While on the origin of bird names theme, here is a little piece on the
origin of 'Rosella' FYI. R.
But the origin of the name rosella is somewhat of a mystery.
John Gould, the famous bird artist, visited Adelaide in 1838. He was
particularly charmed by the rosellas and first used this name in his book
The Birds of Australia (1840-48). Most likely the name is derived from
''Rose Hill Parakeet'' the original name of the eastern
rosella. This was later shortened to ''rose-hiller'', and then rosella.
However, there is another possibility. In old shooting lists of 1830, these
parrots were called rosetta* parrots. The word rosella first appeared in the
diaries of John Gilbert, who was one of Gould's collectors. It may have been
a simple slip of the pen - from rosetta to rosella.
by Chris Daniels, Associate Professor in Environmental Biology at the
University of Adelaide.
* Note: Rosetta is apparently the Italian pet form of Rosa.
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