Names of Animals. 



5867 



the reference be to the protruding of the lips, or, adhering to the 

 strict meaning of the word, to the open mouth, 



I cannot satisfactorily account for the first syllable of heifer. The 

 second syllable is, no doubt, identical with the Anglo-Saxon fear ; 

 German, y^r/^ ; Greek, 7rof'n(^\ all of which words refer to the same 

 animal. In Hebrew, too, we find par^ a bull, and pdrah, a heifer, 

 words which preserve the analogy of ox, and are formed from the same 

 root as has given us our verb to bear. 



I again quote from Mr. Bell : When a cow produces two calves, 

 one a male, and the other a female, the latter is styled a free martin, 

 which, it is said, never breeds. In Scotland a cow or ox which is fat- 

 tened is called a mart. Hence, probably, our term originated ; for 

 the female, being unfit for breeding, was free, or at liberty, to be fat- 

 tened for the 7nart, or market." 



The breed of Kyloe oxen are said to derive their name from the 

 Scotch islanders having to drive their beasts across the " kyles," or 

 ferries, on their way to market. 



Neat cattle in Anglo-Saxon are called neat, neten ; in Swedish, 

 not ; in Danish, nod. The Anglo-Saxon geneat, herdsman, is also 

 akin. The root will be found in the Welsh cnud, a group, and kin- 

 dred words are the Latin nodus, our knot^ knead, and need, in all 

 which words the common idea is that of pressure. Neat, therefore, 

 is a generic name for herded cattle. 



The first letter of steer is merely euphonious, and forms no part of 

 the root. The word is identical with the Latin taurus ; French, tau- 

 reau ; Arabic, thawr ; Chaldee, tora. In Hebrew the initial t becomes 

 sh, and the word appears as shor. It comes from a root signifying 

 strength, which we trace in the Latin torus, muscle. Beeves, it need 

 hardly be said, comes from the French hceuf, which also supplies us 

 with our word beef 



Cattle is said to be a general term, corrupted from the Latin capi- 

 talia, i. e. the personal property of any individual. We find the same 

 word in the legal term " goods and chattels.^'' 



Squirrel has a pretty origin. It comes to us through the Latin 

 sciuriolus, a diminutive of sciurus, which is the Latinized form of its 

 original Greek name, amoupog, a compound of two words signifying 

 shadow-tail." 



The first syllable of dormouse no doubt refers to its sleepy propen- 

 sities, and is of a root which appears in the Latin dormio, Greek 

 ^apOcivco, to sleep, and also, as I believe, in our dresLin. The second 

 syllable of our word is, now, at all events, simply mouse. But as 



