▪ I. bittern, n.1
(ˈbɪtən)
Forms: α. 4 botor, -ur(e, 5 botore, -oore, -owre, butturre, -ir, 5–7 butor, 6 buttour, buttur, -our, buture, 7 bewter, boter. β. bitoure, biture, 4–5 bi-, bytore, betoure, 5 betore, -owre, bytturre, 5–7 bittor, 6 bi-, bytture, bittarde, byture, byter, bytter, 6–7 bitter, bitour, byttour, 6–8 bittour, 7 byttur. γ. 6 bittorn, 7 bitturn, -erne, -orne, 7– bittern. (Also dial. 7– bitterbump, butterbump.)
[ME. botor, a. OF. butor, of obscure origin, perhaps related to rare L. būtiōn-em in same sense. (The med.L. butorius, bitorius are f. the mod. langs.) The Eng. forms in byt-, bit- prob. represent Fr. ü. The Fr. had a fem. butorde, with which cf. 16th c. Eng. bittarde. The final -n in 16th c. bittorn, mod. bittern, is due to some mistaken analogy: cf. alder, aldern, elder, eldern, etc. The mod.L. zoological name botaurus, is an adaptation of the OF. and ME. botor, with a reference to a fanciful derivation from bos taurus, taurus being applied by Pliny (x. xlii), to a bird that bellows like an ox, and the bittern being called taureau d'etang, boeuf de marais, meerrind, moosochse, and similar names in many langs.]
A genus of grallatorial birds (Botaurus), nearly allied to the herons, but smaller. spec. The species B. stellaris, a native of Europe and the adjoining parts of the Old World, but now rare in Great Britain on account of the disappearance of the marshes which it frequents. It is noted for the ‘boom’ which it utters during the breeding season, whence its popular names mire-drum, and bull of the bog, and the scientific term botaurus (see above). With qualifying adj., as American bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus of N. America; least bittern, Ixobrychus exilis of N. America; little bittern, any of several small bitterns of the genus Ixobrychus; sun bittern (see sun n.1 13 b).
| α, β [c 1000 in Wr.-Wülcker Voc. 131 Bitorius, pintorus, wrenna. (App. some mistake.)] c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 3130 Swannes, pecokes and botors. c 1386 Chaucer Wife's T. 116 As a Bitore [v.r. bytore, bitor, betoure] bombleth in the Myre. 1388 Wyclif Isa. xiii. 22 And bitouris [1382 ȝellende foules; Vulg. ululæ; 1611 wild beasts of the islands] schulen answere there. c 1420 Liber Cocorum (1862) 35 To wodcok, snype, curlue also, The betore in fere with hom schalle goo. c 1430 Lydg. Min. Poems (1840) 202 The botoore that etith the greet eel. 1486 Bk. St. Alban's F vj. A Sege of betouris. a 1529 Skelton Ph. Sparowe 432 The bitter with his bumpe. 1530 Palsgr. 202/1 Buttour a byrde, butor. 1533–4 Act 25 Hen. VIII, xi. §5 Euery egge of euery bittour, heroune, or shouelarde. viiid. 1543 Traheron Vigo's Chirurg. ii. ix. 42 Cranes, geese, bittardes. 1627 P. Fletcher Locusts i. viii, Their hoarse-base-hornes like fenny Bittours sound. 1646 Sir T. Browne Pseud. Ep. iii. xxv. §4 That a Bittor maketh that mugient noyse, or as we terme it Bumping by putting its bill into a reed. |
| γ 1515 Barclay Eglog. ii, The partriche, plover, bittorn and heronsewe. 1611 Bible Isa. xxiv. 11 The cormorant and the bitterne shall possesse it. 1638 Suckling Aglaura iii. i, A Bittorne whooping in a reed is better music. 1641 J. Jackson True Evang. T. iii. 209 The Hawk hath struck down the Bitturn. 1770 Goldsm. Des. Vill. 44 The hollow-sounding bittern guards its nest. 1776 T. Pennant Brit. Zool. II. 537 The Little Bittern..was shot as it perched on one of the trees in the Quarry or public walks in Shrewsbury. 1810 Scott Lady of L. i. xxxi, And the bittern sound his drum, Booming from the sedgy shallow. 1813 Wilson Amer. Ornith. VIII. 35 American Bittern, Ardea Minor..is another nocturnal species, common to all our sea and river marshes. Ibid. 37 Least Bittern: Ardea exilis..is commonly found in fresh water meadows. 1831 Least bittern [see least a. 1 c]. a 1857 Longfellow Sunr. on Hills 18 The noisy bittern wheeled his..way. 1957 Bannerman Birds Brit. Isles VI. 115 It seems to be generally conceded that the whole European population of little bitterns winters in Africa. Ibid. 134 American bittern..An Accidental Visitor which has occurred about fifty times in Britain. |
▪ II. bittern, n.2
(ˈbɪtən)
[f. bitter a. (perh. dial. form of bittering).]
1. The mother water or lye which remains after the crystallization of common salt from sea-water or the brine of salt-springs. It contains sulphate and chloride of magnesium, bromine, iodine, etc.
| 1682 Collins Salt in Eng. 54 The Bittern in Refining of French Salt, is a Liquor separated from it, that resembles Sack in Colour, but Gall in Tast. 1810 Henry Elem. Chem. I. 415 The uncrystallizable part called bittern. 1879 G. Gladstone Salt in Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 354 The deliquescent and non-crystallisable ingredients constitute..the bitterns which drain from the stacks of sea salt. 1883 Knowledge 15 June 354/2 The..bittern is employed as a source from which other substances are prepared, as..bromine. |
b. attrib.
| 1755 Hales in Phil. Trans. XLIX. 327 The saline spirit arises chiefly from the bittern salt. 1772 Monro ibid. LXII. 30 Sea salt mixed with a bittern and oily matter. |
2. A name applied to bitter substances used for different purposes; spec. (also bitterin, bittering) an old trade name for a mixture of quassia and other drugs employed in adulterating beer.
| 1775 Adair Amer. Ind. 403 The water is sufficiently impregnated with the intoxicating bittern. |