236:
Ages; and referred widely to local
English, Scottish and Irish glossaries and collections or provincial names for the birds. Many proverbs, songs and sayings illuminate and illustrate the natural history, which in turn gives substance and meaning to the folklore and rituals he describes. The whole is a treasure trove of much culture and wisdom, now lost, and of much superstition, now superseded by science.
338:
collection in his dictionary, published in the year of
Swainson's death in 1913. An example of this practice is given in his article on the Redbreast (pp 189–190), where he briefly summarises parts of the Redbreast article (pp 13–18) in Swainson, which consists of original detailed research which is attributed, analysed and contextualised.
285:, (author of an etymological dictionary on the Anglo-Saxon roots of the English language, and one of the leading philologists of his time), initiated a fund mainly from his own resources in order to set up a new project which would bring the work of the Society to its fulfilment. All 80 published volumes of the Society would be included in
198:. He drew on regional English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish dialects and traditions as well as from continental European cultures and languages - particularly German and French - and from other world cultures for his collection of vernacular names and common beliefs about aspects of natural history, particularly birds. In his introduction to
174:(1885-6). He contributed to his local Society of Antiquities in Woolwich on the subject of the treasures in his Old Charlton parish of St Luke's. In 1908 he left Charlton at the age of 67 and moved to a residence nearby, spending time in Torquay with his daughter Harriet in 1911. He died on 30 December 1913 at the age of 72.
148:, England to Rev. Charles Litchfield Swainson, who was then Rector of St Margaret of Antioch, Crick, and Harriet Littledale (née France). His parents married in 1838; his mother was the widow of George Decimus Littledale of Sandown House, near Liverpool, who died in 1826 leaving her with three children. He was educated at
337:
Swann pays tribute to
Charles Swainson in the first part of his introduction, and subsequently mentions other major works he has made use of, from Turner (1544) to Ray and Willughby (1678). He refers throughout his work to Swainson's names and derivations, and paraphrases parts of Swainson's original
259:
in 1885), and the lack of etymological consistency, in that the root or meaning of all names are not worked out to their origins. The criticisms were mainly unwarranted in that
Swainson did not set out to write a dictionary, nor an etymology, may not have been able to include references to Yarrell's
235:
Swainson drew on sources from as far afield as Norway, Iceland, France, Germany, and Russia; relied on the great ornithological histories of Bewick and
Yarrell; referred to the poetry of John Clare and the works of Shakespeare; drew examples from the lives of the saints and the legends of the Middle
300:, published in six volumes between 1898 and 1905. It was dedicated to Professor Skeat, who had contributed so much to its inception. "It was no longer necessary to carry on the work of the English Dialect Society", as Wright says in his preface to the dictionary, and so, in 1896, it was disbanded.
280:
gave a mixed review to
Swainson's work upon its publication in 1886. While acknowledging that "the list of local names is the best yet published", they expressed the reservation that Swainson apparently had not consulted any of the Society's own publications, and they concluded that many local or
310:
Two major works on birds' names followed which cite
Swainson as a major source: Harry Kirke Swann's dictionary of bird names, folk-names and lore (1913), which cites Swainson's work ahead of all other sources as "the first work approaching the scheme of the present volume", and Lockwood's Oxford
306:
also references
Swainson's work in his "Magic Rites Connected With The Several Departments of Nature", a chapter in the book "Malay Magic: Being an Introduction to The Folklore and Popular Religion of the Malay Peninsula", published in 1900, where he quotes Swainson's research on the nightjar's
349:
Swann offers his view that
Swainson's work suffers somewhat by not being laid out like a dictionary. As Swainson avers in his Preface, his work follows the classification and nomenclature of the List of British Birds set out by a Committee of the British Ornithologists' Union, London, 1883.
353:
Swann also offers his view that
Swainson does not attempt to deal with the important matter of book-names of species. Swainson's provincial and vernacular names are all grouped under the heading of the accepted name for each species, as listed by the authoritative BOU.
341:
Swann, in the Preface to his dictionary, describes Swainson as sourcing and describing the meanings of over 2000 bird names, where Alfred Newton, an authority on ornithology, and a member of the ornithological "establishment", had described "a great many less" in his
162:
He took an M.A. degree in 1866 and remained in Crick until 1871, when his father died. In 1872 he moved to High Hurstwood in Sussex, near Buxted and Uckley, where he remained for two years and published his first work, on weather-lore, in 1873.
453:
credits Charles Swainson with compiling "the names of common birds from both folklore and regional dialects across England and Scotland, and several books have since been published on the sources of common names in use today".
697:
206:(of The Folklore Society and English Dialect Society) for reading the proofs and assisting with the publication of the work, and acknowledges Harvie-Brown for information, comments and corrections relating to Scottish birds.
437:
which treats principally of eponymous bird names, and of the people these names refer to. Moss also includes lengthy quotations which he attributes erroneously to Charles Swainson; these are in fact attributable to
156:, in 1863 and was ordained a deacon in 1864, spending less than a year at Wilton in Wiltshire, not far from Salisbury. He was ordained a priest in 1865, and moved to Crick to serve his father's parish as curate.
874:
A Dictionary of English and Folk-Names of British Birds; with their history, meaning, and first usage, and their folk-lore, weather-lore, legends etc, relating to the more familiar species
332:
A Dictionary of English and Folk-Names of British Birds; with their History, Meaning and First Usage, and the Folk-Lore, Weather-Lore, Legends Etc Relating to the More Familiar Species
260:
4th edition (which was published as he was preparing his own book for publication, and was in ill-health), and had no compunction about including "book-names" as part of the record.
512:
Bird-names in Latin Glossaries by W M Lindsay (Notes on the foregoing Article by Professor D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson) Classical Philology, vol 13, no.1, January 1918 p.16
1037:
1032:
346:(1893). Kirke Swann claims to have covered about 5000 names in his own 1913 dictionary, but admits that this number includes variations or alternative spellings.
117:, which collected the vernacular and regional names of British birds together with an array of British and European folklore related to birds. The 1885 edition (
293:, a self-taught philologist, would involve a nationwide network of almost a thousand volunteers to assist and contribute to this massive cultural undertaking.
281:
dialect names may have been omitted. They expressed a hope that his work would be built upon. In the same year the Society's founder and president, Professor
561:
A Handbook of Weather Folk-Lore; being a collection of proverbial sayings in various languages about the weather, with explanatory and illustrative notes
251:
the possibility of dialect words having been omitted, the inclusion of "book-names", the lack of precise reference to Yarrell's 4th edition (edited by
326:
Charles Swainson's original and compendious research formed the foundation of several subsequent major works of ornithological literature, including
1022:
1007:
402:
Lockwood also references Swainson's work in his etymological research, for example in "The Philology of 'Auk' and related matters" in the journal
741:
406:
vol. 79, no.4 (1978) which explores the roots of the word "auk" and related names of the Alcidae family (guillemots, razorbills and auks).
159:
He married Isabel Augusta Gossip at Doncaster, Yorkshire, in April 1865, and they had four children: Isabel, George, Harriet and Charles.
395:, 1898-1905, a great repository of local names known to have been in use since 1700; it incorporates the collection found in Swainson's
1027:
962:
691:
296:
Swainson's work on weather-lore and on provincial birds' names and folk-lore was included in the massive undertaking which became
502:
Notes on Shells from the Shrine of Santa Lucia, near Figueras in Spain (Transactions of the Glasgow Archaeological Society, 1896)
170:, near Greenwich, east of London, where he remained until 1908 and where he prepared the manuscript for his seminal book on the
446:
232:
to collect from local people some dialect names and folk-lore about Sri Lanka's birds, which were noted in the journal Nature.
286:
383:
goes so far as to name his two main sources in this way: "The following books have been our chief sources: Firstly, the
686:
195:
132:, a zoologist and ornithologist after whom several species of birds were named (e.g. Swainson's thrush), and with
690:
472:
The Image of the Halcyon Kingfisher in Mediaeval Chinese Poetry (Journal of the American Oriental Society, 1984);
167:
636:
290:
133:
125:), with the title slightly changed for emphasis, was published in the Folk-Lore Society's brown cloth covers.
376:
277:
183:
145:
983:
439:
419:
153:
129:
102:
which also included folklore and mythology relating to elements of nature and a short chapter on birds.
622:
391:, 1972-, with its rich documentation reaching back to the earliest period of the language... Next, the
458:
On research into etymology, philology, comparative mythology, natural history, literature & poetry
1017:
1012:
303:
282:
187:
418:
Swainson is still widely referenced today as an authoritative and reliable source, for example by
365:
has always been held in high esteem as a valuable contribution to the literature of ornithology".
843:
315:, and Swainson's list of provincial names which it contains, as the second of its chief sources.
655:
327:
240:
228:
in 1887, and the interest excited by his newly published work prompted a correspondent to the
191:
87:
954:
833:
106:
20:
256:
986:
657:
A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain and Ireland
467:
Bird Folklore from Roanoke Island, North Caroline (Journal of American Folklore, 1947);
203:
91:
121:) was published within the Dialect Society's blue cover papers, and the 1886 edition (
1001:
252:
149:
847:
431:
361:, Kirke Swann pens a biographical note about Swainson and on pp 566–567 says "his
989:
702:
982:, 1885 Trübner edition: Internet Archive, digitised by University of Toronto
442:(on Latham and the merits of his works and of his memory, p 144 and p 320).
113:, from 1874 to 1908, he published his best-known and most influential work,
497:
Exeter Book Riddle 57 (55) - a double solution? (Anglo-Saxon England, 1996)
482:
Langland's "Corlew": Another Look at 'Piers Plowman', (Medium Aevum, 1993).
217:. His work was reviewed in the respected scientific and literary journals
194:, and communicated with one of the ornithological luminaries of his day,
992:
462:
Articles published in journals which refer to Swainson's works include:
546:
Bibliography of Ornithology from the Earliest Times to the End of 1912
487:
Birds In The Poetry of Browning, (The Review of English Studies, 1956)
359:
Bibliography of Ornithology from the Earliest Times to the End of 1912
838:
821:
698:
Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1715–1886
95:
716:
110:
507:
Little King, Sow, Lady-cow (Journal of American Folklore, 1935)
152:
from September 1854 to December 1859, took a B.A. degree from
86:(1840–1913) M.A. was an English cleric and naturalist. He was
19:
This article is about the naturalist. For the theologian, see
618:
239:
Some anonymous criticisms in these reviews were taken up by
765:
Faune Populaire de la France: tome II, les oiseaux sauvages
426:
which was originally published by Andre Deutsch in 1979 as
492:
The Whistler, Bird of Omen, (Modern Languages Notes, 1950)
424:
British Birds; their Folklore, Names and Literature (1997)
307:
connection to the Gabriel Hounds or Gabble Ratchet myths.
321:
A Dictionary of English & Folk-names of British Birds
799:
128:
Charles Swainson has been confused with his relative
641:
Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser
589:. London: Trubner (for the English Dialect Society).
925:
British Birds: Their Folklore, Names and Literature
602:
The Folk-Lore and Provincial Names of British Birds
587:
The Provincial Names and Folk-Lore of British Birds
477:
Chaucer's Archangel (Modern Languages Notes, 1940);
412:
British Birds: Their Folklore, Names and Literature
73:
65:
57:
49:
37:
30:
363:'Provincial Names and Folk-Lore of British Birds'
98:, from 1872 to 1874, from where he published his
727:: 42–51. 1899 – via kentarchaeology.co.uk.
604:. London: Blackwood (for the Folk-Lore Society).
980:Provincial names and folk lore of British birds
940:Mrs Moreau's Warbler; how birds got their names
435:Mrs Moreau's Warbler; How Birds Got Their Names
368:
178:Provincial Names and Folk-lore of British Birds
172:Provincial Names and Folk-Lore of British Birds
115:Provincial Names and Folk-Lore of British Birds
311:dictionary of bird names (1984), which cites
8:
822:"Book review: The Folk-lore of Ceylon Birds"
927:. London: Christopher Helm (A&C Black).
910:The Oxford Dictionary of British Bird Names
717:""Old Charlton Church", by Rev C Swainson"
166:In 1874 he was presented to the parish of
27:
837:
144:Swainson was born on 27 December 1840 in
654:Burke, John; Burke, Sir Bernard (1850).
243:and to some extent addressed in his own
965:from the original on 19 September 2020.
523:
1038:20th-century English Anglican priests
1033:19th-century English Anglican priests
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721:Woolwich District Antiquarian Society
625:from the original on 22 January 2002.
397:Provincial Names ... of British Birds
123:The Folk-Lore and Provincial Names...
7:
701:. Oxford: Parker and Co – via
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580:
578:
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539:
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529:
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953:Montgomery, Bob (6 November 2017).
912:. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
894:. English Dialect Society, London.
14:
119:Provincial Names and Folk-Lore...
269:On W W Skeat and Joseph Wright:
69:Christ Church, Oxford University
1023:Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford
959:American Ornithological Society
559:Swainson, Rev. Charles (1873).
447:American Ornithological Society
381:Oxford Dictionary of Bird Names
371:Oxford Dictionary of Bird Names
215:La Faune Populaire de la France
1008:British ornithological writers
892:The English Dialect Dictionary
671:Burke, Ashworth Peter (1897).
600:Swainson, Rev Charles (1886).
585:Swainson, Rev Charles (1885).
404:Neuephilologische Mitteilungen
313:The English Dialect Dictionary
298:The English Dialect Dictionary
287:The English Dialect Dictionary
271:the English Dialect Dictionary
209:He modelled the scheme of his
1:
660:. Henry Colburn. p. 733.
182:Swainson was a member of the
100:Handbook of Weather Folk-Lore
923:Greenoak, Francesca (1997).
890:Wright, Joseph (1898–1905).
53:1913 (aged 71–72)
872:Kirke Swann, Harry (1913).
832:: 381–382. 18 August 1887.
196:John Alexander Harvie-Brown
1054:
985:; IA, digitised by Google
767:. Paris: Publ Maisonneuve.
393:English Dialect Dictionary
18:
1028:Church of England priests
955:"Bird Names Then And Now"
942:. London: Guardian Faber.
785:: 386–387. 19 March 1887.
692:"Swainson, Charles"
643:. 5 June 1838. p. 8.
385:Oxford English Dictionary
44:Northamptonshire, England
675:. Harrison. p. 387.
428:All the Birds of the Air
134:Charles Anthony Swainson
105:As Rector of St Luke's,
908:Lockwood, W.B. (1993).
544:Kirke Swann, H (1917).
451:Bird Names Then and Now
410:On Francesca Greenoak:
377:William Burley Lockwood
278:English Dialect Society
184:English Dialect Society
168:St Luke's, Old Charlton
146:Crick, Northamptonshire
938:Moss, Stephen (2018).
445:Bob Montgomery of the
810:: 49–51. 19 May 1887.
440:William John Swainson
387:, 1884-1933, and its
154:Christ Church, Oxford
130:William John Swainson
77:Isabel Augusta Gossip
752:. January–June 1887.
563:. London: Blackwood.
449:in his 2017 article
304:Walter William Skeat
289:, and its compiler,
283:Walter William Skeat
264:Legacy and influence
188:The Folklore Society
876:. London: Witherby.
763:Rolland, E (1879).
548:. London: McMillan.
344:Dictionary of Birds
420:Francesca Greenoak
414:and recent authors
369:On W B Lockwood's
319:On H Kirke Swann:
213:book on Rolland's
16:Naturalist, author
328:Harry Kirke Swann
241:Harry Kirke Swann
192:Notes and Queries
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1018:1913 deaths
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746:The Academy
245:Dictionary;
226:The Academy
1002:Categories
703:Wikisource
518:References
389:Supplement
637:"Married"
430:, and by
399:, 1885."
379:, in his
186:, and of
58:Education
963:Archived
623:Archived
61:B.A, M.A
848:4027040
422:in her
357:In his
222:Nature,
190:, took
846:
826:Nature
804:Nature
247:mainly
96:Sussex
88:rector
74:Spouse
844:S2CID
211:Birds
200:Birds
276:The
255:and
224:and
111:Kent
50:Died
41:1840
38:Born
834:doi
725:iii
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