Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1905-10-18
NAMES OF ANIMALS.
The Meaning of Some of Those Whose
Origin We Can Trncc.

origin We Can TrHcc.
Some Of tho names OF the common
est animals are lost i'm the dimness
Of antiquity, such ms fox. weasel,
sheep, horse. dog and baboon. or the
origin OF these the clew Is forever lost
With camel ono cannot go further
back than the Latin word camelus, and
elephant Is derived from the old Hin
doc word elph. which means an OK.
The old root Of the word wolf meant
one who tears or rends.
Lynx Ia from the same Latin root
ms the word lux QighU and probably
was given to these wildcats on nc
count OF the fierce brightness OF their
eyes. Lion Is, of course from the
Latin leo, which word, In turn, Is lost
far back in the Egyptian tongue.
where life word for theSng of beasts
was lnbu. The compound word
leopard IL first found In the Persian
language, where pars stands for PAN
Their. Seal, very appropriately. was
once n word meaning of the sea; close
to the Latin sal, the sea.
Puma, jaguar. tapir and peccary
from pnIuircs) are all names from
South American Indian languages
Tho coyote and ocelet were called
coyoti and occlote by the Mcxicans
long before Cortes landed on their
shores.
Moose Is from the Indian word
monswnh. meaning wood eater;
skunk. from seganku. an Algonquin
term; wapiti In the Creek language
means white deer, and was originally
applied to the Rocky mountain goat,
but the name Ia now restricted to the
American elk Caribou Is also n ma
tive. Indian word: opossum Is from
possowne, and rnccoon Is from the In.
dian arrathkune Cby further nphere-
sis SOON.
Rhinocoros Is pure Greek. meaning
nose horned, but beaver has indeed
had rough time of 1t In its travels
through various languages. 1t is hard
~ recognizable M bebrus. babru and
bru. The latter Is the ultimate root
OF the English word brown. The orig
inal application was doubtless on ac-
count of the color OF the creatures
FUR. Otter goes back 10 Sanskrlt.
where II Is udra. The significance Of
this word Is In It's close kinship to
ulan. meaning water.
The little mouse hands It's name
down through the years from the old,
old Sanskrit. the root meaning 10 steal.
The word rat may have been derived
from the root OF the Latin word va
deere. 10 scratch. or rodere. to gnaw.
Rodent Is derived from the latter term.
Cat Is also in doubt, but is first rec.
ognized In catiIlus. n dlminutive or
CAMS. dog. 1t was applied TO the
young OF almost any animal. as the
English words pup. kitten. cub. etc.
Rear is the result OF tongue twisting,
from the Latin fera, a wild beast.
Deer is Of obscure origin, but may
have been an adjective. meaning wild
Elk Is derived from the came root as
elnnd. and the history OF the latter
word is nm interesting one. 1t meant
sufferer, and was applied by the
Teutons to the elk of the old world
on account of the awkward gait and
stiff movements OF this ungainly AMI.
NAL.
Squirrel has poetic origin In the
Greek language, Its original meaning
being shadow tail. Tiger IS far more
intricate. The old Persian word tr
meant arrow. while tighra signified
sharp. The application to this great
animal was In allusion to the swiftness
with which the tiger leaps upon It's
prey.--Detroit News Tribune.