Blair Collection > Gaelic names of beasts (mammalia), birds, fishes, insects, reptiles, etc

cow in
the ford-mouth of the dun cow. In Ireland, County Clare, we find
Abhain da loilgheach, the river of the two milch cows, for instance,
while in County Mayo there is Cathair na mart, the stone fort,
castle or seat of the beefes, or beeves, or cows. In Irish Gaelic
we find "cathair" and "lis" both translated " fort." Beannan-bo,
the cow's hillock, is a mountain in Leitrim, and is said to be full
of gold. An Irish term for a horned cow is bo beannach (also
Scottish), beann here signifying horn, as being })ointed ; a certain
poet who thought his jioem worth twenty cows, even with golden
horns, said Fiche bo-beann n-oir. Professor Blackie, in 1882,
said the Jersey cows were the " ladies of the cow creation,"
whereupon Mary MacKellar composed some verses supposed to
express the feelings of a Highland cow the Professor had formerly
expressed admiration for, and which was in a huff over being
forsaken. (See Celtic Magazine, Vol. X., pages 557-8.)
Cow botany may now shortly be referred to. Cameron in his
Gaelic names for plants, etc., says the cow-berry, red whortleberry,
or cranberry is in Gaelic Bo-dhearc' ; and that the field-gentian
is a good cure for a disease which attacks cows, called Cruhaiii,
thought to be induced through poverty of pasture, etc., the Gaelic
name is Liis-a-vhruhaiii, the crouching plant or the plant of the
or for the Cruhan, supposed colic or cramp ; in the English- Gaelic
part of Armstrong, the Gaelic equivalent for gentian given there
is lus-a-chubhain, which, however, may be a misprint. The bog-
violet, lus-a-bhainne, or milk-wort, because it acts on cows' milk
like rennet and, strained speedih', gives consistency thereto and to
cream, cows feeding thereon give richer milk. In Irish the term
is hisan baine. The cowslip is, in Gaelic, bainne-ho-hhuidhe, the
yellow cow's milk, bainne bleachd, bleacht or bliochd, the milch
cow's milk, or buidheachan bo-bleachd bleacht or blioch, the
milch cow's daisies or "yellows." Common sorrel is Samhadh-ho,
cow sorrel, more properly Sabhadh, etc. Bo-coinneal or choinneal
again is the Gaelic, lit. cows' candle, for a plant called "Sauce
alone " or mullein. The common sow-thistle or milk-thistle is
Chtaran cruidh, cow's thistle, while meacan-a-chruidh is cow-
parsnip. Honej'S'jckle is " bainne-gamhnach," farrow-cow milk.
In old marriage contracts of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries,
the term " tidy or tydie " is used for or applied to a pregnant
cow giving milk. This is in use in Ayrshire and Clydesdale yet.
Proverbial sayings, riddles, etc., wise and otherwise, are rife
and naturally numerous in reference to cows ; the following, ajart
from the ])rover])s proper given at end hereof, are a few.
Oidhche shamhna theirear gamhna ris na laoigh.
On Hallowe'en calves are called stirks. A cow with one-
year-old calf, and still milking, is also termed a gamhnach,
used in this sense by Gillies, "B'fhearr leam fhein na bo
laoigh is gamhnach,"