• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Language / How Did the Beaver Get its Name, What Does Beaver Mean in Welsh, and Where Does the Beaver Come From?

How Did the Beaver Get its Name, What Does Beaver Mean in Welsh, and Where Does the Beaver Come From?

April 9, 2020 by Karen Hill

A beaver is an industrious little rodent whose fur was the foundation of an industry that helped create Canada.

At a time in history when knights wore armor, the hinged bottom portion of the helmet was called the “beaver”.

This was because when it was lifted for food or drink it revealed a man’s beard, which is how the word became synonymous with body hair.

The helmet beaver derived its name from the Latin bevere, meaning “to drink.”

The furry little creature got its name from the Welsh word befer, meaning “bear.”

The North American Beaver can be found all over the North American continent.

Related Facts

  • Where does the expression “eager beaver” come from and What does eager beaver mean?
  • Does the Welsh Rabbit have Rabbit in it?
  • What was the European Age of Exploration?
  • How Was the Land On Earth Created In Cree Mythology and How Did Wisagatuck Capture a Beaver?
  • Where does the phrase “eager beaver” come from and What does it mean?
  • History of Alcohol

Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « How Did the Greyhound Get its Name and Where Did the Greyhound Dog Breed Come From?
Next Post: What Does “Hare Brained Scheme” Mean and Where Did the Expression Come From? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy