The Spanish word 'gata' (meaning 'female cat') comes from the Latin word 'catta', which specifically meant 'female cat'. This Latin term was the feminine form of 'cattus', which was the general word for 'cat'. The evolution from Latin 'catta' to Spanish 'gata' shows a common sound change where the initial 'c' became 'g', while maintaining its feminine ending '-a'.

A closely related and very common Spanish word is 'gato', which means 'male cat' or is used as the general word for 'cat'. Both 'gato' and 'gata' share the same Latin origin, with 'gato' coming from 'cattus' and 'gata' from 'catta'. Spanish maintains this gender distinction in many animal names.

The English word 'cat' is related to Spanish 'gata' as they both ultimately derive from Latin 'cattus/catta'. While English simplified the word to just 'cat' and lost the gender distinction, Spanish preserved the feminine form. You can also see this connection in English words like 'cattery' (a place where cats are kept) and 'catlike'.