Daw
/dɔː/noun
A jackdaw, a small black-and-gray Eurasian crow.
Did you know?The word’s origin is uncertain, but many scholars suspect it began as an imitation of the jackdaw’s harsh call—a sound turned into a name.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic (uncertain)
Germanic
*daiwō (proposed)
“A reconstructed bird-name form, possibly imitative; the reconstruction is uncertain.”
Old English, before 1100
Old English
dāwe
“A jackdaw or similar crow.”
Middle English, 12th–14th Century
Middle English
dawe
“A jackdaw.”
16th Century
English
daw
“A jackdaw; also used figuratively for a foolish or insignificant person.”
Modern English
English
daw
“A jackdaw, chiefly in literary or regional usage.”