Collective Names:
Antelope – herd, cluster, tribe
Apes – shrewdness, troop
Badgers – cete, colony
Cats (Wild) – destruction, dowt, dout
Cheetah – coalition
Elephant – parade, herd
Giraffe – tower, corps, journey, group
Hedgehogs – array, prickle
Hippo – raft, pod, bloat, thunder, school
Hyaena – clan
Impala – rank
Jackal – skulk
Leopard – leap, lepe
Lion – pride, sault, sowse
Monkeys – shrewdness, cartload, troop, troup
Mongoose – business
Pigs (Wild) – sounder
Rhino – crash, stubbornness, herd
Wild Dog – pack
Wildebeest – implausibility, herd
Zebra – dazzle, zeal, cohort
Name Origins:
Aardvark: Afrikaans word translation “earth pig” as ears and nose resemble those of a pig, also burrows a lot.
Bat-eared fox: Refers to the big ears resembling those of egyptian slit-faced bat
Blesbok: Afrikaans word translation “bald buck” referring to the white blaze on the face
Bushbaby: Lives in the “bush” and their call sounds like that of a crying baby
Caracal: From the Turkish name “garah-gulak” meaning black ear, with reference to the black ear tufts
Cheetah: Hindu word “chita” meaning “spotted one”
Duiker: Afrikaans meaning “diver” from the action of the antelope when running away
Eland: Dutch word for elk, thought to be related or similar
Elephant: Greek word “elphas” and latin word “elephantus” for the species
Gemsbok: Dutch word “gems” meaning chamois in reference to colour
Genet: Name of area in Spain the species inhabited in the 18th century
Giraffe: Arabic word “xirapha” meaning “one who walks swiftly”
Hartebeest: Afrikaans word translation “heart cow” with reference to the shape of the horns
Hippopotamus: Greek “(h)ippo” meaning horse, and “pot-amus” meaning flowing river ñ a river horse
Honey Badger: Eats honey, badger from French word “becheur” meaning digger
Impala: Zulu name “imphala” and Tswana name “phala” for the species
Jackal: Persian name “sagal” for the golden jackal
Klipspringer: Afrikaans word translation “stone jumper” with reference to the bounding action in rocky habitat
Kudu: Khoikhoi name for the species
Leopard: Greek words “pardus” for panther and “leo” for lion, shortened to leopard from leopardus
Lion: Greek word “leon” for the species
Mongoose: Indian name “mangus” for the species
Nyala: Zulu name “iNxala” for the species
Pangolin: Malay name for “peng-goling” for the species, which means “the roller” from their habit of rolling into a ball for protection
Porcupine: Greek word “porcus” meaning pig and “spina” meaning species, direct translation “spined pig”
Rhinoceros: Greek word “rhis” meaning nose and “keras” meaning horn, direct translation “nose horn”
Springbok: Afrikaans meaning “jumping back” in reference to their unique jumping action called “pronking”
Warthog: Refers to the outgrowths or warts on the face
Zebra: Portuguese or Italian name of the species in the Congo region
