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Raven
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<h2 id="etymology">Etymology</h2> <p>The term <i>raven</i> originally referred to the <a href="/facts/Common_raven/nzYgGjU4">common raven</a> (<i>Corvus corax</i>), the widespread species of the <a href="/facts/Northern_Hemisphere/EFwyqL25">Northern Hemisphere</a>. </p><p>The modern English word <i>raven</i> has cognates in all other <a href="/facts/Germanic_languages/BxAJX3Kf">Germanic languages</a>, including <a href="/facts/Old_Norse/3dIvgsm5">Old Norse</a> (and subsequently <a href="/facts/Icelandic_language/4GmzhaoT">modern Icelandic</a>) <i>hrafn</i><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:1" href="#fn:1"><sup>1</sup></a> and <a href="/facts/Old_High_German/Vr3YC8sW">Old High German</a> <i>(h)Raban</i>,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a> all of which descend from <a href="/facts/Proto-Germanic/LJrKRx5A">Proto-Germanic</a> *<i>hrabanaz</i>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> </p><p><a href="/facts/Collective_nouns/0HDhzEQG">Collective nouns</a> for a group of ravens include a "conspiracy", a "treachery", a "rave" and an "unkindness";<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> in practice, most people use the more generic "flock".<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="extant-species">Extant species</h2> <p class="note">See also: <a href="/facts/List_of_Corvus_species/2AEGnaRg">List of Corvus species</a></p> <ul><li><i>Corvus albicollis</i> – <a href="/facts/White-necked_raven/8qc0rw7n">White-necked raven</a> (eastern and southern Africa)</li> <li><i>Corvus corax</i> – <a href="/facts/Common_raven/nzYgGjU4">Common raven</a> (Northern Hemisphere)</li> <li><i>Corvus coronoides</i> – <a href="/facts/Australian_raven/Uf0ycaMP">Australian raven</a> (Australia)</li> <li><i>Corvus crassirostris</i> – <a href="/facts/Thick-billed_raven/gHCWosla">Thick-billed raven</a> (Horn of Africa)</li> <li><i>Corvus cryptoleucus</i> – <a href="/facts/Chihuahuan_raven/kCjoSBm8">Chihuahuan raven</a> (United States and Mexico)</li> <li><i>Corvus edithae</i> – <a href="/facts/Dwarf_raven/fsEzeJdF">Dwarf raven</a> (Horn of Africa)</li> <li><i>Corvus mellori</i> – <a href="/facts/Little_raven/lPrp05TH">Little raven</a> (southeastern Australia)</li> <li><i>Corvus rhipidurus</i> – <a href="/facts/Fan-tailed_raven/rtKzMFsr">Fan-tailed raven</a> (eastern Africa and Arabian peninsula)</li> <li><i>Corvus ruficollis</i> – <a href="/facts/Brown-necked_raven/NqtmFcaI">Brown-necked raven</a> (northern Africa, Arabian peninsula, greater Middle East)</li> <li><i>Corvus tasmanicus</i> – <a href="/facts/Forest_raven/Usy7CJTT">Forest raven</a> (Tasmania, southern Victoria and north-east New South Wales in Australia)</li></ul> <h2 id="extinct-species-and-morphs">Extinct species and morphs</h2> <ul><li>†<i>Corvus moriorum</i> – <a href="/facts/Chatham_raven/fDkGDaYW">Chatham raven</a></li> <li>†<i>Corvus antipodum</i> – <a href="/facts/New_Zealand_raven/UwGq48IQ">New Zealand raven</a></li> <li>†<i>Corvus corax varius</i> morpha <i>leucophaeus</i> – <a href="/facts/Pied_raven/7o77Qym3">Pied raven</a> (extinct morph of common raven)</li></ul> <h2 id="gallery">Gallery</h2> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Cultural_depictions_of_ravens/AqPb9KXc">Cultural depictions of ravens</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Ravens_of_the_Tower_of_London/QpXaljFn">Ravens of the Tower of London</a></li></ul> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> Wikiquote has quotations related to <i>Ravens</i>. <a href="/facts/Wikisource/TrMdylNf">Wikisource</a> has the text of the <a href="/facts/Encyclop%25C3%25A6dia_Britannica_Eleventh_Edition/mPElbCRY">1911 <i>Encyclopædia Britannica</i></a> article "Raven". <ul><li><a href="http://ibc.lynxeds.com/family/crows-corvidae">Raven videos</a> on the Internet Bird Collection</li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20101229105854/http://enature.com/fieldguides/view_default.asp?allSpecies=y&searchText=raven">North American ravens</a> on eNature</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Oxford English Dictionary entry for "raven". <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Simpson, J.; Weiner, E., eds. (1989). "Raven". Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-861186-2. <a href="0-19-861186-2" target="_blank">0-19-861186-2</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>"Raven". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 14 May 2007. <a href="http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=raven" target="_blank">http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=raven</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Lipton, James (1991). An Exaltation of Larks. Viking Press. ISBN 978-0-670-30044-0. <a href="978-0-670-30044-0" target="_blank">978-0-670-30044-0</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>Walker, Niccoy (15 February 2023). "What is a Group of Ravens Called?". A-Z Animals. <a href="https://a-z-animals.com/blog/what-is-a-group-of-ravens-called/" target="_blank">https://a-z-animals.com/blog/what-is-a-group-of-ravens-called/</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>"flock of ravens, unkindness of ravens, treachery of ravens, conspiracy of ravens". Google Books Ngram Viewer. Retrieved 5 January 2020. <a href="https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=flock+of+ravens,unkindness+of+ravens,treachery+of+ravens,conspiracy+of+ravens&year_start=1900&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2Cflock%20of%20ravens%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Cunkindness%20of%20ravens%3B%2Cc0t1;,flock%20of%20ravens;,c0;.t1;,unkindness%20of%20ravens;,c0" target="_blank">https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=flock+of+ravens,unkindness+of+ravens,treachery+of+ravens,conspiracy+of+ravens&year_start=1900&year_end=2008&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2Cflock%20of%20ravens%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Cunkindness%20of%20ravens%3B%2Cc0t1;,flock%20of%20ravens;,c0;.t1;,unkindness%20of%20ravens;,c0</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>