Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Owl |
OwlNoun1. Nocturnal bird of prey with hawk-like beak and claws and large head with front-facing eyes. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "owl" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1258. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Computing | OWL 1. |
Bible | Owl (1.) Heb. bath-haya'anah, "daughter of greediness" or of "shouting." In the list of unclean birds (Lev. 11:16; Deut. 14:15); also mentioned in Job 30:29; Isa. 13:21; 34:13; 43:20; Jer. 50:39; Micah 1:8. In all these passages the Revised Version translates "ostrich" (q.v.), which is the correct rendering. (2.) Heb. yanshuph, rendered "great owl" in Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:16, and "owl" in Isa. 34:11. This is supposed to be the Egyptian eagle-owl (Bubo ascalaphus), which takes the place of the eagle-owl (Bubo maximus) found in Southern Europe. It is found frequenting the ruins of Egypt and also of the Holy Land. "Its cry is a loud, prolonged, and very powerful hoot. I know nothing which more vividly brought to my mind the sense of desolation and loneliness than the re-echoing hoot of two or three of these great owls as I stood at midnight among the ruined temples of Baalbek" (Tristram). The LXX. and Vulgate render this word by "ibis", i.e., the Egyptian heron. (3.) Heb. kos, rendered "little owl" in Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:16, and "owl" in Ps. 102:6. The Arabs call this bird "the mother of ruins." It is by far the most common of all the owls of Palestine. It is the Athene persica, the bird of Minerva, the symbol of ancient Athens. (4.) Heb. kippoz, the "great owl" (Isa. 34:15); Revised Version, "arrow-snake;" LXX. and Vulgate, "hedgehog," reading in the text, kippod, instead of kippoz. There is no reason to doubt the correctness of the rendering of the Authorized Version. Tristram says: "The word [i.e., kippoz] is very possibly an imitation of the cry of the scops owl (Scops giu), which is very common among ruins, caves, and old walls of towns...It is a migrant, returning to Palestine in spring." (5.) Heb. lilith, "screech owl" (Isa. 34:14, marg. and R.V., "night monster"). The Hebrew word is from a root signifying "night." Some species of the owl is obviously intended by this word. It may be the hooting or tawny owl (Syrnium aluco), which is common in Egypt and in many parts of Palestine. This verse in Isaiah is "descriptive of utter and perpetual desolation, of a land that should be full of ruins, and inhabited by the animals that usually make such ruins their abode." Source: Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary. |
Dream Interpretation | To hear the solemn, unearthly sound of the muffled voice of the owl, warns dreamers that death creeps closely in the wake of health and joy. Precaution should be taken that life is not ruthlessly exposed to his unyielding grasp. Bad tidings of the absent will surely follow this dream. To see a dead owl, denotes a narrow escape from desperate illness or death. To see an owl, foretells that you will be secretly maligned and be in danger from enemies. Source: Ten Thousand Dreams Interpreted .... |
Literature | Owl I live too near a wood to be scared by an owl. I am too old to be frightened by a bogie; I am too old a stager to be frightened by such a person as you. Owl the emblem of Athens. Because owls abound there. As Athena (Minerva) and Athenae (Athens) are the same word, the owl was given to Minerva for her symbol also. Source: Brewer's Dictionary. |
Slang in 1811 | OWL. To catch the; a trick practised upon ignorant country boobies, who are decoyed into a barn under pretence of catching an owl, where, after divers preliminaries, the joke ends in their having a pail of water poured upon their heads. Source: 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Owls
Northern Spotted OwlScientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Strigiformes Families Strigidae
TytonidaeAn owl is any of about 174 species of solitary nocturnal birds of prey in the order Strigiformes. Owls mostly hunt small mammals, insects, and other birds.
Owls have large forward-facing eyes and ears, a hawk-like beak, and a conspicuous circle of feathers around each eye called the facial disk. Although owls have binocular vision, their large eyes are fixed in their sockets, and they must turn their entire heads to change views.
Despite their appearance, owls are more closely related to whippoorwills and other nightjars or Caprimulgiformes than to hawks. Some taxonomists place the nightjars in the same order as owls, as in the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy.
Owls are far-sighted, and are unable to clearly see anything within a few inches of their eyes. However, their vision, particularly in low light, is excellent.
Many owls can also hunt by sound in total darkness. the facial disc helps to funnel the sound of rodents to their ears, which are placed assymetrically to allow better directional location.
Owls are traditionally associated with wisdom and with the goddess Athena, although crows, rooks and many other common birds are more intelligent. In Japanese culture, the bird is a symbol of death and seeing one is considered a bad omen.
Owls powerful clawed feet and sharp beak let them tear their prey to pieces before eating. Their muffled wings and dull feathers allow them to fly almost silently and unseen. Scientists studying the diets of owls are helped by its habit of disgorging the indigestible parts of their diet, bones, scales, and fur in pellet form.
Owl eggs are white and almost spherical, and range in number from a few to a dozen in some owls. Their nests are crudely built and may be in trees, underground burrows or barns and caves.
- ORDER STRIGIFORMES
- Family Tytonidae: barn owls, 12 to 18 species
- Family Strigidae: typical owls, about 194 species.
- Proposed family Phodilidae: monotypic
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INDEX
1. Definition
2. Synonyms
3. Crosswords
4. Usage: Modern5. Usage: Commercial
6. Images: Slideshow
7. Images: Photo Album
8. Images: Digital Art9. Sounds
10. Quotations: Familiar
11. Quotations: Fiction
12. Quotations: Non-fiction13. Quotations: Spoken
14. Usage Frequency
15. Expressions
16. Expressions: Internet17. Translations: Modern
18. Bible Trace
19. Abbreviations
20. Acronyms21. Derivations
22. Rhymes
23. Anagrams
24. BibliographyCopyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
