Azhria Lilu
Captain
Walking to school this morning, I saw a large group of crows flying over a field (my walk to school consists of a lot of country lanes surrounded by farms and fields). I look for things while we're walking to occupy the kids, so asked them if a group of cows was called a herd, and a group of sheep was a flock, did they know what a group of crows was called. They didn't (no real surprise there). So I told them it was a Murder of Crows. The obvious question came up from Erin (my inquisitive 9 year old) - why is it called a Murder and, thinking on it, I had to admit that I really didn't know... so coming home, off I went to research.
Interestingly (and again not surprising) there are a few trains of thought onto the origin of the term.
1. This more poetic term for a flock of crows can be traced back at least to the 15th century, when it was recorded as a murther of crowes.Murther is a variant of Middle English murthre 'murder,' though the thsound had begun to be replaced with a d around 1300 C.E. There are several theories as to how this particular term came about, but all of them have to do with the supposed behavior of crows. For instance, crows are scavengers and therefore often seen feeding on rotting bodies of various sorts. Survivors of wars have described how the battlefields were covered in black as crows (and ravens) came down to eat the dead. Another theory hearkens back to old folklore which told of groups of crows essentially holding court over members of their flock that had committed offenses. If they decide against the "defendant" crow, then the rest of the flock swoops down on it and kills it. There are legends outside of the Germanic culture that relate to crows being judges over people as well, and how their appearance is an omen of death.
2. The groups of crows that pass judgement on others of their kind are also known as a "parliament of crows". It was long considered a piece of folklore, but these gatherings have been witnessed in recent years. There were letters to Fortean Times a few years ago describing these events and someone said the following on the snopes.com message board:
Apparently, Crow courts do sometimes seem to acquit, suggesting that it is a genuine discussion rather than a lynch mob intent on violence. The corvid family are highly intelligent, so I don't think anyone should be surprised at them behaving in this way.
Interestingly, a group of Ravens is called a Jury.
Has anyone ever experienced/seen a Crow Parliament in action?
Interestingly (and again not surprising) there are a few trains of thought onto the origin of the term.
1. This more poetic term for a flock of crows can be traced back at least to the 15th century, when it was recorded as a murther of crowes.Murther is a variant of Middle English murthre 'murder,' though the thsound had begun to be replaced with a d around 1300 C.E. There are several theories as to how this particular term came about, but all of them have to do with the supposed behavior of crows. For instance, crows are scavengers and therefore often seen feeding on rotting bodies of various sorts. Survivors of wars have described how the battlefields were covered in black as crows (and ravens) came down to eat the dead. Another theory hearkens back to old folklore which told of groups of crows essentially holding court over members of their flock that had committed offenses. If they decide against the "defendant" crow, then the rest of the flock swoops down on it and kills it. There are legends outside of the Germanic culture that relate to crows being judges over people as well, and how their appearance is an omen of death.
2. The groups of crows that pass judgement on others of their kind are also known as a "parliament of crows". It was long considered a piece of folklore, but these gatherings have been witnessed in recent years. There were letters to Fortean Times a few years ago describing these events and someone said the following on the snopes.com message board:
Apparently, Crow courts do sometimes seem to acquit, suggesting that it is a genuine discussion rather than a lynch mob intent on violence. The corvid family are highly intelligent, so I don't think anyone should be surprised at them behaving in this way.
Interestingly, a group of Ravens is called a Jury.
Has anyone ever experienced/seen a Crow Parliament in action?
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