Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1995, Side 66

Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1995, Side 66
70 A NOTE ON THE DERIVATION OF FAROESE GRIND its entirety, nor in methods of capture, but in terms of the behaviour of the whales when they come together in large groups, to »løber i Brun eller paa Leeg«. With Claussøn Friis’s account in mind, it is useful to tum to Icelandic sources for comparison, and in particular the second entry of grind in the Icelandic etymological dictionary, íslensk Orðsifjabók (Blondal Magnússon, 1989). The dictionary lists grind as a separate entry in its meaning of pilot whales, and also casts doubt on the common explanation of a school of whales forming some kind of gate or barrier. Rather, it is suggested that the word is more likely to be connected with expressions such as að vera í grindum or grinda sig, which refer to the shoaling and mating be- haviour of groups of whales, known in Ice- landic as hvalavaða. The expression aðvera í grindingum also refers with the same sense to dogs and cats, and in this respect it is interesting to compare Claussøn Friis’s expression »løber paa Leeg« (translated as »coupling« in Sterpin’s English translation of Lucas Debes (Debes, 1676: 171) with modem Danish expressions such as løbetid, such as in hunden er i løbetid - the dog is in season/on heat. Blondal Magnússon also points to comparable uses of Icelandic hlaupa and ganga. Certainly, Claussøn Fri- is’s description of a Hvalsgrind of large whales stresses the movement and activity of the whales, and the potential danger they pose to seafarers when encountered in large groups. The seventeenth century account by the Icelandic naturalist, Jón Guðmundsson, de- scribes small whales in a similar manner: »peir eru mióg vandpecktir á sió, er fjeir vada sem vódusela vada« (Hermannsson, 1924: 6 - »they are known to be dangerous at sea, when they congregate in large groups, as seals do.«) The species dis- cussed by Guðmundsson seems to be a blend of killer whales and pilot whales, but the significant aspect here is his mention of the way in which they vada (vaða - shoal; congregate in a large group) like seals. A similar expression in Faroese, at grindast, refers to the behaviour of pilot whales when they are close together in a tight group, at which time some of the group can be seen to bob up and down in an upright position. Muller provides the following description of this behaviour: It is an interesting sight to observe, from an elevated plain on shore, a grind when it »grinder«. Now and then some of the whales stand erect in the water, with their heads above the surface, seeming to spy. Others float quietly on the surface. The main body swims around, stowing the herd together, so that some in the middle find it difficult to get below water. (Muller, 1882: 7) Although it is commonly thought that they are »resting« when they do this, pilot whales have also been observed to display such behaviour during the actual driving. In fact, very little is actually known about the reasons for this behaviour in this species (Desportes, pers. comm.). In his lexical collection from the late eighteenth century, Svabo also explains grindast in the sense of a school of pilot whales swimming at the surface as they rest
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