Origins and oddities of bird names mapped for the first time

With names like the blue jay and the mallard, birds are among the most familiar wildlife to the general public. Yet bird naming – where the names come from, what they mean – has remained surprisingly underexplored.

A new study offers the most detailed look yet into this world, revealing patterns that stretch from biology to mythology – and even mistaken medieval beliefs.

Researchers from New York University (NYU) and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County have compiled a massive database of nearly 11,000 English bird names. The findings show that nearly 90 percent are based on physical or ecological traits, while just 11 percent honor people.

The project is one of the first to quantify the structure and sources behind bird naming. It comes at a time when ornithology is reexamining how these names shape public understanding and whose stories they preserve.

A comprehensive naming atlas

Erin Morrison is a professor in Liberal Studies at NYU and is co-lead author of the study. “Until this database, there was no quantitative way to analyze the current state of terms in English bird names,” she said.

“In addition to showing that a very small percentage of birds are named after people, the database reveals some of the terminology we use to name birds is very specialized.”

“It points towards an issue with how accessible these names are, such as the isabelline shrike and the diademed sandpiper-plover, even to native English speakers.”

The resource, called the AvianLexiconAtlas, includes every known English-language bird species name. It categorizes the main descriptive term into one of ten thematic groups.

What bird names reveal

The categories range from physical characteristics, like the black-capped chickadee, to natural history traits, such as the rock pigeon. They also include cultural references and geographic ties, like the European starling.

Some names are straightforward: the yellow-rumped warbler clearly reflects a visual trait. Others, like Wilson’s warbler or Bonaparte’s gull, reference historical figures.

These names often reflect who discovered or classified the species more than the birds themselves. Still others – such as the barnacle goose, once thought to hatch from barnacles – have roots in outdated folklore.

Renaming effort underway

Allison Shultz is co-lead author and curator of ornithology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

“The work gives us a rich insight into how birds are named overall,” she said. “Those naming processes can reflect all the strangeness and specificity of the people naming them, their culture, and their history – things that wouldn’t help tell you what a bird looks like.”

This disconnect between name and meaning is central to growing debates in ornithology. Names that once honored explorers or scientists are now being reconsidered. Institutions like the American Ornithological Society are moving to rename all species currently named after people.

The new study offers hard data to guide that shift, revealing just how few species actually fall into that category.

Changing how we name birds

Common names are often the public’s main entry point to a species. Just as “California sea lion” or “brown bear” might quickly convey meaning, bird names should do the same – but many don’t.

“In ornithology, there has been significant reflection among both professional researchers and amateur naturalists about what the terminology in regionally standardized English-language common names should communicate about species of birds,” Morrison noted.

The database could help guide future renaming decisions. It offers a consistent reference for how names are formed, what they signal, and whether they help or hinder understanding.

Classroom idea becomes global tool

The project began in Morrison’s Life Science class at NYU in fall 2022, when students identified what type of descriptor formed the basis of a bird’s name.

They examined thousands of names and sorted them into categories: size, behavior, habitat, plumage, geography, or human reference.

“We found that 1,000 of the 11,000 species were named after male-only plumage, but just 20 were named after female-only plumage,” Shultz said. “The orange-bellied antwren is one of the few.”

Students and faculty from NYU’s Liberal Studies program contributed to the final dataset and co-authored the study.

Making names more inclusive

The research team hopes that the AvianLexiconAtlas will serve as a foundational tool for both scientists and birdwatchers. It includes not only the core dataset but also a glossary and a gazetteer to decode unfamiliar terms.

That may be especially helpful in parsing names like the Pincoya storm-petrel – named for a Chilean sea spirit said to dance on the waves – or the obscurely labeled baglafecht weaver.

“In the future, we look forward to combining what we learned with rich sources of data like our bird collections to understand the connections between birds and people better,” Shultz said.

“Overall, this work provides valuable insights in helping develop approachable names that help strengthen this connection and ultimately help protect birds and nature.”

With names playing a central role in how people relate to the natural world, the project encourages a more thoughtful approach to how species are introduced, remembered, and preserved.

The study is published in the journal PLOS One.

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