Sunday, August 21, 2011

English language

The English language has some wonderfully anthropomorphic collective nouns for groups of animals.

There is a Pride of lions;

a Murder of crows (as well as their cousins the rooks and ravens);

a School of fish;

an Exaltation of doves;

and presumably because they look so wise, a Parliament of owls.

Now consider the baboon. The loudest, most dangerous and viciously aggressive of all primates. And what is the proper collective noun for a group of baboons?

A Congress.

No comments: