Want obscure do we? Try this from Popular Fallacies, Explained and Corrected,
Ackermann ASE, (1923) The Old Westminster Press,
London.
Fallacy: That the word ‘Mews’ has always been associated
with horses.
“Prof. Ernest Weekley, p.111, Romance of Words, says, ‘From muer, to moult, Lat. mulare, we get Fr. mue, moulting, later applied to the coop
or pen in which moulting falcons were confined, whence the phrase ‘to mew (up)’. When in 1534, the
royal mews, or hawk-houses, near Charing Cross, were rebuilt as stables, the word acquired
its present meaning. ’ ”
In this volume we have no less than 46
popular fallacies concerning birds, from ‘that plovers’ eggs are
laid by the birds called plovers’ to ‘that birds of the wild duck
family adopt a V-shaped formation in order that the leading bird may break the
force of the wind for the rest’, more than enough to engage this chatline
for the rest of the Spring.
From: Philip Veerman
[
Sent: Monday, September 25, 2006
2:36 PM
To: John Layton
Cc:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Enough
eyass, let's look at tercel
As far as I know, you are entirely correct. Though the
origin of word "tiercel" is not exactly clear. Generally it
is believed to mean "third" as in every third chick is a male, I
don't know where that idea came from, or the male is one third smaller (or
2/3 the size of) the female. Pretty obscure word use. I have never heard
of it being related to a young falcon. I obviously missed or have
forgotten a connection made between the car and the bird. Like wise a hag or
old hag comes from haggard a newly caught wild adult Peregrine, being one that
is difficult to train. Yes the bit on hobby is correct too. Although that was
for the European species Falco
subbuteo. There are suggestions that our species is not
as close to that one, as overall similar appearances suggest.
And if we want to get ornithologically etymologically
obscure, I reckon the word "columbarium" (a place for storing
cremated ashes of deceased people in niches in a commemorative brick wall)
comes from pigeon (hence the Columba) and housing (hence the arium, as in
aquarium, terrarium) and the early style of dovecotes used to house pigeons, as
a wall with cavities.
