History of the Local Names of Cape Fish. 221 
This is the only case of what might be called indirect derivation 
of a name that I have come across. 
Two other names may be compared with it—derived directly from 
the animal from which they have borrowed the name. These are 
the Vark-bek, so called on account of its pig-ike snout, and the 
Varkje, so called on account of the grunting noise it makes. 
The mane-like dorsal fin of the Paarde-visch, and the horse-like 
profile of the head, sufficiently accounts for its name, while the hard 
beak of the Papegaai-visch, or Parrot-fish, called also the Kraai-bek, 
or Crow-beak, is surprisingly like that of a parrot. 
The name Tiger-shark is a libel on the monarch of the jungle. It 
is applied to a small dog-fish with yellow markings remotely resem- 
bling those of a tiger. So far from possessing the proverbial ferocity 
of his great namesake, this little creature is so shy that when taken 
out of the water he turns his head away from the onlooker quite 
abashed—at least, so the Dutch fishermen imagine who have given 
him for this reason the additional name of Schaam-oog. 
The name Bontrok, applied to a species of Dentex at Mossel Bay, 
appears to refer to its variegated colouring (bonte, variegated, and 
rok, coat), or is perhaps derived from some supposed resemblance to 
the Bontrokje, a species of stone-chat. 
Coming now to the names derived from inanimate things, we find 
a most extraordinary miscellany of objects from a man-of-war to a 
needle. 
An anonymous writer in the Cape Monthly Magazine (vol. iv., 
p. 304) informs us that there was then a tradition that the name of 
the fish called Seventy-four arose ‘‘ from its having been caught 
from a ship of the line of that number of guns on dropping anchor 
in Simons Bay.’ Similarly the name Gelleon, applied to a fish in 
the Dutch East Indies, is stated by Valentyn (‘‘ Old and New East 
Indies,” vol. 11.) to have been so called because it followed the ships 
and was often found about the Galleons (‘‘de Galleonen’”’). The 
Cape fish Galleon, or Galjoen, probably got its name in this way 
though it seems to be different from the East Indian form. 
These derivations may be correct, but another naturally suggests 
itself to those familiar with the appearance of these fish. The 
Seventy-four is characterised by several very distinct bright blue 
bands running along the body, not unlike the rows of guns of an 
ancient man-of-war, one carrying seventy-four guns being con- 
sidered a well-equipped vessel in those days. The Galjoen also 
can readily be supposed to have derived its name from its resem- 
blance in shape to the high built three-decker of the fifteenth and 
sixteenth century called by the Spanish, ‘‘ Galeon’”’ (Latin, Galea), 
and by the Dutch ‘“‘Galjoen” or ‘“ Galleon.” 
