Ovis aries: More about Mary's Little Lamb
The Scoop on Sheep
Origin of Words:
·
“aries” Latin for lamb
· “sheep” from Old English “sceap” related to German “shaf” and Dutch “schaap”
· “lamb” Middle English from Old English, related to German “lamm” and Dutch “lam”
· “wool” from Middle English “wolle” from Old English “wull” from
prehistoric German “wullo” from Indo European “wina”
· “ewe” from Old English “eoww”
· “ram” from Old English “ramm” related to German “ramme” and Old
Norse “ramr” meaning strong
Research:
· Sheep are good for research because unlike rodents,
a sheep's body
weight and size closely compares to a human’s body
weight and size.
· The docile nature
of sheep also makes them easier to experiment
with.
· The United States makes use of about 24,000 sheep per year for
research.
· Many sheep are used in heart valve, kidney, orthopedic, and
newborn surgery research.
· As
we all have heard, Dolly was the first cloned sheep and helped
make
huge advancements in stem cell research.
References of Sheep in Past:
· Egyptian gods Ammon-Ra, who represented power and fertility,
Osiris, Qeb, and Shu were all depicted as having some form of a
ram. Rams were an important sacrificial animal, and oftentimes,
they were mummified and left within tombs to go on to the
afterlife.
· Ancient Greeks and Romans would often use lambs and rams as
sacrificial animals.
· Aries is the first sign of the Zodiac, and it even has its own
constellation.
· In Greek Mythology, a winged ram rescued the grandson and
granddaughter of Wind from their evil stepmother. However, the
granddaughter died in the process so only the grandson survived.
The grandson sacrificed a ram to the gods and hung its golden
fleece in a tree.
· Sheep knucklebones were used to play a game similar to Jacks in
the classical times.
· Sheep are referenced more than any other animal in the Bible.
· There are many references to sheep in the Jewish faith. Abraham
sacrificed a ram instead of his son Isaac. The strings in Kind
David’s harp, the hide in Elijah’s belt, the horn trumpet of
Moses, and Elijah’s horn trumpet all came from sheep parts.
Also, the blood of sheep was used to protect homes of the Jewish
people in the First Passover.
· In the New Testament, the lamb is the symbol of Christ.
Randoms:
· You’ve heard of bull riding before, but have you ever heard of
mutton busting? Mutton busting is an event similar to bull
riding for young kids where the goal is to stay on the sheep for
at least six seconds!
· During President Woodrow Wilson’s term in office, sheep were
allowed to graze on the White House lawn. The sheep’s wool was
used to fundraise money for the Red Cross during World War I.
