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Well, in my country, a kiwi is called that because that's what the call of the most common species sounded like, ditto kea. And likely a fair few others. So yo
by EdwardDiego 2y ago
Well, in my country, a kiwi is called that because that's what the call of the most common species sounded like, ditto kea. And likely a fair few others.
So you have a rough idea what they sound like.
Waxeyes/silvereyes are called tauhou (stranger or "new arrival") which tells us something very interesting about them indeed - that they self-introduced across 2000km of windswept ocean.
Can know _some_ things from a name.
Like that Feynman likely just made those names up :D
- lynx23 2y agoIf its not a typo, Feynman definitely made these names up. Halzenfugel looks like mock-german. I would have bought it if it were written Halzenvogel... But not with -fugel. Dutch, maybe? :-)
- EdwardDiego 2y agoFlügel is wing, Halzen isn't a word, but Halsen is, but it's like jibing in a boat.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- freilanzer 2y agoI have never heard of the word "Halsen" and I am german. And "fugel" is not Flügel.
- lynx23 2y agoWell, I guess we're both not really into sailing: https://de.wiktionary.org/wiki/halsen https://de.wiktionary.org/wiki/halsen But I agree, fugel is just a botched invention.
- qwery 2y agoYou are correct that knowing the name of something can teach you (or help you remember) more than just the name. But if you didn't know that 'kiwi' is onomatopoeic, knowing the name wouldn't tell you what the bird's call sounds like. Onomatopoeia also depends heavily on language and culture. In other words, knowing an onomatopoeic name for something only tells you what somebody thought it sounded like, at best. A name is just a name, even if some are better than others.