundless energy.
• Cosmo
• Cosmos
• Cricket
• Crow
• Ember
• Evening
• Eventide
• Flint
• Grackle — The grackle is a symbol of bravery!
• Graphite
• Ink, Inky — Just like a tattoo, your love for your black cat will always be with you.
• Jet — A stone that is thought by some to offer spiritual guidance.
• Jett or Jetty: usually referencing Jet, a type of lignite. (Our black cat is named Jetty!)
• Lava
• Lead
• Marble
• Midnight
• Murky
• Night
• Nighthawk — While budding ornithologists may want to call their cat the name of a nocturnal bird, comic book fans might consider naming their purring pal after characters from DC Comics, and Marvel Comics.
• Nocturna: for the black cat who wants to stay up at night!
• Obsidian
• Olive: Black olives
• Onyx
• Pitch
• Panther
• Raven — Did you know that this black bird is a symbol of insightfulness?
• Sable
• Shadow — A sweet name for a cat who loves to follow you.
• Shade or Shady — For the cat who has found shelter in your home. (One of the black cat names we’ve used in our family!)
• Slate
• Smoke
• Smoky
• Soot — A type of carbon that is a shade shy of black.
• Squid: The black ink of the squid gives its color to many foods and has been shown to have health benefits.
• Starling
• Stormy
• Sunspot
• Twilight — a good name for the cat of anyone who is a fan of author Stephenie Meyer’s tale of immortal love, or for those who love the time of day just before the black of night falls.
• Umbra: shadow

Famous Pet Parents of Black Cats

• Marian Anderson — A ground-breaking performer who made history with her rendition of “My County, ‘Tis of Thee” on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, the contralto spoke and sang of her love for her cat Snoopy in her 1963 album Snoopycat: The Adventures of Marian Anderson’s Cat Snoopy.
• Ernest Hemingway — The acclaimed author was a proud “Papa” to a number of cats (many of them polydactyl), including at least one black cat. (Fun fact: Each of Hemingway’s purring pals was named after a famous person — a practice which continues today at The Ernest Hemingway Museum in Key West, Florida.)
• BJ Laflin
• John Lennon — The fact that the Beatle was a father to multiple felines, including a black cat named Salt, is music to our ears.
• Henri Matisse — Cats star is several of the great artist’s works, including a 1910 painting Girl with a Black Cat. Is the coal-coated kitty who is contentedly curled up in the lap of Matisse’s daughter Marguerite the family’s black cat, La Puce?
• Dennis Quaid — The actor who loves companion animals so much that he has a pet podcast called The Pet Show adopted a 6-year-old black cat whom the rescue organization had named Dennis Quaid!
• Simon Tofield — The creator of the cartoon Simon’s Cat is a pet parent to four felines, two of them noir beauties named Teddy and Hugh.
• Mark Twain — The friendship between the acclaimed author and his black cat was immortalized in a children’s book titled Bambino and Mr. Twain.
• Twiggy — The fashion icon showed the world that trends may come and go, but compassion never goes out of style when she teamed up with Cats Protection for Black Cat Awareness Day. Speaking about her black cat Titania, the supermodel stated that she “is a brilliant friend and she brightens up my life. I call her my lucky black cat and I adore her.”
• P.G. Wodehouse — The witty writer who brought Wooster and Jeeves to life offered a second chance at life to number of cats. A black cat and a tuxedo cat were among the felines who became part of his fur family, and the acclaimed author’s admiration for both Fidos and felines prompted Wodehouse to donate a parcel of land to the no-kill shelter Bideawee in 1956, and to found the now defunct P.G. Wodehouse Animal Shelter in the early 1970s.
• Frank Zappa — The musician struck a pose with his black-furred buddy Marshmoff for the cover of his album London Symphony Orchestra, Vol. 2.

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