birdnames in non-english (1 Viewer)

erik · May 3, 2003

Hey everyone,

this thread is fun for english people to read and fun for primarily not speaking english people to add!

Birds have names in all languages. Often this name has a special background or a funny comparison to other birds, which you don't see in english names. Do you have that in your language? Then please add it to this thread!

Here are some dutch ones:

An Oystercatcher is called Scholekster in dutch, which means
Sole-Magpie (Schol - Ekster) but Schol can also be leaded to Schaal, which means shell. So there's a point. Ofcourse the magpie is for the plumage!

A funny thing is the Treecreeper.

You have Certhia brachydactyla Brehm which is in English Shorttoed treecreeper.
We call this one just Boomkruiper (Tree Creeper)

Then you have Certhia Familiaris L. which is in English Tree Creeper. We call this one Kortsnavelboomkruiper (Short Billed Tree Creeper).

Ain't that funny?

A nuthatch we call Boomklever (Treesticker)

A robin we call Roodborst (RedBreast)

So much for now...

Michael Frankis · May 3, 2003

Hi Erik,

Here's a few from Denmark . . .
Danish name = translation in English (species)

Slangeørn = snake eagle (Short-toed Eagle)
Strandskade = beach magpie (Oystercatcher)
Stor Præstekrave = large dog-collar (Ringed Plover)
Stor Kobbersneppe = large copper-snipe (Black-tailed Godwit)
Svaleklire = swallow sandpiper (Green Sandpiper)
Sandløber = sand runner (Sanderling)
Sorthovedet Måge = black-headed gull (Mediterranean Gull!)
Mursejler = wall sailer (Swift)
Isfugl = ice bird (Kingfisher)
Hærfugl = army bird (Hoopoe)
Sortspætte = black spot (Black Woodpecker)
Grønspætte = green spot (Green Woodpecker)
Rødspætte = red spot "red woodpecker" (Plaice - yes, the fish!!!)
Silkehale = silk-tail (Waxwing)
Vandstær = water starling (Dipper)
Jernspurv = iron sparrow (Dunnock)
Solsort = sunblack (Blackbird)
Høgesanger = hawk warbler (Barred Warbler)
Munk = monk (Blackcap)
Fuglekonge = King of the birds (Goldcrest)
Træløber = tree runner (Treecreeper)
Kærnebider = nut-biter (Hawfinch)

Michael

erik · May 3, 2003

Slangeørn = snake eagle (Short-toed Eagle)
We call it Slangenarend as well (Snake eagle)

Stor Kobbersneppe = large copper-snipe (Black-tailed Godwit)
We call this one Grutto, after his call.

Sorthovedet Måge = black-headed gull (Mediterranean Gull!)
Don't get me started on the gulls..
Your Black H. Gull is in dutch Kokmeeuw (Cook Gull)
Your Bonapartes Gull is in dutch Zwartkopmeeuw (Black headed gull)
Your herringgull is Zilvermeeuw in dutch (Silver Gull)

Mursejler = wall sailer (Swift)
This one we call Gierzwaluw (Vulture Swallow)

Isfugl = ice bird (Kingfisher)
We call it IJsvogel as well (Ice bird)

Silkehale = silk-tail (Waxwing)
We call this Pestvogel (Pest bird)

Vandstær = water starling (Dipper)
We call it Waterspreeuw as well (water starling)

A Wren we call Winterkoning (Winter king)

Michael Frankis · May 3, 2003

Hi Erik,

I think EVERYONE calls them Snake Eagles except for Britain! A far more sensible name, after all, how often can the toe length be seen outside of a museum birdskin store!

But Waxwings a pest! Never! Certainly not the 36 in my garden 10 days ago!

Hmmm now shall I get you started on gulls? yeah, why not! Fire away! Our Black-headed is Hættemåge (hooded gull) in Danish, and Lachmöwe (laughing gull) in German.

Michael

HH75 · May 3, 2003

Hi all,
On the subject of gulls:
The Black-headed is Larus ridibundus,this means Laughing Gull
The Med.Gull is Larus melanocephalus,this means Black-headed Gull!
Also,I think that Larus cachinnans(either used for Yellow-legged Gull incl.Caspian as a race or for Caspian alone),means Laughing Gull as well...
Harry

erik · May 3, 2003

Look, this is exactly what we need: Some chaps with Latin knowledge! The dutch are far more close to the Latin names than the english!!

Michael Frankis · May 3, 2003

Hi Erik,

A lot of bird latin names are translated direct from the Swedish names . . why?? . . because Linnaeus was from Sweden

I guess the Dutch names are more often the same origin as the Swedish, than the English are

Some Latin names (well, I should say scientific names . . a lot of them are really Greek!) are fun too:

Nutcracker Nucifraga caryocatactes: Nuci, nut (Latin), + fraga, to break (Latin; as in e.g. fragile), then caryon, nut (Greek) + catactes, smash (Greek). So its scientific name means nut-smashing nut-breaker

Michael

marcus · May 4, 2003

Pestvogel? Pestbird? How did Waxwings ever get that name?
marcus
QUOTE]Originally posted by erik
Slangeørn = snake eagle (Short-toed Eagle)
We call it Slangenarend as well (Snake eagle)

Stor Kobbersneppe = large copper-snipe (Black-tailed Godwit)
We call this one Grutto, after his call.

Sorthovedet Måge = black-headed gull (Mediterranean Gull!)
Don't get me started on the gulls..
Your Black H. Gull is in dutch Kokmeeuw (Cook Gull)
Your Bonapartes Gull is in dutch Zwartkopmeeuw (Black headed gull)
Your herringgull is Zilvermeeuw in dutch (Silver Gull)

Mursejler = wall sailer (Swift)
This one we call Gierzwaluw (Vulture Swallow)

Isfugl = ice bird (Kingfisher)
We call it IJsvogel as well (Ice bird)

Silkehale = silk-tail (Waxwing)
We call this Pestvogel (Pest bird)

Vandstær = water starling (Dipper)
We call it Waterspreeuw as well (water starling)

A Wren we call Winterkoning (Winter king) [/QUOTE]

Edward · May 6, 2003

Intersting discussion, right up my street.

Many of the Icelandic names for birds which do not naturally occur in Iceland are borrowed from Danish hence we have

Snákerna (Snake -eagle) Short-toed Eagle
Herfugl - (army bird) Hoopoe
or from English
Skálmörn (Trouser-legged Eagle) Booted Eagle (well almost the same as English)
Gullörn (Golden Eagle)
Some are simply descriptive
Fossbúi (Waterfall dweller) - Dipper

Names for native Icelandic birds are of course sometimes much older and can be interesting.
Himbrimi - Great Northern Diver - it's uncertain what the name means but it gave its name to the second part of the scientific name (Gavia immer)
Fýll - Fulmar - foul hence fúll máfur in Icelandic (foul gull) became Fulmar in English.
Straumönd - Current Duck - Harlequin Duck
Húsönd - House Duck - Barrow's Goldeneye
Lóuþræll - Plover's slave - Dunlin, often seen near Golden Plovers.
Kría - Arctic Tern - from the sound it makes
Stuttnefja - short nose - Brünnich's Guillemot
Skógarþröstur - forest thrush - Redwing
Músarrindill - Mouse titch - Wren

Snakker du også dansk, Michael?

birdman · May 6, 2003

I probably won't contribute a great deal to this thread, but it combines two of my interests... so thanks to everyone for contributing, and more please!

Ashley beolens · May 6, 2003

What superb names I wish I could join in but being a dumb brit that only speaks the queens english its not going to happen, keep them coming though.

Michael Frankis · May 6, 2003

Davs Edward,

Interesting set, but you missed the most interesting of all the Icelandic names:

Álft: Whooper Swan.

Thought to be one of the most ancient of all bird names (over 3,000 years old, according to one authority), it means 'white', no more, no less. Same word as Latin albus, the (snow-covered!) Alp mountains, and also the Russian Lebed (Swan).

"Look, white flying over!"

Question is, was the colour names after the bird, or the bird after the colour?

As a sideline, it was rather nice when I heard that a colour-ringed Whooper Swan I saw here, had been ringed at Álftafjörður - 'Whooper Swan Fjord'.

Michael

Michael Frankis · May 6, 2003

Continuing on the swan theme . . .

'Swan' is the same word as Latin sonus (sound). So a swan was originally, a sound. Another ancient name, dating back to Sanskrit (svanás).

Thought to be derived from the peculiar throbbing noise that a Mute Swan's wings make in flight.

See Lockwood, The Oxford Book of British Bird Names, for more details.

Michael

Edward · May 7, 2003

Thanks Michael

Yes, I missed out Álft. In fact there are several Álftafirðir (Whooper Swan fjords) in Iceland and all are named for good reason as they are staging posts on both spring and autumn migration and carry huge numbers of birds, especially in autumn.

E

Hans · May 7, 2003

An interesting link regarding this subject is:
http://www.knutas.com/birdsearch/

Michael Frankis · May 7, 2003

Hi Edward,

Several, eh?? Now I'm wondering which one my Whopper had been ringed at! My map of Iceland only has one, on the SE coast at 64°35'N 14°35'W, but its a small scale map, 1:750,000, so there could easily be more of them.

Michael

Edward · May 7, 2003

Hi Michael

I would think it is the one on the south-east coast, close to the town of Höfn í Hornafirði, probably the one you mention.

E

Charles Harper · May 7, 2003

Time to get out of Indo-European and take a look at:

- Ama-sagi, 'Red Egret' (Cattle Egret)
- Ko-hakucho, 'Little Swan' (Tundra Swan)
- O-hakucho, 'Big Swan' (Whooper Swan)
- Yamadori, 'Mountain Bird' (Copper Pheasant)
- Umineko, 'Ocean Cat' (Black-tailed Gull)
- Bupposo, onamatopoetic, based on the call of Oriental Scops Owl (Dollarbird)
- Tsubame-chidori, 'Swallow Plover' (Oriental Pratincole)
- Umisuzume, 'Sea Sparrow' (Ancient Murrelet); note that it is the Japanese Murrelet, not the Ancient, that is named S. wumisuzume
- Mugimaki, 'Planting a barley seed' (Mukimaki Flycatcher)
- Goi-sagi, 'Respect-to-the-Emperor Egret' (Black-crowned Night Heron)
- Amerika-uzura-shigi, 'American quail sandpiper' (Pectoral Sandpiper)

But once you get the hang of it, Japanese names are mostly straightforward descriptive compounds.

Good birding,

erik · May 8, 2003

HANS this site is awesome!!! Totally!! this is gonna be so intellectual, using all those foreign names everywhere

Charles, i had so much fun reading out loud those japanese names to my classmates. They have hardly any ideas of the dutch names, so this must be even worse for them hehe...

birdman · May 8, 2003

I'm with erik,

That site is superb.

It could be especially useful to European BFers.

Any admin or moderators want to take a look... see if it's worth doing what is required to get a permanent link?

birdnames in non-english (1 Viewer)

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