Although geese and ducks were more likely the main dish at the 1621 feast weve come to know as the first Thanksgiving, its the turkey that has long graced Americans Thanksgiving tables (however unwillingly). The choice is historically a utilitarian one, and the association is so strong that “Turkey Day” has been an informal name for the holiday since at least 1863—the year President Lincoln made the holiday official.
Rumor has it Ben Franklin even wanted it to be the national bird. But its name—turkey—calls to mind ancient and exotic locales—more Anatolia, Mount Ararat, or Istanbul than Jamestown, Plymouth Rock, or New Amsterdam. Whats such a New World bird doing with such an Old World name?
The English gave the Turks credit for any number of new imports in the 16th century. Even pumpkins were known as “Turkish cucumbers.”
Turkey is a staple on American dining tables every Thanksgiving. But have you ever wondered why this big, goofy-looking bird native to North America has the same name as a country over 4,000 miles away in the Middle East? As it turns out, the history behind the turkey’s name is a tangled transcontinental tale of mistaken identity and culinary globetrotting.
A Case of Mistaken Identity
The turkey’s story starts in the Americas, where indigenous peoples domesticated the wild turkey as early as 800 BC When Europeans first encountered turkeys in the 16th century, they mistakenly thought the birds were a type of African guinea fowl, which were imported to Europe through Turkish trade routes So they began calling them “turkey cocks” or “turkey hens.”
The English explorer William Strickland is often credited with bringing turkey from the Americas to England in 1550. But because people thought these birds were from Africa, they were referred to as “Galllopavo,” or “chicken-peacock” in Latin, a name that reflected their mix of gallinaceous and peafowl-like features.
Lost in Translation
To make matters even more confusing, turkey was translated differently into other languages, revealing more clues about its convoluted history In French, it was “dinde,” from “poulet d’inde” or “chicken from India.” Portuguese called it “peru,” assuming the birds came from Peru in South America. And in Hebrew, turkey is “tarnegol hodu,” or “Indian chicken,” arising from the common mistake of thinking the New World was India
The bird was associated with so many far-flung locales — Turkey Africa India, Peru — that its exact origins became obscured. It was only when European colonists began exploring the Americas that they realized the turkey was native to North America.
Gaining Popularity Across Borders
Regardless of its complicated backstory, the turkey soon won over taste buds in both the Old World and New. King Henry VIII regularly ate turkey on Christmas. Shakespeare mentioned it in his works. By the 1800s, the bird had become a traditional Christmas dinner in England.
When Thanksgiving was established as a national holiday in America in 1863, turkey was a natural centerpiece. Americans had already adapted Native American cooking methods like roasting turkey over a fire. The bird was abundant in the wild, relatively affordable, and could feed large groups, making it ideal for the harvest celebration.
So while the turkey hails from the Americas, it has long since transcended borders to become a global delicacy. The storied history of its name only adds to its appeal as a cultural crossroads on our tables. This Thanksgiving when you sit down to savor a roasted turkey, take a moment to appreciate the transcontinental journey that delivered this tasty bird to your dish!
Why Turkeys Are Named After Turkey
When the Spanish arrived in Mexico in the 16th century they encountered the already-domesticated common turkey, Meleagris gallopavo. They apparently liked the bird; turkeys were among the plunder they took back to Spain around 1519. By 1541, the birds had arrived in England. In those days the Turkish Ottoman Empire was at its peak, and the English had Turkey (with a capital T) on their mind. The English gave the Turks credit for any number of new imports: maize was Turkish wheat, and pumpkins were Turkish cucumbers—though both were actually New World plants. To paraphrase Cindy Ott in her 2012 book Pumpkin: The Curious History of an American Icon, if it was exotic, chances are it got a Turkish appellation. So the new bird was soon being called a turkey-cock, a name eventually shortened to turkey.
Why is a turkey called a turkey?
FAQ
Why is Turkey the country called Turkey?
What did Native Americans call Turkey?
Why is Turkey named Turkey on Reddit?
Why do turkeys have the same name as the country?
Where did the word ‘Turkey’ come from?
The phrase land of Torke is used in the 15th-century Digby Mysteries. Later usages can be found in the Dunbar poems, the 16th century Manipulus Vocabulorum (“Turkie, Tartaria”) and Francis Bacon ‘s Sylva Sylvarum (Turky). The modern spelling “Turkey” dates back to at least 1719. [ 3]
Why are guinea pigs called turkeys?
Once imported, Europeans came to call the guinea fowl the turkey-cock or turkey-hen, because the bird came from the Turks. When settlers in the New World began to send a similar-looking fowl back to Europe, they, out of familiarity, called them turkeys. But, every language seems to have radically different names for what we call a turkey .
Why is it called Turkey Day?
Tomorrow is turkey day, gobbler’s day, or the day when the gobbler is gobbled. Rumor has it Ben Franklin even wanted it to be the national bird. But its name— turkey —calls to mind ancient and exotic locales—more Anatolia, Mount Ararat, or Istanbul than Jamestown, Plymouth Rock, or New Amsterdam.
Why is it called Turkey Coq?
It was eaten in London. So it got the nickname Turkey coq, because it came from Constantinople. When British settlers got off the Mayflower in Massachusetts Bay Colony and saw their first American woodland fowl, even though it is larger than the African Guinea fowl, they decided to call it by the name they already used for the African bird.