Etomology of English bird names (1 Viewer)

[Gompou]

Hi

Does anyone know if there has ever been a book published on the etymology or origins of bird names in English? Not the scientific name or the describing part of the name, but the generic name like pelican or robin.

I have English Etymological Dictionaries, but not a book on the origins of bird names.

 

[Andy Adcock]

Try this for a start.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mrs-Moreaus-Warbler-Birds-Their/dp/1783350903/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Mrs+Moreau%27s+Warbler&qid=1615037494&s=books&sr=1-1

 

[Gompou]

Thank you. Will look into it. Looks really nice.

 

[paranoid numanoid]

Hi

Does anyone know if there has ever been a book published on the etymology or origins of bird names in English? Not the scientific name or the describing part of the name, but the generic name like pelican or robin.

I have English Etymological Dictionaries, but not a book on the origins of bird names.

That book my Stephen Moss is a good read but deals mainly with eponyms, birds named after people. I think you will be more enlightened by Charles Swainson "Provincial Names and Folk-lore of British Birds" (1885) - which also relates English names to European languages, and by Harry Kirke Swann "Dictionary of English and Folk-Names of British Birds, with their history, meaning, and first usage, and the folk-lore, weather-lore, legends etc relating to the more familiar species" (1913). Pure treasure troves.
More recently Francesca Greenoak's "British Birds: their folklore, names and literature" (1997) is a fantastic collection too.
But for pure etymology you could consult Michel Desfayes' incredible Thesaurus of Bird Names as a CD rom online. The concise booklet which is its precursor is a great beginner's guide is called "The Origin of English names of European Birds and Mammals, including the Human Species", by Michel Desfayes.

 

[Andy Adcock]

That book my Stephen Moss is a good read but deals mainly with eponyms, birds named after people. I think you will be more enlightened by Charles Swainson "Provincial Names and Folk-lore of British Birds" (1885) - which also relates English names to European languages, and by Harry Kirke Swann "Dictionary of English and Folk-Names of British Birds, with their history, meaning, and first usage, and the folk-lore, weather-lore, legends etc relating to the more familiar species" (1913). Pure treasure troves.
More recently Francesca Greenoak's "British Birds: their folklore, names and literature" (1997) is a fantastic collection too.
But for pure etymology you could consult Michel Desfayes' incredible Thesaurus of Bird Names as a CD rom online. The concise booklet which is its precursor is a great beginner's guide is called "The Origin of English names of European Birds and Mammals, including the Human Species", by Michel Desfayes.

There are of course examples of eponyms in the book but it's far from being the bulk of the work.

 

[paranoid numanoid]

There are of course examples of eponyms in the book but it's far from being the bulk of the work.

I was disappointed with Moss' book, I have it here, mainly because in my opinion it's mainly about people and eponyms rather than the meaning of the names. For example, in the index of the hardback (2018) under "robin" and "origin of name", only on page 259 does the author mention that it's named after a boy's name (something which Desfayes rejects, linking the word robin to other European roots (ruv-, rob-) referring to a red colour like rufous, ruber, rubetra, rubecula). It's just my view (about the balance of the book), of course it's a good read and there's lots of good stuff in it, but for me I like to get down to the roots of the names. And with Swainson, Kirke Swann, Greenoak and Desfayes we can do just that.

 

[Taphrospilus]

Maybe at least an interesting article on this topic The origin of the common names of birds? Or here and here and here. In German exist two volumes of Die Bedeutung historischer Vogelnamen from Peter Bertrau.

 

[Björn Bergenholtz]

Hi

Does anyone know if there has ever been a book published on the etymology or origins of bird names in English? Not the scientific name or the describing part of the name, but the generic name like pelican or robin.

I have English Etymological Dictionaries, but not a book on the origins of bird names.

Hi "Gompou"*,
First, as I happened to notice that you are a New Member here on BirdForum (at least you were about a week ago):

Welcome to the Bird Name Etymology sub-forum!

And second, the main purpose of this post; on top of what's already been said in this thread, for the Etymologies of various English Common/Vernacular Bird names I would (also) recommend the following book:

• Australian Bird Names: A Complete Guide, by Jeannie Gray & Ian Fraser (from 2013), here.
... which covers quite a few names, equally used far, far outside [read: as in not only in] Australia: like, for example, the ones you mentioned: Pelican (on p.45) and Robin (on p.254). As well as several (many, many) other Birds/names.

Also note that in quite a few cases the English names of many Birds often coincide or/alt. origins in the very same source as the Scientific ones (regardless if/also today dated, or not, always worth checking) ... like (the ditto example); Pelecanus, though, (disclaimer); but note that the resp. Eponym robini (i.e. for two different ssp., and three today invalid taxa, all regarded as synonyms) has nothing to do with the English Robin (bird/name) itself (or any other Robins/birds), more than the simple fact that the dedicatees themselves (in those certain cases) share the same Human/Bird name, of course (even if not of the same Origin, that is, at least not in my mind).

Thereby, in a lot of cases the scientific names (and/or its Origin) can be of (as) much help in understanding quite a few English Common/Vernacular Bird names, and as such equally checking the etymology of the scientific name itself might be worth the trouble, and it certainly is, in several, many cases it (though, of course, in some cases, it's of no help at all).

All scientific names are right now (as per 10 March) accessible online in James Jobling's excellent Key to Scientific Names (here), hosted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Either way, another useful (even if far, far older) book, full of erudite information, also regarding the Etymology of many, many (English) Bird names, is:

• A Dictionary of Birds, by Alfred Newton & Hans Gadow, et al. (from 1896)
Accessible in full in/at BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): here, where you'll find the PELICAN (here, on pp.702-703), followed by for example; PENGUIN, ... PETREL,... PEWEE, PHALAROPE, ... and onwards, as well as; ROBIN (here, on p.791), followed by; ... ROLLER, ...ROOK, ... ROSEHILL/ROSELLE [i.e. today's Rosella, compare with the 2013 Book above] ... and RUDDOCK, RUFF .. etc., etc. Some, but only a few, entries/explanations are a bit out-of-date, but most of them are still well worth the read.

Also note that BHL also has Harry Kirke Swann's A Dictionary of English and Folk-names of British birds; ...from 1913, (as mentioned by "paranoid humanoid"** in #5), equally accessible in full, free for all (here).

And, both Google Books and the Internet Archive has Rev. Charles Swainson's The Folk Lore and Provincial Names of British Birds (though, even if from 1886); here resp. here.

Hopefully of some use/help ... ?

However, enjoy & Good luck with your South African list (or lists) ...

Björn

PS. I take it for granted that you (as South African) have a copy of:
• Southern African Bird Names Explained, by Charles Clinning, from 1989, (even if that certain one is all focused on Scientific names).

I equally assume you have Kees Rookmaaker's paper:
• The zoological contributions of Andrew Smith (1797–1872) with an annotated bibliography and a numerical analysis of newly described animal species, Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa, Vol. 72, No. 2, pp. 105–173 (from 2017) , which includes some of the Bird names in the Tswana language (and much more).

Also see (if not already done, of course) the earlier Papers:
• COLE, D.T. 1990. Old Tswana and new Latin. South African Journal of African Languages 10(4): 345–353.
• COLE, D.T. 1991. Old Tswana and new Latin. Botswana Notes and Records 23: 175–191.

---

*or should I maybe call you; "Johan Meyer", ... after having read your two (very) recent and interesting articles, in The Lark (Newsletter of Birdlife Polokwane), Issue 32 (from December 2020) & Issue 34 (of March/April 2021): here 😉]

** Even if paranoid, or not, 🙄 ... as also, clearly a "New Member", equally:
Welcome to the Bird Name Etymology sub-forum!

​

 

[Andy Adcock]

One or two English name origins are easy to understand, Redstart for example, probably from seeing the birds red rump when flushed or 'startled'.

Northern Wheatear is a commonly known name which is corrupted from Anglo Saxon (I think) and was originally 'White Arse' for similar reasons to the above.

 

[Torchepot]

One or two English name origins are easy to understand, Redstart for example, probably from seeing the birds red rump when flushed or 'startled'.

Actually I think it comes from steort - the Old English name for tail

 

[Andy Adcock]

Actually I think it comes from steort - the Old English name for tail

OK, learning!

 

[paranoid numanoid]

And wouldn't Whitestart be a great name for the wheatear, bit more dignified that Whitearse! Yes Swainson gives Whiteass (Cornwall), and Cul-blanc (France) which supports that.
Isn't there a grebe or loon known as "Arsefoot" - will have to look that up again!!

An ancient and untraced obsolete name for the wheatear was "arling", ref Lockwood. I'm looking into that one, but so far without epiphany! I suspect its roots may be in Scots or Scots Gaelic, and may be related to the concept of "earliness", in that the bird is one of the first arrivals in the spring, with chiffchaff and sand martin. Although other darker associations strangely echo some of the odd folklore related to the bird in Swainson.
Swainson and others can tell us that another original name for the wheatear was "stonechat", as it is a "chat" (from the call) that frequents stony upland areas.
And Desfayes tells us that what we know as a stonechat was originally called a brambling or furzeling!! A case of mistaken identity perhaps.
I'm fascinated by this stuff!

Thanks for the welcome Bjorn! #
By the way Swainson's "Folklore & Provincial Names of British Birds" (1886) to which you rightly refer was published for the Folk-lore Society the year after the edition I refer to. In 1885 my edition, which is subtly differently entitled "Provincial Names and Folklore of British Birds" (and which I'm holding in my hands!) was published for the Dialect Society!
Thank you for the directions to other valuable sources.

 

[Torchepot]

But for pure etymology you could consult Michel Desfayes' incredible Thesaurus of Bird Names as a CD rom online.

Thanks so much for this - extraordinary and fascinating

 

[paranoid numanoid]

Thanks so much for this - extraordinary and fascinating

Pleasure!
I should have indicated that it's to be found at ewatlas.net/collections or at ewa.ox.ac.uk/collection/desfayes

 

[Maroon Jay]

Actually I think it comes from steort - the Old English name for tail

The smale fowele hath a redde steort and maken melodye. (Middle English. The small bird with a red tail is singing.)

 

[Björn Bergenholtz]

Actually I think it comes from steort - the Old English name for tail

Also compare the name of the (Common) Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) with its Swedish name rödstjärt, (röd = Red + stjärt, tail or rump), which could, at least to me, indicate that the old 'English' (Anglo-Saxon) word steort, for tail, might have a Norse (or even Viking) origin.

In Swedish writing this Bird name is known, in various versions (rödhstiärta, röstjärt, rödstjert, etc.) since about 1500 (according to some references, since the 1600's according to other), and similar writings of the (same) name is also (still) used in the other Scandinavian countries, it's rødstjert in both Danish (earlier rødstjært) and Norwegian [as well as Raudstjert, in Nynorsk (New Norwegian)].

Just an observation, for whatever it's worth.

...
An ancient and untraced obsolete name for the wheatear was "arling", ref Lockwood. I'm looking into that one, but so far without epiphany! I suspect its roots may be in Scots or Scots Gaelic, ...

If Lockwood's "arling" points in the same (Norse) direction I cannot tell, but I wouldn't be surprised, as we (Swedes) have the name/word ärla, in sädesärla (for the White/Pied/Common/European Wagtail Motacilla alba), earlier known in Sweden as simply "ärla", and the diminutive suffix -ling is still used in several Swedish words. With this said, even there doesn't seem to be any Swedish records of the Wheatear itself being ever being called either "arling", nor ärling. At least not as far as I know. But I have read somewhere (if remembered correctly, of course) that those two species/birds actually have shared the same (wag, bob, alt. waggling, bobbing) name, in some old (today dated) Swedish dialects.

ditto

Björn

PS. Disclaimer: I have neither seen, nor checked, Lockwood's "arling".
I'd never even noticed it, prior to post #12 in this thread.

 

[l_raty]

Also compare the name of the (Common) Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) with its Swedish name rödstjärt, (röd = Red + stjärt, tail or rump), which could, at least to me, indicate that the old 'English' (Anglo-Saxon) word steort, for tail, might have a Norse (or even Viking) origin.

Also staart in Dutch (redstart roodstaart; bluetail blauwstaart, blackstart zwartstaart, wagtail kwikstaart, long-tailed tit staartmees, etc.).
Sterz in German was also once used in this sense, although it is now replaced by Schwanz.
I think it's Germanic.

 

[paranoid numanoid]

Also compare the name of the (Common) Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) with its Swedish name rödstjärt, (röd = Red + stjärt, tail or rump), which could, at least to me, indicate that the old 'English' (Anglo-Saxon) word steort, for tail, might have a Norse (or even Viking) origin.

In Swedish writing this Bird name is known, in various versions (rödhstiärta, röstjärt, rödstjert, etc.) since about 1500 (according to some references, since the 1600's according to other), and similar writings of the (same) name is also (still) used in the other Scandinavian countries, it's rødstjert in both Danish (earlier rødstjært) and Norwegian [as well as Raudstjert, in Nynorsk (New Norwegian)].

Just an observation, for whatever it's worth.


If Lockwood's "arling" points in the same (Norse) direction I cannot tell, but I wouldn't be surprised, as we (Swedes) have the name/word ärla, in sädesärla (for the White/Pied/Common/European Wagtail Motacilla alba), earlier known in Sweden as simply "ärla", and the diminutive suffix -ling is still used in several Swedish words. With this said, even there doesn't seem to be any Swedish records of the Wheatear itself being ever being called either "arling", nor ärling. At least not as far as I know. But I have read somewhere (if remembered correctly, of course) that those two species/birds actually have shared the same (wag, bob, alt. waggling, bobbing) name, in some old (today dated) Swedish dialects.

ditto

Björn

PS. Disclaimer: I have neither seen, nor checked, Lockwood's "arling".
I'd never even noticed it, prior to post #12 in this thread.

Fantastic, thank you, Bjorn. What would sadesarla mean? (Sorry I can't include the Swedish lettering). Is it related to the tail (its colour, or motion?) Of course wheatears dip the tail, wagtails wag more forcefully, and redstarts flirt the tail opening it quickly sideways.

 

[paranoid numanoid]

Also staart in Dutch (redstart roodstaart; bluetail blauwstaart, blackstart zwartstaart, wagtail kwikstaart, long-tailed tit staartmees, etc.).
Sterz in German was also once used in this sense, although it is now replaced by Schwanz.
I think it's Germanic.

Yes I think you demonstrate that, Laurent. Does staart/steort etc have an implication of "suddenness" in these languages, or not? (referring to motion). The inclusion of longtailed tit would imply not... but it's an implication in the English word.

 

[paranoid numanoid]

Also compare the name of the (Common) Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) with its Swedish name rödstjärt, (röd = Red + stjärt, tail or rump), which could, at least to me, indicate that the old 'English' (Anglo-Saxon) word steort, for tail, might have a Norse (or even Viking) origin.

In Swedish writing this Bird name is known, in various versions (rödhstiärta, röstjärt, rödstjert, etc.) since about 1500 (according to some references, since the 1600's according to other), and similar writings of the (same) name is also (still) used in the other Scandinavian countries, it's rødstjert in both Danish (earlier rødstjært) and Norwegian [as well as Raudstjert, in Nynorsk (New Norwegian)].

Just an observation, for whatever it's worth.


If Lockwood's "arling" points in the same (Norse) direction I cannot tell, but I wouldn't be surprised, as we (Swedes) have the name/word ärla, in sädesärla (for the White/Pied/Common/European Wagtail Motacilla alba), earlier known in Sweden as simply "ärla", and the diminutive suffix -ling is still used in several Swedish words. With this said, even there doesn't seem to be any Swedish records of the Wheatear itself being ever being called either "arling", nor ärling. At least not as far as I know. But I have read somewhere (if remembered correctly, of course) that those two species/birds actually have shared the same (wag, bob, alt. waggling, bobbing) name, in some old (today dated) Swedish dialects.

ditto

Björn

PS. Disclaimer: I have neither seen, nor checked, Lockwood's "arling".
I'd never even noticed it, prior to post #12 in this thread.

The Oxford Book of Bird Names, W.B. Lockwood, Oxford University Press, London (1993 - paperback edition) page 24. Lockwood refers to Turner (1544) as the first instance of this word. It may well be arse-ling of course but there are other etymological possibilities, such as the ones you posit.