jackdaw

Meaning

Noun

• A European bird (Coloeus monedula) of the crow family, often nesting in church towers and ruins.
• A Daurian jackdaw, a closely related Asian bird (Coloeus dauuricus).

Origin

• Compound of jack + daw. The first element, also present in Low German (North Saxon) Jöker, may refer either to its characteristic call, often represented as tchak-tchak, or to the name Jack. The second element means “jackdaw” in itself, from Old English dāwe, from Proto-Germanic *dēhǭ, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰēk- ("a daw, starling, thrush, similar birds"). Cognate with Old Prussian doacke ("starling"), Latin faccilāre ("the sound or timbre of the thrush"), and German Dohle ("jackdaw").