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The domestic sheep (Ovis aries), the most common species of the sheep genus (Ovis), is a woolly ruminant quadruped which probably descends from the wild mouflon of south-central and south-west Asia. Sheep breeders refer to female sheep as ewes, intact males as rams, castrated males as wethers, yearlings as hoggets, and younger sheep as lambs. In sheep husbandry, a group of sheep is called a flock or mob. See other specialised vocabulary below.
Etymology Modern English "sheep" comes from Old English "sceap", ultimately from Common West Germanic " Cultural significance Sheep have had associations with many cultures, especially in the Mediterranean area and Britain, where they form the most common type of livestock in pastoralism. Selective breeding of sheep has frequently occurred and in Egyptian Mythology the ram was the symbol of Heryshaf. A wide symbology relates to sheep in ancient art, traditions and culture. Judaism uses many sheep references including the Passover lamb. Christianity uses sheep-related images, such as: Christ as the good shepherd, or as the sacrificed Lamb of God (Agnus Dei); the bishop's Pastoral; the lion lying down with the lamb (a reference to all of creation being at peace, without suffering, predation or otherwise). Greek Easter celebrations traditionally feature a meal of Paschal lamb. Sheep also have considerable importance in Arab culture, with Eid ul-Adha being a major festival in Islam when a sheep is sacrificed yearly. Herding sheep plays an important historico-symbolic part in the Jewish and Christian faiths, since Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and King David all worked as shepherds. The ram is the first sign of the Western zodiac, in which it is known as Aries. The sheep (or goat) also forms one of the animals associated with the 12-year cycle of in the Chinese zodiac, related to the Chinese calendar. Chinese tradition associates each animal with certain personality traits. See: Sheep (Zodiac). The raising of sheep for wool and meat became a major industry in colonial Australia and New Zealand and remains significant. As a result, sheep and sheep shearing have become an important part of the folklore and cultural tradition of these two countries. In New Zealand, sheep outnumber the human population 12 to 1.• Sheep are often associated with obedience due to the widespread perception that they lack intelligence and their undoubted herd mentality, hence the pejorative connotation of the adjective 'ovine'. In George Orwell's satirical novel Animal Farm, sheep are used to represent the ignorant and uneducated masses of revolutionary Russia. The sheep are unable to be taught the subtleties of revolutionary ideology and can only be taught repetitive slogans such as "Four legs good, two legs bad" which they bleat in unison at rallies. The rock group Pink Floyd wrote a song using sheep as a symbol for ordinary people, that is, everyone who isn't a pig or dog. People who accept overbearing governments have been pejoratively referred to as "sheeple." Breeds
Economic importance Raising sheep occupied many farmers in ancient economies, given that this animal can give milk (and all its derivative products, such as cheese), wool, sheepskin (used for making footwear, rugs and other coverings) and meat. In the 21st century, sheep retain considerable importance in the economies of several countries. After China, the largest producers of sheep are in the southern hemisphere: Australia, New Zealand and the Patagonian regions of Argentina, Uruguay and Chile. Other countries may produce a very small proportion of the world market, but sheep nonetheless play an important role in their economy. In some places, like Sardinia, sheep-breeding has become the principal and characteristic activity. In the UK, the importance of the wool trade was so significant that in the upper chamber of parliament (the House of Lords), the Lord Chancellor sits on a bench known as the Woolsack. This is, as its name suggests, a sack of wool and confers the importance of the wool trade to the English economy at the time of its installation many centuries ago. The economic importance of sheep in much of the United States has declined as it has become, in some cases, economically unviable to ranch sheep for wool.• Texas has by far the most sheep of any state,• but now has only about one-tenth• of the almost 11 million sheep it had in the 1940s.• Even in the 21st century, in some situations, sheep can provide a return on investment of up to 400% of their cost annually (including reproduction gains). Sheep breeding has played a role in several historic conflicts, such as the Scottish Highland Clearances, the American range wars, and the English "enclosing of the commons". Domestication Domestic sheep are descended from the mouflon that is found from the mountains of Turkey to southern Iran. Evidence for domestication dates to 9000 BCE in Iraq.• It has been found by DNA analysis to be one of two ancestors of domestic sheep. Although the second ancestor has not been identified, both the urial and argali have been ruled out.• The urial (O. vignei) is found from northeastern Iran to northwestern India. It has a higher number of chromosomes (58) than domestic sheep (54) which makes it an unlikely ancestor of the latter, but it interbreeds with the mouflon. The argali sheep (O. ammon) of inner Asia (Tibet, Himalayas, Altay Mountains, Tien-Shan and Pamir) has 56 chromosomes and the Siberian snow sheep (Ovis nivicola) has 52 chromosomes. Evidence of early domesticated sheep have been found in PPNB Jericho and Zawi Chemi Shanidar. The fleece-bearing sheep are only found since the Bronze Age. Primitive breeds, like the Scottish Soay sheep have to be plucked (a process called rooing), instead of sheared, as the kemps are still longer than the soft fleece, or the fleece must be collected from the field after it falls out. The European mouflon (O. musimon) found on Corsica and Sardinia as well as the Cretan and the extinct Cypriot wild sheep are possibly descended from early domestic sheep that turned feral. Cuisine Chefs and diners commonly know sheep meat prepared for food as '''lamb''' or '''mutton''' (compare the French word for "sheep": mouton). Ewes' milk is used in the production of cheese and yogurt in many upland parts of the world. Well known sheepmilk cheeses include the Roquefort of France, the brocciu of Corsica, the pecorino of Italy and the feta cheese of Greece. Sheepmilk contains no lactose, and thus does not trigger lactose intolerance in humans. * Sheep testicles, sometimes euphemistically called prairie oysters, are considered a delicacy in many parts of the world. Behaviour
Glossary This is a glossary of terms that relate to sheep and domestic sheep. Note that some terms have localised meanings, and may be used only in one geographical region, or may mean slightly different things in different areas. See also Further reading bo:ལུག | ||||||||||||
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