Why is this bird called Starling?
Sturnus vulgaris; common starling
When I first saw the bird's glossy black plumage, spangled with
white spots that resemble stars, I assumed that's what the name
starling's referencing. Seems like a plausible explanation, no?
Searching on the internet, some websites and articles report this same theory. Some examples:
"The name 'starling' [...] directly references the star-like patterns found on their plumage, particularly during the non-breeding season."
- from iere.org;
"[...] a winter plumage which does not show a yellow bill and gives the impression of stars in a night sky. Hence the name: starling."
- from Why Do They Call Them Starlings? Jan. 27, 2023 | Miles Hearn;
Well, another common theory found in articles is that the name is not alluding to the white spots, but rather the
bird's silhouette while in flight:
"'Sturnus' and starling mean the same thing: 'little star'. The reference to star most likely comes from their silhouette in flight, as their long pointed beak, outstretched, triangle-shaped wings, and short tail somewhat resembles a star shape."
- from Starlings | Dan Gleason's Blog;
"The English name 'Starling' would stem from an old English word meaning 'star', and the diminutive suffix 'ling'. This would be because the silhouette of the bird in the sky would evoke the image of a star."
- from birdsofpei.info;
"The name Starling comes from Anglo Saxon and literally means little star – probably from the star-shaped silhouette of this bird in flight."
- from John Ciardi and the etymology of bird names | Radio | Laura Erickson's For the Birds.
This thesis seems a bit silly to me. Don't most birds look sort of star-shaped when flying?
On a website
that claims to be "the greatest source of ancient and modern knowledge", there's a page in which it is explained that
"The Old English term for the bird was 'stærling', which is thought to be related to the word 'stare', referring to its bright, staring eyes."- from Wisdom Library. That doesn't seem right. I have not found this stated anywhere else.
From
Wikipedia another explanation arises:
"The Old English staer, later stare, and the Latin sturnus are both derived from an unknown Indo-European root dating back to the second millennium BC, imitative of the bird's call. 'Starling' was first recorded in the 11th century, when it referred to the juvenile of the species, but by the 16th century it had already largely supplanted 'stare' to refer to birds of all ages."
Seems believable. The cited reference is
"Lockwood (1984) pp. 146–147." which I seem unable to find. Skill issue on my part, probably.
At this point I tried looking at more sources to solidify Wikipedia's claim, finding myself on Google Scholar. But one of the few papers I was able to access attributes the origin of the name to the white spots of the feathers, bringing me back to square one.
"As this bird is variegated nearly throughout with pale-buff or whitish tips of the feathers, we may assume that it was named the 'star-bird' or the 'spotted'. In either case sturnus is related to stella[...]. On the derivation of sturnus from the root ster- 'scatter: sprinkle, spot'"- from NOTES ON LATIN ETYMOLOGIES BY FRANCIS A. WOOD.
And this is where I give up. The other results which seemed could help just take me to books from which I can't access any of the information. It's all
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Is the
starling named after its spots, or after its call? Both? Neither? One thing's for sure: i dont knowe 😭.
