Why is the American bird called Turkey?

Originally posted by Hellinas <DT =highlight>[COLOR=#800020">turkey[/COLOR"> <A class=dictionary title="Look up turkey at Dictionary.com" href="http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=turkey">[IMG]title="Look up turkey at Dictionary.com" height=16 alt="Look up turkey at Dictionary.com" src="http://www.etymonline.com/graphics/dictionary.gif" width=16/A> <DD =highlight>1541, "guinea fowl" (<SPAN =foreign>Numida meleagris</SPAN>, imported from Madagascar via Turkey, by Near East traders known as <SPAN =foreign>turkey merchants</SPAN>. The larger North American bird (<SPAN =foreign>Meleagris gallopavo</SPAN> was domesticated by the Aztecs, introduced to Spain by conquistadors (1523) and thence to wider Europe, by way of North Africa (then under Ottoman rule) and Turkey (Indian corn was originally <SPAN =foreign>turkey corn</SPAN> or <SPAN =foreign>turkey wheat</SPAN> in Eng. for the same reason). The word <SPAN =foreign>turkey</SPAN> was first applied to it in Eng. 1555 because it was identified with or treated as a species of the guinea fowl. The Turkish name for it is <SPAN =foreign>hindi</SPAN>, lit. "Indian," probably via Fr. <SPAN =foreign>dinde</SPAN> "turkey hen," based on the common misconception that the New World was eastern Asia. The New World bird itself reputedly reached England by 1524 (when Henry VIII dined on it at court). Turkeys raised by the Pilgrims were probably stock brought from England. By 1575, turkey was becoming the usual main course at an English Christmas. Meaning "inferior show, failure," is 1927 in show business slang, probably from the image of the turkey as a stupid bird. </DD> <P =highlight>http://www.etymonline.com

The Turkey was imported from Mexico to Europe by the spaniards and it�s called Guaxolotl in nahuatl.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domesticated_turkey

The domesticated turkey is descended from the North American Wild Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo. The Aztecs domesticated the southern Mexican form, M. g. gallopavo, one of six subspecies.

Suggestions have been made that the Mexican Ocellated Turkey (Meleagris ocellata) might also be involved, but the plumage of domestic turkeys does not support this theory; in particular, the chest tuft of domestic turkeys is a clear indicator of descent from the Wild Turkey (the Ocellated Turkey does not have this tuft).

The turkey is reared throughout temperate parts of the World, and is a popular form of poultry because industrialised farming has made it very cheap for the amount of meat, and it is considered healthier and less fattening than red meat.

Eating turkey was once mainly restricted to special occasions like Christmas in Europe, and Thanksgiving in North America, in both cases having displaced the traditional goose, but it is now available year-round in supermarkets.

In the USA, the female domesticated turkey is referred to as a hen, a male as a tom, a chick as a poult and a castrated turkey as a hokie. In Europe, the male is a stag.

Modern breeds of turkey are too large to breed naturally, so they are usually bred using artificial insemination. However, turkey hens are often able to produce young from unfertilized eggs in a process called parthenogenesis.

The great majority of domesticated turkeys have white feathers, although brown or bronze-feathered varieties are also raised.

Would be cooler if they used the Latin Turchia IMHO.

I think that T�rkei is the german word. Turkey in english, and T�rkiye (correct me if I'm wrong) in turkish...

Deek Rumi - Roman bird or something... also Deek Habashi (abyssinian bird). I don't know the reasoning behind calling them these names, but most probably they came from italy or somalia/ethiopia via trade.

It's that accursed date-mess up. I deleted some of my posts because of that.

oooh, nothing as i thought.Thank you.

Originally posted by Cywr Hmm didn't the Spanish first bring it to Europe very early? (early 1500s)

The first European to eat a Turkey was Obelix

 

 

  Cut the discussion 

  The turkey bird is in reality the Mexican Guaxolotl ( Guajolote ).

  Imported from Mexico to Europe and brought back from Europe North America by the pilgrims.

Oh, that Prof. Tekin died some two weeks ago

Originally posted by Cywr And why do the Dutch call it a Kalkoen?

We call it that too (but don't have the notoriously weird Dutch spelling - in Swedish it's kalkon). The etymology is quite intresting, the reason is about the same as why the American natives are called 'Indians'. The bird came from this continent, which we all know was believed to be India in the very beginning, and what was the Indian port most known in Europe? Exactly. Thus, the bird was called "Calicut-bird".

The Germans have the same name as the English - Turkey (T�rkei).

Edited by Styrbiorn