Grimalkin
A grimalkin, also known as a greymalkin, is an archaic term for a cat. The term stems from "grey" plus "malkin", an archaic term with several meanings derived from a hypocoristic form of the female name Maud. Scottish legend makes reference to the grimalkin as a faery cat that dwells in the highlands.
During the early modern period, the name grimalkinand cats in generalbecame associated with the devil and witchcraft. Women tried as witches in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries were often accused of having a familiar, frequently a grimalkin.