The Norwegian Forest cat (Norwegian: Norsk skogkatt and Norsk skaukatt) is a breed of domestic cat originating in Northern Europe.^[1] This landrace breed is adapted to a very cold climate, with a top coat of long, glossy hair and a woolly undercoat for insulation. The breed's ancestors may have been a landrace breed of short-haired cats brought to Norway about A.D. 1000 by the Vikings, who may also have brought with them long-haired cats, like those ancestral to the modern Siberian and Turkish Angora.

During World War II, the Norwegian Forest cat was nearly extinct; then the Norwegian Forest Cat Club's breeding program increased the cat's number. It was registered as a breed with the European Fédération Internationale Féline in the 1970s, when a cat fancier, Carl-Fredrik Nordane, took notice of the breed and made efforts to register it. The breed is very popular in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Iceland, and France.

It is a large breed with a strong body, similar to the Siberian and Maine Coon cat breeds, with long legs, a bushy tail, and a sturdy body. It is very good at climbing, partly because of strong claws.