Ailuromancy

"Aeluromancy" redirects here. For flour divination, see Aleuromancy.

Ailuromancy or aeluromancy (from Greek: αἴλουρος, romanized: aílouros, lit. 'cat'), also known as felidomancy, is a form of theriomancy. It is divination using cats' movements or jumps to predict future events, especially the weather.

A curled up cat with its head touching the ground could, for some, portend storms

One of the most common methods of ailuromancy utilizes the movements and behaviours of a cat to predict upcoming weather patterns. For example, if the cat turns its tail to a fire or any substituting heat source, it foretells a possible change in weather, particularly the coming of heavy rain or hard frost. Another example is if a cat curls up with its forehead touching the ground, it indicates that storms will happen in the near future.

See also

• Cultural depictions of cats