Introducing Medieval Animal Names

From the moment I finished my first reading of Introducing the Medieval Ass, the first volume of the Medieval Animals series from Gwasc Prifysgol Cymru / University of Wales Press, I distinctly recall thinking to myself “That was fascinating! I certainly hope they continue with this series.” Most unusually, this particular hope came true. The series now numbers amongst its volumes:

• The Medieval Ass
• The Medieval Swan
• The Medieval Fox
• The Medieval Dragon
• The Hebrew Physiologus

and most recently, Introducing Medieval Animals Names.

Published this past June in Wales and the rest of the United Kingdom, and made available just this very month in the United States by University of Chicago Press, the North American distributor of the series, Introducing Medieval Animal Names by Prof. Ben Parsons presents to its readers with a lively overview of the names medieval people gave to both their domestic as well as wild animals, how these names came to be, and even a bit of etymology and grammar in how proper names of functioned in the English language when used in regard to non-human animals. Whether your interest is in medieval history, natural history, the history of languages, or if you simply enjoy particularly interesting books, Introducing Medieval Animal Names is a book well worthy of your attention.

And, just for little extra added goodness, once you’ve completed your reading of this most recent volume in the Medieval Animals series, and have read through all the previous volumes as well, Gwasc Prifysgol Cymru / University of Wales Press has recently announced on their website that Introducing the Medieval Snail by Julia Pineau is scheduled to be published in June of 2026.

(There is still no news yet, however, of the hypothetical Introducing the Medieval Eel.)

Relatedly, if you’d like to take a deeper look into Introducing the Medieval Dragon, I wrote and published a full-length review of it back in November of 2022.