32 Whitman, [Vol. H 



Ord. Lariformes. Gulls. 



F. Laridse. Gulls and Terns. 



Sub. F. Sterninae. Terns. 



LIV. steam. This word has often been confounded 

 with the OE. stwr and stmrn, starling, but its occurrence in 

 the Seafarer and the gloss gavia, gull (Er. 1 1 16), prove that 

 it is a water bird. Grein interprets it as sea-swallow, 

 another name of the tern, and Sweet in his A. S. Reader 

 also calls it a tern. It seems very probable that the Mod. 

 E. starn and stern, used in England for the tern, are from 

 the OE. stearn. The following quotation from the Diet, of 

 Birds is suggestive : ' Starn was used in Norfolk in the 

 middle of this century for the bird known by the book 

 name of black tern, thus confirming Turner, who, in 1544, 

 described that species as ' nostrati lingua sterna appellata.' 

 In at least one instance the word has been confounded 

 with one of the old forms of the modern starling. To 

 Turner's name we owe the introduction by Linnasus of 

 Sterna mto scientific nomenclature. ^ Ikstern' is another 

 Dutch form of the word.' Dr. Schlutter {Anglia 19. 461.) 

 identifies stearn with isern, but the words are in no case 

 glossed the same. The meaning of the L. beacita is uncer- 

 tain. 



WW. 358. I, 260. 12, Cp. B. 61 : beacita, stearn ; WW. 131. 11 : beacita uel 

 sturnus ~ ; Cp. F. 163: Jida ~ \ ZdA. 240. 29; beatita -^ \ WW. 286. 7: 

 beatica, team ; Ep. 125 : beacita, stearno ; Er. 125 : biacita, stgrn ; Er. 11 16: 

 gavia, avis qui dicitur, sterna sax ; Seaf. 23 : Saer him stearn oncwaeS isig- 

 feSera. 



Sub. F. Larinx. Gulls. 



LV. mfew. Mew or sea-gull. The word m^w was 

 perhaps originally imitative of the mew or cry of the 

 bird. In the isth cent, glosses the word j^^z^w^ appears 

 for the first time. ME. mewe ; OHG. meh ; G. mowe ; 

 I eel. mar. 



WW, 131. 30 : alcedo uel alcion, m^w ; 356. 27 : alcido ~ ; &. Gl. 307. 5, 

 ZdA. 240. 25, &. Gr. 37. 7 : alcedo ~ ; Cp. A. 478 : alcido, meau ; G. 29 : gabea 

 ~; L. 50: larus ~ ; Ep. 610: laris, men; Er. 610: ~ meu ; Shrn 29. 2: 

 larunt, meu uel meg ; An. 371 : se grsega maew ; Seaf. 22 : msew singende 

 fore medodrince ; Rid. 25. 6 : hwilum msewes song ; Husb. Mes. 25 : ongin 

 mere secan, maewes eSel. 



