impala, noun

/ɪmˈpɑːlə/
Forms:
Also impalla, mpala, and with initial capital.
Plurals:
unchanged, or impalas.
Origin:
IsiZulu
1.
a. The antelope Aepyceros melampus of the Bovidae, especially the subspecies A. m. melampus, russet in colour, with a white belly and a curved black stripe on the haunch, the ram having ridged, lyre-shaped horns; pallah; red-buck; rooibok; rooibuck. Also attributive.
1875 W.H. Drummond Large Game & Nat. Hist. of S. & S.-E. Afr. 330The roibok or impalla..is about the size of a small reed-buck doe, though more slenderly made.
1875 W.H. Drummond Large Game & Nat. Hist. of S. & S.-E. Afr.These impalla..could easily distance any dog I possessed.
1888 P. Gillmore Days & Nights by Desert 136The Mpala Antelope (Æpyceros Melampus).
1896 R. Ward Rec. of Big Game 142Impala Antelope,..Few antelopes in South Africa excel the elegant Pallah, or Impala, in grace and beauty. For its size..its horns are considerable...In the good days..impala were to be found abundantly amid the bush.
1907 W.C. Scully By Veldt & Kopje 206The little russet impala, the very embodiment of sylvan grace.
1915 Chambers’s Jrnl (U.K.) Nov. 700The curious Hunter’s hartebeest or herola, having horns which somehow suggest a connecting link with the fleet and supremely graceful impala.
1937 C. Birkby Zulu Journey 111The little lanterns..were the shining eyes of a hundred impala, the red, leaping buck of the bush country.
1947 J. Stevenson-Hamilton Wild Life in S. Afr. 87The impala (Æpyceros melampus) — Discovered by..Lichtenstein more than a hundred years ago, and variously termed impala, pallah, and rooibok, this antelope may claim to be one of the most beautiful and graceful members of the existing African fauna.
1979 Antelope of Sn Afr. (Wildlife Soc. of Sn Afr.) 40Impala are the finest jumpers of all our antelopes; leaps of 10 metres long and more than 3 metres high have been recorded.
1988 N. Richards in Fair Lady Mar. 98On the Hippo Haunt restaurant menu in Mlilwane is impala or warthog stew with phutu or rice, vegetables and salads.
1990 C. Gittens in Farmer’s Weekly 4 May 14The Swazi herdsmen have developed a picturesque way of gathering the cattle by blowing impala horns.
b. With distinguishing epithet: black-faced impala, the antelope Aepyceros melampus petersi, distinguished by its relatively heavy body and a dark blaze, and restricted in its distribution to south-western Angola and northern Namibia.
1970 News/Check 24 July 31The Kaokoveld is also the haven of at least three unique animals — the mountain zebra, the black-faced impala and the South West elephant.
1979 Zaloumis & Cross Field Guide to Antelope 41In northern South West Africa the very rare sub-species, the black-faced impala occurs — the only Southern African antelope on the I.U.C.N. Endangered species list.
1988 A. Hall-Martin et al. Kaokoveld 36The black-faced impala is endemic to an area stretching from Otjovasandu on the south eastern corner of Kaokoland to the Moassamedes district of southwestern Angola...In appearance they are much like the impala of South Africa, though they are somewhat heavier and have a more pronounced black blaze on the face.
1990 Skinner & Smithers Mammals of Sn Afr. Subregion 670The black-faced impala originally was considered to be worthy of full specific status..but Ellerman..and Ansell..both considered it as a subspecies. This has been confirmed in a pilot cytogenetical study by Grimbeek.
c. comb.
impala lily, either of two low, succulent shrubs of the Apocynaceae: (a) Adenium multiflorum; (b) Pachypodium saundersii; kudu lily, see kudu sense 1 b.
1966 C.A. Smith Common Names 254Impala lily,..Adenium obesum var. multiflorum..; Pachypodium saundersii...Shrubby succulent, with a ball-shaped bole, and spiny branches. Flowers showy, white or tinged with pink, sweetly scented.
c1968 S. Candy Natal Coast Gardening 133Adenium multiflorum, ‘Impala Lily’...An indigenous relation of the Frangipangi.
1981 S. Afr. Garden & Home June 116The Impala Lily, Adenium obesum var. multiflorum, blooms in late winter.
1984 J. Onderstall Tvl Lowveld & Escarpment 152Impala Lily...In full bloom this striking succulent shrub provides welcome colour in the drab winter landscape.
1988 C. Innes Handbk of Cacti & Succulents 80Adenium multiflorum...Flower funnel-shaped, white with crimson edges. The milky sap is poisonous...Known as the Impala lily.
2. Military. Usually with initial capital. Either of two models of jet fighter aircraft manufactured in South Africa under licence from an Italian company. Also attributive.
1970 Daily News 8 MayCitizen Force squadrons throughout South Africa will be equipped with Impala jet aircraft to replace the Harvard trainers within the next two to three years.
1979 Weekend Post 12 May 1A light aircraft, piloted by an American, was yesterday forced to land by two South African Air Force Impalas in northern SWA/Namibia.
1985 E. Prov. Herald 25 Mar. 6A formation of Impala jet fighters streaked over Port Elizabeth on Saturday as 6 Squadron of the South African Air Forces bade farewell to the city before being officially disbanded.
1990 Armed Forces Nov. 6The Impalas were able to operate despite the Soviet-supplied and maintained air defence system that covered the Angolan airspace.
The antelope Aepyceros melampus of the Bovidae, especially the subspecies A. m. melampus, russet in colour, with a white belly and a curved black stripe on the haunch, the ram having ridged, lyre-shaped horns; pallah; red-buck; rooibok; rooibuck. Also attributive.
black-faced impala,the antelope Aepyceros melampus petersi, distinguished by its relatively heavy body and a dark blaze, and restricted in its distribution to south-western Angola and northern Namibia.
Usually with initial capital.Either of two models of jet fighter aircraft manufactured in South Africa under licence from an Italian company. Also attributive.
Entry Navigation

Visualise Quotations

Quotation summary

Senses

18751990

Compounds

impala lily

Browse Related Words

By Category

Mammals
Weapons and Armaments

By Origin

IsiZulu
immorality, nounn.impi, nounn.
Copyright © 2023 Dictionary Unit for South African English.