Why do people name black cats Behemoth?
Every now and then, you meet a black cat named Behemoth. And if you know, you know. The name comes from literature, not legend. Long before internet memes made grumpy cats famous, Mikhail Bulgakov gave us Behemoth: a giant black tom with a revolver, a chessboard, and a taste for vodka. Created in The Master and Margarita, Behemoth is no ordinary housecat.
The name Behemoth comes from the Book of Job in the Old Testament, where he is described as a primeval beast of overwhelming strength. Untameable, unknowable, and forged by God as a counterpart to Leviathan. Not quite a myth, but not entirely real either. The word itself became shorthand for anything enormous and unstoppable. Over centuries, behemoth came to mean not just a creature, but a force: raw, ancient, elemental. Bulgakov borrowed the name but twisted the image, turning a Biblical monster into a witty black cat with a revolver.
He walks on two legs, insults bureaucrats, drinks at cafés, and sets fire to theatres. He’s a cat-shaped demon who travels with the Devil, and yet, he is unmistakably a cat.
The Master and Margarita was written during the 1930s in the Soviet Union, but wasn’t published until the 1960s, long after Bulgakov’s death. Banned for years across the Eastern Bloc, the novel became a cult favourite. The first complete, uncensored edition of the novel was published in France in 1967 by YMCA Press, based on manuscripts smuggled out of the USSR. Some readers return to it again and again; others have never heard of it. But once you meet Behemoth, you never forget him.
Why do we love Behemoth? Maybe because beneath the mischief and madness, he behaves just like a real cat: unpredictable, theatrical, and completely in control of his own story. He isn’t soft or sweet; he’s bold, intelligent, and driven by appetite and instinct.
Behemoth reminds us that cats are not little dogs. They are independent, complex, and often closer to wild than tame. At 3coty®, we believe in respecting that wild nature, and it starts with food. No tricks, no fillers, no gimmicks. Just meat, because even the most legendary cats never compromise.
A black cat is never just a black cat. In fiction and in life, they carry a certain power, mystery, mischief, and meaning. Behemoth might be satire, but he’s also a tribute. To the cat who watches, who waits, who walks their own path. The one who owns the room the moment they enter it.
Have you read The Master and Margarita? Or are you meeting Behemoth for the first time? Let us know.
Did you know?
Black cats are celebrated around the world on different days, some official, some less. August 17 and October 27 might appear on your calendar. These dates honour the mystery, power and misunderstood history of black cats. Just like Behemoth, they remind us that cats are never ordinary. For those who live with a black cat, every day can be Black Cat Day.
