Genka says Estonian bird names sound like swearing

Musician and bird enthusiast Genka told ERR programme Ringvaade that many Estonian bird names sound as forceful as swearing, citing names such as porr, huik, kull, tait, ronk and hakk. He said the names are often onomatopoeic and reflect the sounds the birds make.

Genka said he became interested in birds because they are among the closest living relatives of dinosaurs, sing beautifully and can fly. He wore sneakers featuring the plumage patterns of pigeons and sparrows, which he said are often overlooked despite their striking colours.

“These are birds that are around us every day, and we do not notice how beautiful a colour palette their plumage conceals,” Genka said. He described pigeons and sparrows as his favourite birds because they live fearlessly alongside humans, whom he called the most frightening creatures on Earth.

After reading the book Birds in the Mind and Language of the People, which is considered a bible of Estonian birds, Genka said he found an answer to a question that had long troubled him. During a stay in Peru, he had noticed that many birds there had onomatopoeic names, meaning that their names were based on their calls. “If a bird is called tukituki, then it makes tukituki,” he explained.

Genka said the book showed that names such as tuvi, porr, huik, kull, tait, ronk and hakk were also based on birds’ calls. He joked that if birds’ spring songs were translated into human language, male birds would be saying, “Come here, look at me, I am the best, let’s build a nest.”

The book also surprised him with its account of traditional attitudes towards birds. Genka said many of the stories dealt with hunting birds and beliefs that they brought bad luck, fire to the eaves or death.