Lina, P. H.C. (2016): Common Names of European Bats. EUROBATS Publication Series No. 7. UNEP / EUROBATS Secretariat, Bonn, Germany, 104 pp. Produced by UNEP / EUROBATS Design Petra Nyenhuis © 2016 Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats (UNEP / EUROBATS). This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or non- profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holder, provided acknowledge- ment of the source is made. UNEP / EUROBATS would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source. No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial purpose what- soever without prior permission in writing from UNEP / EUROBATS. We would like to express our gratitude to the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety for the funding without which this publication would not have been possible. Copies of this publication are available from the UNEP / EUROBATS Secretariat United Nations Campus Platz der Vereinten Nationen 1 53113 Bonn, Germany Tel (+49) 228 815 24 21 UNEP promotes Fax (+49) 228 815 24 45 E-mail [email protected] environmentally sound practices Web www.eurobats.org globally and in its own activities. This publication is printed on chlorine-free, FSC- ISBN 978-92-95058-36-1 (printed version) certi&ed, 60% recycled paper, using environment ally ISBN 978-92-95058-37-8 (electronic version) friendly practices. Our distribution policy aims to reduce UNEP's carbon footprint. Cover design: Petra Nyenhuis Cover photo: Manuel Ruedi Common Names of European Bats Contents Foreword 4 Introduction 5 Etymology of the word bat and taxonomic names 7 Acknowledgements 15 List 1. Vernacular names of European bat species in national languages 16 List 2. Vernacular names in national languages for each European bat species 66 3 EUROBATS Publication Series No. 7 Common Names of European Bats Foreword Introduction It is a great pleasure for us to launch this new Apart from the benefits already mentioned 53 bat species occur within the geographical could then go to the Polish list in which Polish volume of the EUROBATS Publication Series above, here is an additional one: As an effect scope of EUROBATS, which are listed in the common names of bat species are listed in at the occasion of the 25th anniversary of of climate change some bat species are Annex to the Agreement. They all have a alphabetical order. Karlik malutki has the the Agreement. Peter H.C. Lina and a large expanding their geographical distribution unique binary scientific name. It is better to number 29. You could then go to number 29 group of contributors are presenting for range and are occurring in countries where use the term scientific name instead of Latin in the second list, and you would find there the very first time the names of all bat they could never before be observed. With name, because many scientific names are the scientific name and the common name species occurring in the agreement area in all this book at hand, you will be able to also derived from Greek. Additionally, many for this species back into your own language national and even a few regional languages. welcome them appropriately in your own bat species also have a common name, or in another language that you need. This has been a tremendous work over language. however, not all bat species listed in the But the availability of common names in the past years since many names did I sincerely wish to thank Peter H.C. Lina Annex have a common name in all languages. the languages within the geographical not previously exist in quite a number of and all those who have contributed to this The reasons for this could be that, for scope of EUROBATS could also be used for languages but had to be developed by achievement and invaluable asset for our example, these bat species do not exist in a other purposes, such as for field guides on national experts in sometimes lengthy bat conservation efforts! given language area, or that they have only European bats or other publications about consultation processes in order to meet the recently been discovered as a full species by bats in a particular language. The use of highest linguistic and scientific standards. December 2016 DNA research. common names may also contribute to Having now all bat names available in all the increase of public awareness for bat national languages will be highly beneficial For people who are not familiar with bats, conservation. for educational and public awareness scientific names have no significance in the I consider this publication a birthday raising activities, bringing these wonderful recognition of species. On the other hand, a present from the bat and linguistic experts, creatures closer to the people. common name in their own language and all others, listed in the Acknowledge- As a small but very interesting extra, an sounds more familiar, even if they have no ments, to EUROBATS for its 25th anniversary. introductory chapter explains the etymology idea how the species looks like and where it of the word “bat” in the various languages, occurs. without doubt the most poetic expression Andreas Streit With this EUROBATS publication it is easy being the “night butterfly” from Malta. Executive Secretary, EUROBATS to find a common name of a bat species in your own language from a common bat name in a foreign language. When you see, for example, on a Polish calendar a picture Peter H.C. Lina of a bat with the title Karlik malutki, you 4 5 EUROBATS Publication Series No. 7 Common Names of European Bats Etymology of the word bat and taxonomic names The origin of many names for the bat in late 16th century as an old dialectal name for European languages is often obscure, the bat. The majority of Germanic languages complex, and sometimes controversial. possess cognate names for the bat, which However, there are several consistent can be tracked down to a group of old patterns in naming these animals which are German verbs denoting a flutter: Danish obviously related to the human perception flagermus, German Fledermaus, Dutch of bats. The meaning of the word bat in a vleermuis, Luxembourgish Fliedermaus, language occasionally also gives details of Swedish fladdermus, Norwegian flaggermus their natural history as it is the case for and Frisian flearmûs. Flitter-mouse, flinder- the Bulgarian word prilep ( ), which mouse, or flicker-mouse, with the same probably derives from the прилепverb meaning, were also occasionally used in (priljepjam) = to stick, and refers toприлепям the ability English. Correspondingly, the Finnish lepakko of bats to stick to vertical surfaces. Another derives from the verb lepattaa = flapping. example is the Catalan rata-pinyada, which Apart from that, the alleged congeniality means “rats that make clumps”, as bats of bats and rodents is reflected in Rhaeto- effectively do in caves or other roosts. Romance utschè-mezmieur, meaning a It is remarkable that vernacular names “bird half-mouse”, and in the alternative reflect distinctive features of bat appearance Catalan name rat-penat, which means a rat regardless of geographically and linguistically with wings. defined borders. Fluttering mice Allegedly, the English word “bat” is a dialectal alteration of the Middle English bakke (early 14th century), which is probably related to the Old Swedish natbakka, the Old Danish nathbakkæ = night bat, and the Old Norse leðrblaka = leather flapper. If so, the likely original meaning of the name was “flapper”. The present Icelandic name for the bat is leðurblaka and derived from leður = leather, and blaka = to flap. The Old English word for the bat was hreremus, from hreran = to “Bat Avenue” in Wageningen, the Netherlands. shake: A rattle-mouse is attested from the © Peter H.C. Lina 6 7 EUROBATS Publication Series No. 7 Common Names of European Bats With its similar meaning, the Russian leather; the Albanian lakuriq nate unites Blind mice The Greek nychterides means “an animal of name (a flying mouse) lakuriq = hairless skin, and nate = night; the A wide-spread misconception about total the night”. appearedлетучая only in мышь the 19th century and it Estonian nahkhiir derives from the nouns absence of the sense of vision in bats is The Persian old and local name, especially represents a mere translation from German, nahk = skin or leather, and hiir = mouse; the reflected in the Bosnian and Croatian šišmiš, in southern Iran, shab parreh ( ) whereas ancient Slavic words kozhan Breton askel grohen means a leather wing. Montenegrin and Serbian slijepi miš, Galician derived from shab = night, and parreh = and netopyr remained in the language as The contemporary French chauve-souris and Portuguese morcego and Castellan flyer. vernacular names for the genera Eptesicus derives from the Latin name cawa sorix or murciélago, which all have the meaning A parallel meaning exists in Albanian, as and Pipistrellus respectively. kawa sorix (kawa is a Gallic word), meaning of “a blind mouse”. Similarly, the Arabic the bat is sometimes named “a bird of the an owl mouse. This was later modified to khaffash ( ), deriving from the word night” in this language. Although the calva sorix, which means a bald mouse. khafish ( ), can either denote the one Basque saguzar originates from sagu = Besides the above mentioned examples, who was born with a weak vision, narrowed mouse, and zahar = old: old mouse, there is in modern Scottish Gaelic bats are called or absent eyes, or the one that is able a synonym gauenara, which means “a night ialtag-anmoch (anmoch = late), ialtag-leathair to see at night but not during the day. swallow”. The most romantic among the or ialtag-leuthraigh (leathair, leuthraigh = The present generally used Persian name “night-related” names is the Maltese one, leather), and in Irish Gaelic sciathán khoffash ( ) has derived from the Arabic farfett il-lejl, deriving from farfett = butterfly leathair = leather wing.