"Filted" birds

Among the Russian names of birds there are names that are difficult for interpretation, which sometimes cause fierce disputes among philologists and ornithologists. And there are simple. Well, or those presented by such. A well -known example of a "simple" word is a "guess." This is the explanation that the ornithologist Vladimir Paevsky gives him: "These birds received the name of the" packets "for the unpleasant taste of their meat, smelling of fish."

It would seem that you can still add here? It remains only to express regret that some of the most elegant waterfowls received such an offensive nickname. But why exactly the frats "paid" for their low gastronomic qualities? After all, there are a lot of less edible birds, and the gorgans are precisely related to commercial species. In the pre -Caucasus and Central Asia, the pugments are traditionally mined on the autumn span.

I had to make sure this during an autumn trip to the south of Kalmykia. I caught singing birds in reeds when a local fisherman came to the lake - to check my networks. He took out two dead birds - a gray -legged sowing and chimgu almost not different in the autumn outfit. Throwing them ashore, the fisherman again went to put the nets. After waiting for his return, I began to beg for birds for the zoological collection. To my surprise, the fisherman parted reluctantly. “What are you,” he told me, “do you know how fat they are?! In a frying pan, you get better - better than any fish. Okay, take the smaller one, ”Kalmyk added. I needed it, I thanked and left, clutching a gray -legged bark in my hands.

According to Mikhail Menzbir, the folk name “Pressy” was mainly distributed in areas where the local “foreign” population (according to Menzbir - “Tatars”) actively consumed pursuit of food, in the Orenburg and Astrakhan provinces. To the West, this word reached the Voronezh and Kharkov provinces, but Cossacks could bring it from the eastern regions there.

Academician Dmitry Zelenin noted that the “Russian“ filthy ”means“ pagan ”, that is, morally unclean.” The “filthy”, for example, was considered food that remained after Shrovetide with the beginning of Great Lent. Thus, the extinguishing is not just an inedible bird, but a bird that only “pagans” can eat. It is considered established that the word “filthy” itself came to Slavic languages ​​from the Latin Paaganus - rural pagan (when Christian residents remained pagans for a long time in the cities in the cities of the prevailing religion). In the scientific literature, the word “Press” became generally accepted because other names of the pugglers (who had more widespread by the people), such as “Dude” (“Nighte”) or “Gagara” were assigned to other birds.

Of the well-known Slavic names of the guess, perhaps the most exotic-the Ukrainian “dustycosis” is accepted to interpret this name literally: “pirnati” in Ukrainian-“ dive ” a large goose or chimgu, named the bundles of feathers on the head, reminiscent of the assumption of the ornithologist Vitaly Gryschenko, the Little Russia, the Little Russia. Chomgi is just tracing paper from Polish Perkoz. In the Polish scientific literature, the word Perkoz as folk was introduced in 1846 by the outstanding zoologist Count Konstantin Tysenhaus (1786–1853), which produced it from the expression Piórna Koza , vol . e. "Pathenate Goat", and using this word to distinguish the paces from other "dives" (primarily Gagar).

However, according to the observation of the Polish philologist Andrzej Bankovsky, the word Perkoz (like his etymology) was invented by Tysenhaus himself. Thus, the Ukrainian “Purni-Kozu” is prematurely considered foreign borrowing. In Poland, Chomgu was most often called simply “goat” or “goats”. By the way, about the chimgu. The Russians borrowed this word from the Turkic languages, where the “chomga” translates as a “dive” and denotes, in addition to the futters, also other diving waterfowl.

Cormlan

Continuing the story of inedible birds, you need to say a few words about the cormorants. “Kormlan” - the word, which seems to be borrowed from the Turkic, was widespread in the south of Russia. You can find references to the fact that the Russians have borrowed the name "Bormlan" from the Volga Tatars, denoting geese with this word. There is a temptation to accept this point of view. The large cormorant in size and proportions resembles a goose, especially in flight, and often hunters, accepting the cormorants that suddenly fly out on them, shoot them.

Undoubtedly, not only now, but in the old days there were such stories when the joy of a successful shot was replaced by disappointment. Could a native word enter the Russian language, changing the semantic coloring, instead of a desired tasty bird, indicate a smelly, obviously inedible bird? Such examples are known, and at least one of them is related to birds.

From the work of an employee of Mordovian University, Mikhail Syerorotkin (2004), you can find out about the origin of the name " Morodunka ". In the XIX century, the so-called warefoots were called. The word "Forodunka" is also mentioned by Vladimir Dahl, but neither philologists nor ornithologists could offer a satisfactory explanation for this name could not offer for a long time. According to the observation of Syerorotkin, in Russian dialects in the territory of Mordovia there is the word “frozen”, meaning “do something inept, somehow” or “say nonsense, empty”. This word starts from the Finno-Ugric "More", "Mora", "Moro", denoting singing.

In the transition of the word to the Russian language, his semantics changed, it began to mean "poor singing or not the ability to sing," and then completely "get to catch, speak nonsense." It was for the eccentric disposition, for the piercing cries with which the spindle rushes over the swamp at the sight of a person, he received the nickname "Frodunka". Now we call another small cake , living along the stupid shores of reservoirs, his name is the heritage of the time when this long -circuent bird was considered a close relative of the spindles.

With the cormorants, a different story. Attentive acquaintance with dictionaries shows that the Tatars called the word “Kalklan” not just a goose, but Ogarya - the very red duck that is so familiar to Muscovites: in the spring of the Ogar, they fly out of the zoo in reservoirs

Moscow and the Near Moscow Region. In nature, Ogar nests in the mountains and steppes, including on the Lower Volga. Until now, the “cormorant” is called the Ogary in Turkey. It is difficult to assume that the Russians transferred to a black fishing bird not the name of a gray goose, but the name of such an elegant bird.

Meanwhile, fishing birds have been called "cormorants" has long. In 1723, in the German Nuremberg, a folio was published under the bulky name “ The latest states of Kazan, Astrakhan, Georgia and many others, the king, Sultan and Shah paid tribute and subject. Tatar lands and provinces, together with a brief message about the Caspian Sea, Daryal Gorge, as well as about the Persian court and their latest state and military systems, written in the accession of Russian-Persian military operations and decorated with useful engravings. ”

The author of this work is considered a German traveler and naturalist Engelbert Kempfer (1651–1716), who visited Russia and Persia in 1683–1684. Describing his observations on the Lower Volga, he talks in detail about the pelican and cormorant, and he calls the latter a word familiar to us. According to the description of the campfire, the cormorant is the bird larger than the duck, with a long neck and a solid round (in cross section) beak, with a hook at the end, with tough black feathers, in length exceeding the feathers of the crown; This is a waterfowl that prefers to hunt at night. The lines of the campfire do not necessarily indicate that the Russians used the word " cormorant " back in the 17th century. Campfer could hear this word from the Persians. And at present in Iran Baklan is called the same as in Russia. In the etymology of the Persian language, the word " cormorant " is considered Turkic borrowing. It refers to the habitual bird from ancient times. So, with a demon named Kormlan, we suddenly meet in Thai legends, where he made a night attack from under the water on the monkey Hanuman and his companions, who stopped relaxing on the shore of the pond.

For the final resolution of the issue of the origin of the word " Bormlan ", knowledge in the field of Turkic philology is necessary. Here it is necessary to clarify that the " cormorants " denoted a variety of birds. In Turkey and Iran, this word was sometimes called Drofa, in the lower Volga was applied to the red -legged dive (however, it cannot be ruled out that this is a mistake of philologists who confused red -headed dive and Ogary), in the Russian north they called blue gulls or moevo, and an “ eggplant ” - an ordinary Gaga.

The independent origin of some of these names as onomatopoeic, corresponding to the voices of birds (in particular, ogars and gulls) can be assumed. In any case, a similar word “ baklag” , denoting a vessel for water with a narrow throat, regardless of its origin (Slavic or Turkic), probably onomatopoeic (imitates sounds with which water pours out of such a vessel). Although the name of Gaga, most likely, is associated with its nesting or rest on the treeless islands - “ cormorants” , “ buckshot” , “ Backlings” , which, in turn, gave the name the seagulls nesting there.

"Inquires"

It is impossible to talk about the names of inedible birds, without mentioning the origin of the word " owl" . Recently, the word was given a curious interpretation by Igor Lebedev and Vladimir Konstantinov. They drew attention to the fact that this word in the Russian language denoted not only an owl, "but also of various birds, including pelican, raven and hawk." This list is quite close to the list of birds prohibited to use by the canons of the Old Testament.

The 11th chapter of the book Levit (Article 11–18) indicates (according to the Russian synodal translation): “Know them from the birds (they should not eat them, they are bad): the eagle, the neck and the sea eagle, the kite and the falcon with its breed with its breed, ostrich, owl, seagulls and hawk with its breed, Filin, Filin and Fis Ibisa, Swan, Pelican and Sipa, Class, Zuya with his breed, Udoda and inaccurate. ” That is, “owls” is “not food”, any bird that should not be served on the table. Most of the listed birds belong to predatory, or fishing, or eat in weed places, so that drinking them can lead to infection with dangerous parasites, so the ban can be considered justified. The name “ilorful” clearly contains a negative message, therefore it is not surprising that it did not take root as the name of the birds that have become symbols of strength and courage (eagles and falcons), parental care (pelican), love and marital fidelity (swan), and was fixed by owls, whose life for a person was shrouded in the darkness of the night for a long time.

I would like to accept this explanation, if it were not for the unanimous opinion of philologists, claiming that the word “inquisition” means “insatiable” and was originally connected with the pelican. An attentive search for literary sources confirms: the folk name “owl”, known in many Slavic languages, referred only to the pelican, the remaining meanings of this word - book origin and sometimes had very limited use: so “illegal” replaces the daily predatory bird (according to the synodal translation - Korshun) in only one of the transformations of the Levitian book.

How did this word go from the pelican to owl and other birds? In Crededic Rus', peculiar books of wonderful stories were popular, translated from other languages. These books extensively explained the incomprehensible words found in sacred texts, or talked about miraculous phenomena interpreting them as parables, in the spirit of the Christian faith. These books tell the story of the pelican, who revived the dead chicks with his own blood. The word "pelican" comes from the Greek Pelikos, which designated one of the carpentry instruments (a variety of ces), similar to a long hook of a bird. Christ was a carpenter, therefore it is not surprising that Pelican began to personify Christ.

Actually, in the parable, Pelican appears as an allegory of Christ who redeemed the sins of people with his own suffering. Albert the Great (XIII century) retelling this story clarified that the word “pelican” comes from Pelle Cana (“white cover”). Thanks to this etymology, the features of the Pelican and the White Stork itself were mixed in some stories. This is how the story of a storquet-pelican (“ilorful”) was read in the Russian “alphabet of the XVII century: “ The bird is in a non-Slavic bird in Slavic is called a bubble or a bead or a white crane. It is navigable to eat snakes. In order to save their children from enemies - a serpent - inhabiting its nest on high stone rocks and trees of the snake, while the owl leaves its chicks without how to crawl on a rock or a tree chooses a more convenient place, adjacent to the nest of impassion most often snakes climb into the adjacent wood and waited for a strong wind, while the strong wind is waited for a strong wind. Branch to the nest.

At this favorable time for them, snakes are being released against the wind of poison, which is carried by the wind into the nest and poisons young chicks. The parents of the latter, seeing, upon their return, the children are dead, extend their wings over them, pierce their chests with their nose and spill their blood on poisoned chicks, from which they come to life. The bird is inquiring is the image of Christ. The chicks are we, killed by the deadly sting of the serpent - the devil; The beating of nonsense in the chest and the depletion of blood to revive the chicks is the signs of the rib of Christ and our disposal of death - sin. ” In another manuscript, behind the story “ On Neyasyti” , where it is already difficult to recognize the stork in this bird, the story “ On the Night of the Doctor” (owline) follows: “Speaken Psalmik:“ Behind like a night of dawn ”. The FISILE ARECHILE, the bird of Si loves the night more than the day, but our Lord Jesus Christ, people are loved in the darkness of the death of death, the people are strange, more than the Jusee, and the Sonimity of the man is promising, and so he saved the glaglash: “Do not be afraid of my little herd, as if my father’s father, heavenly, has the kingdom of heaven” and the other. But speech, as a nightly lies is unclean by law. Good apostle speech: “not the form of sin, make a legitimate sin” and be earned, and all will save and give up. Good speech a fisil about the night of the doctor . "

The “unclean” owl is the image of a sinner whose sins cannot prevent him from accepting faith in Christ and entering the kingdom of heaven.

The story of the advice is placed behind the parables about Pelican, and not by chance: such a sequence is connected with the mention of both birds in the 101st Psalm David (“ Awaken in Yasatyat, there is a more deserted one, as if the nighted lies in dives,” or in a synodal translation: “ I was likened to Pelican in the desert; I became like a eagle owl in the ruins ...” ). The scribbler of this manuscript from the names of the birds understood only the word “lies” and on the miniatures that accompanied the text depicted a pelican and an owl in the form of ravens. An attentive reader in the “night of the doctor” easily recognized the owl, so it is not surprising that the images of two birds merged, and the name “non -reassion” was transferred to the “nights”, which did not always manage to correlate with another famous bird.

However, through the “physiologist” it could not have been needed: there was enough the neighborhood of “illegitus” and “nights” in sacred texts. Finally, the word “nonsense” was assigned to the owl in the “Dictionary of the Russian Academy”, published in 1793, where Ivan Lepykhin apparently wrote about birds. There, the lines “likely are so -sabbath is more deserted” are attributed to the soviet (it was difficult for the naturalist Lepeokhin to imagine a pelican in anhydrous desert). In this sense, the word firmly entered secular literature. If Polish scientific ornithony is coming from Tysenhaus, then the Russian one is from Lepeokhin. And although the church-Slavic dictionaries in the 19th century continued to interpret the biblical “inquisition” as a pelican, they could no longer correct the situation.

Pavel Kvartalnov,
cand. Biol. sciences, scientific. sore.
Department of Zoology of vertebrates
Biology Faculty of Moscow State University