20.00N 108.00E!

The above map reference will direct you to the Gulf of Tonkin, situated to the South of China and the East of North Vietnam : an area that was historically named Tongking. It is the location of fierce pirates; relentlessly hot, humid weather and, according to legend, the origination for the naming of the magical, intelligent, creatures better known as Tonkinese Cats. Indeed, if one traces the line of latitude 20 degrees through to land, you will see that it neatly divides the adjoining countries of Burma and Thailand. A fact which aptly illustrates the naming of a cat breed which is historically, a cross between its Burmese and Siamese parent breeds.

Golden Treasure

The border between Thailand and Burma is called the Tanen Tong Dan which translates as the Golden Border and, coupled with the fact that the Thai word for gold is Tong, it was logical that an alternative title for the "Tonk" should emerge as the Golden Siamese: perhaps partly derived from the Asian Golden Cat.

Burmese, Tonkinese or Siamese?

Whatever its antecedents, one thing is sure that these (three breeds of ) cats have a considerable history. Illustrations of markedly similar felines exist within the ancient Thai manuscript known as the 'Cat-Book Poems of Siam ' which dates from the Ayudha period (1350 - 1767). Within these pages there are pictures which clearly refer to the Tonkinese, Siamese, Burmese and Korat breeds. These "Copper Cats", known as Thong Daeng or Supalak, were undoubtedly the ancestors of the three breeds. Many cats that were historically brought to the West and thought to be Burmese or Siamese, were in fact Tonkinese. It is hardly surprising that mistakes were made as all three breeds share strikingly similar visual characteristics which are enhanced by their intricately woven genetic histories.

From East to West

The Tonkinese breed has existed within the West for at least a hundred years. Towards the end of Victoria's reign, a cat which was initially designated as a Copper (Burmese), was exported from Singapore to an English breeder who described it as a "chocolate variety of the royal Siamese cat ... rich chocolate or seal, with darker face, ears and tail; the legs are a shade darker which intensifies toward the feet". Many other examples of cats with the distinctive Tonk. coat pattern has existed throughout the last century.

How the Tonk. became recognised as a breed

The foundation dam of the modern breed of Burmese was a single walnut-brown cat called Wong Mau, which was imported into the USA, from Rangoon in 1930.

Its owner was a physciatrist, Dr.J. Thompson, who was able to bring a scientific mind to his ownership and genetically establish the queen to be a Tonkinese.

The cat was described as a brown hybrid with darker points on her face, legs, feet and tail.

She was bred with a seal-point Siamese called Tai Mau and produced kittens which exhibited a close resemblance to herself as well as several with a distinctly Siamese coat pattern.

Dr. Thompson, in collaboration with breeder and geneticist friends, was astute enough to realise that by crossbreeding Wong-Mau with one of her sons, he could further differentiate the genetic difference between her and his Siamese. Accordingly, the second litter produced two different coat patterns: a consistent brown coat and a medium brown coat highlighted with darker points.

Over several generations, three varieties of kitten were identified among Wong Mau's descendants. These were cats with a pale overall body highlighted by the typical Siamese colouring of dark brown points; cats that were largely dark-brown all over- making them the first true Burmese and those with a very much darker brown body whose coats were nonetheless broken by an identifiable darkening at the points much like Wong Mau herself. One of Dr. Thompson's distinguished collaborators, the geneticist Roy Robinson concluded:

"The Tonkinese is one of the newer breeds, comparatively speaking; and a truly elegant cat to boot. The Tonkinese was developed from crosses between two established breeds; made possible by a quirk in feline coat colour genetics. It is not a hybrid, as I heard it described some while ago when specimens were on exhibition for the first time. The word hybrid should be reserved for crosses between different species."

These intelligent and loving cats are now well established as a recognised breed in this country and indeed are bred and appreciated as far afield as Australia and America.

Tonkinese in the UK (Taken from an extract written in a Tonkinese Cat Club pamphlet)

"In the UK the Cat Association was the first to recognise the Tonkinese as an experimental breed and interest began to grow - Mary Hodgkinson and Tommy and Diana Bishop, who were among the founders of the C.A. Club, accepted the challenge of aiming a Recognition by the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy and started negotiations.

During the winter of 1990 they drove to the GCCF office in Bridgewater, Somerset, through a blizzard- there were deadlines to meet and much paperwork to be organised!

The Tonkinese Breed Club has gone from strength to strength and is now affiliated, but in November 1994 some breeders, including many of the original founders of the first Club, felt that there was now room for more than one club and went on to found the Tonkinese Cat Club (now also affiliated to the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy)...."

My warmest thanks go out to all those people who worked so hard to establish the breed in this country, without them we would not have the pleasure of sharing our lives with such an beautifully natured yet enigmatic feline.