[Sca-cooks] Oxen and steers, was Recent Test
Daniel Myers
edouard at medievalcookery.com
Wed Feb 11 07:10:34 PST 2004
On Feb 11, 2004, at 9:46 AM, Kirsten Houseknecht wrote:
> i thought an Ox was a working castrated male cow.
> that is, a steer that pulls things.
Not having much of an Ag background, I had (mistakenly) assumed that
Oxen were a separate bovine species that were somewhat more primitive
than domesticated cattle. This turns out not to be even close - learn
something every day, eh?
It looks like the word "Ox" is not very tightly defined.
From http://www.ruralheritage.com/ox_paddock/ox_whatis.htm
"To be culturally and historically accurate when defining an ox, we
must use the "right" definition as provided by the Random House
Dictionary, which says that an ox is "The adult castrated male of the
genus Bos used as a draft animal and for food."
"Although, by United States standards, this definition is correct
culturally, historically, and scientifically, it has its problems. Only
two species in the genus Bos used for work are called "oxen"—Bos
indicus (Zebu-type cattle with humps) and Bos taurus, the European
breeds (no humps). Other species in the genus Bos, such as yaks, may be
worked, but are not called "oxen."
"To define the word "ox" as encompassing all animals in the bovine
family would include a lot of species that are not even domesticated.
And it would include both males and females. This might be acceptable
in some broad, casual context, but not if scrutinized by ox teamsters
and agricultural historians in the United States."
The site goes on in amazing detail.
- Doc
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Edouard Halidai (Daniel Myers)
http://www.medievalcookery.com/
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