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Sometimes names can be deceiving.
The Canary Islands, a group of Spanish Islands off the west coast of Africa, aren’t named for canaries, the pretty yellow bird often kept as a pet.
The islands were named after dogs. The word canary comes from the Latin “canis,” the designation for dog.
How did this happen? It seems we have to go back to at least Ancient Rome. The historian Pliny the Elder (23/24-79 A.D.) wrote of “vast multitudes of dogs of very large size” when describing the islands. So “Isla Canarias,” as its known today in Spanish, is most likely derived from a Latin name meaning “Islands of the Dogs.”
The Canary Islands are still known for their big dogs. The native breed Presa Canario is a sturdily-built mastiff that can be 26 inches tall at the shoulders and weigh 145 pounds. They were originally used as guard dogs, for herding livestock, and for dog fighting.
So ingrained are dogs in the history of the island that they appear in the official coat of arms. In fact, the birds we call “canaries” were named after the islands, not the other way around!
Until next time,
Hugs and Pug Kisses,
Candy
Sources and Links:
Dog Books: 101 Amazing Facts About Dogs by Jenny Kellett (2016)
Canary Personality, Food & Care – Pet Birds by Lafeber Co.
Photo: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Presacanarionaturalears.jpg
Smok Bazyli, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
