Size: Medium to large.
Coat Length(s): Long hair.
Body Type: Moderate.
Grooming Requirement: Twice a week.
Talkativeness: Quiet.
Activity Level: Fairly low.
Affection: Very Affectionate.
Usually Good With: Everyone.
Time Alone: 4 to 8 hours per day.
Attention: Needs average attention.
Handling: Easy to handle.

Few cat breeds are surrounded by such an aura of mystery and enchantment as the Birman. No factual records exist about the origin of the Sacred Cat of Burma—instead, we have a lovely legend. What the legend lacks in scientific fact, it makes up for in charming fiction.

According to the story (which varies, depending upon the version), centuries ago in Burma, 100 sacred amber-eyed pure white cats with long, lovely hair lived in the monastery of Lao-Tsun. These cats carried the souls of departed monks through a process called transmutation. Some of the monks had souls so pure that they could not leave this world, so after they died, the goddess Tsun-Kyan-Kse transmigrated the monks’ souls into the sacred white cats. Upon the cat’s death, the monk’s soul attained Nirvana. Tsun-Kyan-Kse, the goddess of transmutation represented by a beautiful golden statue with glowing sapphire eyes, decided whose souls were worthy to be allowed to live on in the body of one of the temple cats.

The head monk, Mun-Ha, so holy that the god Song-Hio himself braided Mun-Ha’s beard with gold, spent his entire life in service to the goddess. The holy monk’s companion was a sacred cat named Sinh who was known for her kind and gentle nature—a sign that she was worthy company for Mun-Ha. Sinh formed a close bond with the head monk and faithfully joined him each evening when he prayed before the statue of Tsun-Kyan-Kse.

One day the temple was attacked. As Mun-Ha lay dying in front of the statue of Tsun-Kyan-Kse, faithful Sinh climbed onto his chest and purred to comfort and prepare him for his soul’s journey to the next life. When Mun-Ha died, his soul flowed into Sinh, and a miraculous transformation took place. The holy cat stood and faced the goddess, gazing up into the sapphire eyes of the statue of Tsun-Kyan-Kse. Sinh’s amber eyes changed to a brilliant sapphire blue. Her pure white coat changed to a golden hue, similar to the golden statue. Her face, ears, tail and legs darkened to the color of the earth on which Mun-Ha lay. Where Sinh’s paws touched the dead monk, however, they remained a dazzling white, a symbol of Mun-Ha’s pure spirit. The next morning, the remaining 99 cats had been similarly transformed. Sinh did not move from the place of her companion’s death in front of the goddess’s statue and refused all food. In seven days she died, carrying the soul of Mun-Ha to Nirvana. From that time on, the world has been blessed with the Birman.

The legend isn’t what you’d call hard data, but it’s a fascinating story. Fortunately, this beautiful breed is as enchanting as the legend surrounding its creation.

However the Birman came to be, it’s generally accepted that in 1919 a pair of Birman cats were transported to France, possibly from the temple of Lao-Tsun. The male, Maldapour, died on the ocean voyage. However, the female, Sita, arrived in France bearing the Birman’s future breeding stock—Maldapour had impregnated her before achieving Nirvana. Sita’s kittens became the foundation of the breed in Europe. In 1925, the breed was officially recognized in France; the name Birman is from Birmanie, the French word for Burma.

During World War II, the breed suffered setbacks due to the loss of breeding stock, and after the war only two Birmans remained. It took many years of careful crossbreeding (very likely to Persians and Siamese, and possibly other breeds) to re-establish the Birman, but by 1955 the breed had achieved its former glory. In 1959, the first Birman pair arrived in the United States, and the breed was officially recognized by the CFA in 1967. Today, the Birman is one of the most popular longhaired breeds in the United States. All North American cat associations now recognize the Birman for championship.

Birman breeders won’t promise that your Birman will escort your soul to Nirvana, but they will guarantee you a beautiful, devoted feline friend who will love, comfort and entertain you while you’re on this side of life.

Fanciers say Birmans are easy-going, devoted, well-mannered cats with tolerant, gentle and loving personalities, perfect for folks with families and cat-friendly companion animals. Very affectionate, people-oriented and devoted to their preferred persons, they follow their humans around to keep watchful sapphire eyes on the daily routine to make sure it has their blessing. Unlike some of the more active breeds, the Birman enjoys a good cuddle in your lap. They even enjoy being picked up, held and snuggled.

Even though Birmans are less active than some breeds, they aren’t furry doorstops. They have a lively, playful side. Birmans enjoy a good game of fetch with their favorite toy or a game of hide-and-seek with their favorite people. Very intelligent, Birmans quickly learn their names, even if they don’t always come when they’re called. Although they don’t talk as much as the Siamese, they do enjoy a good conversation with their humans and will communicate their thoughts with melodious, soothing meows. Fanciers say they have soft, unobtrusive voices that sound like doves cooing.

Their gentle manner may give the impression that the Birman is a pushover puss, but nothing could be further from the truth. Birmans are receptive to training—their human companions. They don’t approve of their humans leaving for work each day, and expect pampering and petting when you return. With a meaningful meow, a tilt of those dark ears and a direct blue-eyed stare, they clearly communicate their wishes to their human servants. After all, for centuries they were revered and pampered as sacred cats.

The Birman is generally a very healthy breed with no known breed-related genetic diseases. That doesn’t mean your Birman will never get ill since the breed is just as susceptible to contagious diseases and feline ailments as any other breed, but overall the breed is hardy. Even so, it’s still wise to buy from a breeder who provides a written health guarantee.

The just-right combination of genes that creates a show Birman is rare; the Birman is one of the most challenging breeds to perfect. The white on all four feet is particularly difficult to control—perfectly gloved Birmans are hard to come by and are usually kept for breeding.

Born pure white, Birmans are slow to develop and it’s difficult to evaluate a young kitten’s show potential. For this reason, breeders generally don't release their kittens for three or four months. However, even pet-quality Birmans are in demand and most breeders maintain waiting lists. Be flexible about color and gender and you usually won't have to wait as long.

The soft, silky fur is medium to long, but unlike the Persian’s coat, it lacks the thick downy undercoat that causes fur to mat easily. This makes grooming much easier than for some longhaired breeds. Although the breed still requires regular grooming, two thorough combings each week with a good quality steel comb are usually all they need.

The Birman is elongated and stocky, with a strongly built body type, neither svelte nor cobby. The legs are medium in length and heavily boned, with large, round, firm paws. The tail is medium length, in pleasing proportion to the body. Adult males weigh approximately 9 to 15 pounds; adult females weigh approximately 6 to 10 pounds. No outcrossing is allowed.

The Birman’s distinctive head shape strikes a happy medium as well, and is neither flat like the Persian nor sharply pointed like the Siamese. The head is strong, broad and rounded with a medium-length Roman nose, full cheeks and a somewhat rounded muzzle. The jaws are heavy and the chin is strong and well-developed. The vivid, deep blue eyes are set well apart and are almost round with a sweet expression. The outer corners are tilted very slightly upward. The ears are medium in length, rounded at the tips and almost as wide at the base as they are tall. They are set as much to the side as to the top of the head.

The Birman’s coat is one of its most outstanding features. The breed has a lush ruff around the neck that frames the face, and a bottle-brush tail that’s long and luxuriously soft to the touch. The coat is also longer on the tummy and hindquarters. The soft, silky fur is medium-long to long, but, unlike the Persian, lacks the downy undercoat that would cause it to mat easily; the tresses are usually tangle-free.

The pointed pattern is available in a variety of hues in the color classes of solid point, lynx point and particolor point. In most registries, the Birman comes in seal point, blue point, chocolate point, lilac point (sometimes called frost point), red point and cream point. The points are clearly defined with strong contrast to the body color, except on the white gloves. The body color is a paler shade of the point color, and should be even paler on the underbelly. Golden mist, a faint golden beige cast on the cat’s back and sides, is desirable in all point colors. Whatever the color, however, Birmans always have the pointed pattern, embellished by pure white feet.

Unique to the breed are their gloves and laces: the glove is the white color on each paw, on the front paws ending in front of the ankle, in an even line across the feet. On the back paws, white covers all the toes and may extend somewhat higher than the front; white continues up the back of each rear leg, forming laces. They should be evenly matched and end in a point before reaching the hock. Producing Birmans with perfect white feet is the thorn in the paw of every Birman breeder.