Ciconia

noun Ci·co·nia \ sə̇ˈkōnēə \

Definition of Ciconia

: the type genus of Ciconiidae including the common stork of Europe

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Origin and Etymology of ciconia

borrowed from New Latin, going back to Latin cicōnia “stork,” reduplicated formation of unknown origin

Note: Apparently introduced as a genus name by Mathurin Jacques Brisson in Ornithologie, ou Méthode Contenant la Division des Oiseaux, tome 5 (Paris, 1760), p. 361 (Brisson’s Ciconia alba replacing Linnaeus’ Ardea ciconia as a name for the white stork). Attempts to link Latin cicōnia with the base of canere “to sing” (Indo-European *kh₂n-?) are very implausible in light of the fact that storks are mute and communicate aurally solely by bill-clattering.