Talking turkey! How the Thanksgiving bird got its name (and then lent it to film flops)

By: Jack Lynch, Rutgers University - Newark, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: November 16, 2025

Words: 1,123

Last Updated: 1 week, 1 day ago

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“Meleagris Gallopavo Day” is a bit of a mouthful. Which may be why this Thanksgiving, most people will opt for the less ornithologically precise “Turkey Day.”

And just as turkey is a versatile meat – think of those leftover options! – so too is the word “turkey,” which can refer to everything from the bird itself to a populous Eurasian country to movie flops.

As a scholar who studies word origins, …

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