In 1882 the Abyssinian was officially recognized as a cat breed in England.

The first binding breeding standards were published as early as 1889, and the first Abyssinian cats were registered in the stud book of the British National Cat Club in 1896. In 1907 the first pair of Abyssinian cats arrived in the USA. Systematic breeding there (especially from about 1930) resulted in a parallel development of the Abyssinian cats in the USA and Europe, especially in England. In 1911 the Abyssinian cats were finally recognized in the USA by the Cat Fanciers Association (C. F. A.).

 

Finally, in 1933, the first Abyssinian cats were officially registered in Germany.

Today there are slightly different versions of the breed standard in the major national and international umbrella organizations of pedigree cat breeding associations. For Europe, the F. I. Fe (Federation Internationale Feline) as the largest umbrella organization. In the US, count the C. F. A. (Cat Fanciers' Association) and T. I. C. A. (The International Cat Association) to the larger umbrella organizations.