This Turkey, That Turkey

Well, butter my buns and call me a biscuit! In my pilgrimage through life so far, I had always assumed that Turkey the bird had nothing to do with Turkey the country. Check this.

See there's this tasty bird from East Africa called the helmeted guinea fowl.  These were brought to Europeans via a trade route through the Ottoman Empire; i.e., the lands long known as Turkey.  Europeans, having the thick craniums they inherit, therefore called them turkey fowl, turkey birds, or simply turkeys.

Now arrive the colonists to America.  They find a bird they regard as quite similar to the fowl traded by the Turkey merchants and so christen them "turkeys".  And there you have it.

Nobody tells me anything.  I am outraged about this rare pocket of ignorance on my part, and glad to straighten it out.

In any case, I wish my readers a Happy Thanksgiving and beg you to enjoy your friends and family on this wonderful holiday.  I am thankful for your page visits.

Twitter: @unrefuted
Email: myirrefutableopinion@gmail.com