Genet

noun

a nocturnal, catlike mammal of the civet family with short legs, spotted fur, and a long bushy ringed tail, found in Africa, south-western Europe, and Arabia.

Middle English (used in the plural meaning ‘genet skins’): from Old French genete, probably via Catalan, Portuguese, or Spanish from Arabic jarnaiṭ .

1. a kind of small Spanish horse.
2. a female donkey.

late Middle English: via French from Spanish jinete ‘light horseman’, from Spanish Arabic Zenāta, the name of a Berber people famous for horsemanship.