The Birman cat is believed to have originated in Burma, where it was considered sacred, The companion cat of the Kittah Priests. There is a legend as to how the Birman cat developed the colors they are today.

"ORIGINALLY, THE GUARDIANS OF THE TEMPLE OF LAOTSUN WERE YELLOW-EYED WHITE CATS WITH LONG HAIR. THE GOLDEN GODDESS OF THE TEMPLE, TSUN-KYAN-KSE, HAD DEEP BLUE EYES. THE HEAD PRIEST, MUN-HA, HAD AS HIS COMPANION A BEAUTIFUL CAT NAMED SINH. ONE DAY THE TEMPLE WAS ATTACKED AND MUNH-HA WAS KILLED. AT THE MOMENT OF DEATH, SINH PLACED HIS FEET ON THE MASTER AND FACED THE GODDESS. THE CATS WHITE FUR TOOK ON A GOLDEN CAST, HIS EYES TURNED AS BLUE AS THE EYES OF THE GODDESS, AND HIS FACE, LEGS AND TAIL BECAME THE COLOR OF THE EARTH. HOWEVER, HIS PAWS, WHERE THEY TOUCHED THE PRIEST, REMAINED WHITE AS A SYMBOL OF PURITY. ALL THE OTHER TEMPLE CATS BECAME SIMILARLY COLORED, SEVEN DAYS LATER, SINH DIED, TAKING THE SOUL OF MAN-HA TO PARADISE."

THE MODERN HISTORY OF THE BIRMAN IS ALMOST AS SHROUDED IN MYSTERY AS ITS LEGENDARY ORIGIN. WHAT IS KNOWN FOR CERTAIN IS THAT, PROBABLY AROUND 1919, A PAIR OF BIRMAN CATS WERE CLANDESTINELY SHIPPED FROM BURMA TO FRANCE. THE MALE CAT DID NOT SURVIVE THE ARDUOUS CONDITIONS OF THE LONG VOYAGE, BUT THE FEMALE, SITA, DID SURVIVE, AND HAPPILY WAS PREGNANT. FROM THIS SMALL FOUNDATION THE BIRMAN WAS ESTABLISHED IN THE WESTERN WORLD. THE FRENCH CAT REGISTRY RECOGNIZED THE BIRMAN AS A SEPARATE BREED IN 1925. BY THE END OF WWII, ONLY TWO BIRMANS WERE ALIVE IN EUROPE, AND A PROGRAM OF OUT CROSSING WAS NECESSARY TO RE-ESTABLISH THE BREED. MOST CAT REGISTRIES REQUIRE AT LEAST FIVE GENERATIONS OF PURE BREEDING AFTER OUTCROSSINGS TO FULLY ACCREDIT A BREED FOR CHAMPIONSHIP COMPETITION. BIRMANS WERE RECOGNIZED BY ENGLAND IN 1966 AND BY THE CAT FANCIERS ASSOCIATION IN THE U.S. IN 1976.