Book of St. Albans

The "Book of St Albans" (or, as spelled at the time of publication, "The Boke of St Albans") was the last of 8 books printed by the St Albans Press in England [http://www.bartleby.com/212/1309.html] , around 1480.

It contains three essays, on hawking, hunting, and heraldry. It became wildly popular, and went through many editions, quickly acquiring an additional essay on angling (fishing). [http://www.worldwidewords.org/articles/collectives.htm] .

The essay on hunting is attributed to Dame Juliana Barnes (possibly Berners, or Bernes), who traditionally is supposed to have been the prioress of Sopwell Priory near St Albans.

The book contains a large list of special collective nouns for animals, such as "gaggle of geese" and the like, listed in the "List of animal names".

English has a tradition, traceable at least back to this book, of acquiring many such collective nouns. A modern collection is James Lipton, An Exaltation of Larks, Penguin Books 1968, ISBN 0-670-30044-6. Similar lists are at [http://www.ojohaven.com/collectives/] and [http://nostalgia.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collective_nouns/All_sorted_by_subject] .

ee also

*Falconry#The Book of St Albans