Since the dawn of the web, people have shared and sent memes about cats. Every now and then, one cat in particular achieves an iconic status, defining an era of the internet and a whole generation's vision of what cuteness means. Big Floppa, who perhaps you've seen around, is maybe the biggest and wildest cat to ever go viral.

Where Did Big Floppa Come From?

Big Floppa's real name is Gregory, and he is believed to live in Moscow, Russia. In 2019, his proud owner posted a picture of Gregory lounging beside a normal-sized cat. Meme-makers found the image irresistible. Later pictures posted of Gregory were also fertile meme fodder.

Big Floppa / Gregory is technically not a domestic cat but a caracal, a form of wild cat native to Africa and Asia. Caracals, unlike domestic cats, can never be fully tamed. Their long floppy ears (possibly the source of the name "Big Floppa") are adapted to help them hunt.

How Did Big Floppa Become A Meme?

In early 2020, Big Floppa's image circulated on heavily niche ironic Instagram pages. But it wasn't until April of 2020, at the dawn of the pandemic, that Big Floppa gained widespread popularity.

It was as much the phrase "Big Floppa" as the look of the caracal itself which attracted meme buzz. This name "Big Floppa" was first tied to Gregory's image in the April 2021 Reddit post. In Gregory's homeland of Russia, a meme format pairing the caracal with a drink or some kind of branded product became popular in 2020. The memes generally featured Floppa adding an "-er" to his pronunciation of the names of the drinks.

A photo of Gregory in a bathtub, taken in November 2020, also attracted considerable attention in 2021. One Twitter user made an edited version of the photo which showed the caracal as if he were a glitched-out or poorly-rendered element in a video game.

How Do People Use Big Floppa In Memes?

Big Floppa is a deeply ironic and surreal meme. The core of the meme seems to be how cute and strange the caracal looks -- as well as the name "Big Floppa," which is difficult to say without smiling at least a little bit.

In some ways, the memeing around Big Floppa resembles the memeing around Big Chungus more than it does the memes about other cats. This is because the primary appeal of Big Floppa appears to be his weirdness and randomness, not his cuteness.

At the same time, the character of "Big Floppa" has grown almost in parallel to the character of Gregory, the very real caracal who achieved some fame on Instagram in 2020 and 2021.

For the full history of Big Floppa and his rise to ironic meme fame, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.