tegwaan, noun

/ˈteɡwɑːn/
Forms:
tegwan, tegwaneShow more Also tegwan, tegwane, tegwani, tekwane, thekwane, U-Tekwan.
Origin:
IsiXhosa, IsiZuluShow more IsiXhosa and isiZulu uthekwane.
The hammerkop, Scopus umbretta.
1937 C. Birkby Zulu Journey 134The friendly tegwane knows perfectly well that the Zulus think him mtagati; it brings bad luck on a hunter to kill one.
[1939 Outspan 26 May 84While the Bantu trust and hold faith in various animals, there are certain birds which to them are abhorrent. Among these is the U-Tekwan, hammer-headed shadow bird..the hammerkop.]
1952 H. Klein Land of Silver Mist 30John..clutched my arm...‘Go careful baas, tegwaan.’ And there, flying down the road in front of the car, was a tegwaan. Determined to disprove John’s theory once and for all, I drove with exceptional care.
1958 R. Collins Impassioned Wind 48A large dark bird, probably a hamerkop, flared upwards..and drifted away into the night. ‘There’s a tegwaan’ observed Jessica, using the Zulu name.
1959 L. Longmore Dispossessed 229He believes that if he destroys the nest of thekwane he would bring death upon himself. Thekwane, on finding his nest destroyed, would become so cross that he would express his wrath by fetching lightning for his destruction.
[1967 J.A. Broster Red Blanket Valley 54In hushed voices they told me of a mysterious bird which feeds on frogs and tadpoles. It has great powers of magic, but if left alone is harmless. In Xhosa it is called u-thekwane, in English, Hammerhead or Umber.]
1967 J. Drummond Saboteurs 51You can’t put a marriage together all anyhow, like a Tegwan’s nest. This is no marriage you have here, it’s a mess.
1968 R. Griffiths Man of River 134I am Tegwani, the hammerkop..the brown river bird, whose nest is so strong that only an axe or fire can harm it.
1987 M. Poland Train to Doringbult 14He knew Thekwane, the gaunt-winged hamerkop, relic of a pterodactyl, an ancient bird that wades in vleis and sees the destinies of men reflected from the sky.
1990 Afr. Wildlife Vol.44 No.5, 302Hamerkops, better known as tegwaans in our home.
The hammerkop, Scopus umbretta.
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IsiXhosa
IsiZulu
tecoma, nounn.Tegwini, nounn.
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