The moose did not get its name from the French dessert. Only crazy people think up such things.
The moose got its name from a Native American word “moosu”, which comes from the Narragansett language meaning “he who trims or cuts smoothly.”
The name refers to the neat way moose strip bark from trees.
You have to wonder about that one.
We’re not here to second-guess the Native Americans, mind you, but let’s say you saw an animal that’s bigger than a horse and uglier than a cow, with a set of antlers that look like the bony hands of God.
Would your first, second, or even tenth reaction be: “Wow, look at how smoothly he takes the bark off that tree!”?
Maybe they hired a Dutch consultant.
The British English word elk possibly came from the Swedish word “älg”, or “Elch” in German, and the Polish word “łoś”.
To add confusion, the word elk is used in North America to refer to a different animal, also known as the wapiti.
The word “moose” was first used in English in 1606 from Captain Thomas Hanham’s ‘Mus’, and in 1616 from Captain John Smith’s ‘Moos’, with possible mutual reinforcement in usage.
Chocolate moose with squirrel sounds delish.
Related Posts
-
What language do Native Americans speak and Do Native Americans still speak Indian languages?
Some Native Americans are bilingual. They speak English with non-Native Americans but might use their native language with relatives and other tribe members. In some Native American communities, however, a Native American language…
-
Where Did the Greek Language Come From and Is Greek a Romance Language?
The Greek language has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language. Its alphabet originated from the Phoenician script, and is the basis of many other writing systems such as Latin and Cyrillic.…
-
How is the Moose the Largest Species of Deer in the World?
The moose which is known as elk in Europe, and by its scientific name Alces alces, is the largest living species in the deer family. Moose can be found in all of Canada,…
-
What Are the Chances That a Moose Will Survive an Attack by a Pack of Wolves?
Only about one in twelve moose gets killed when they are stalked by a wolf pack. A moose is so good at defending itself that if it stands its ground, wolves will back…
-
How many Native Americans live in the United States and is the Native American population growing?
According to the 1990 census, there are about 1,900,000 Native Americans in the United States, approximately .75 percent of the total U.S. population. The Native American population has grown steadily throughout the twentieth…
-
Where Do Children Teach Their Parents Their Native Language?
The only country in the world today that can make such a claim is Israel. And the language is Hebrew. Here's how it began. Thousands of years ago, Hebrew was the spoken language…
