Donkey
Conservation status
Domesticated
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Perissodactyla Family: Equidae Genus: Equus Subgenus: Asinus Species: E. The conservation status of a Species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands The odd-toed ungulates are browsing and Grazing Mammals which compose the order Perissodactyla. Equidae is the family of horse-like animals which belong to the order Perissodactyla. Equidae is the family of horse-like animals which belong to the order Perissodactyla. The subgenus Asinus encompasses four species and several subspecies of Equidae characterized by long ears a lean straight-backed build a scant tail and reputed to have asinus
Binomial name
Equus asinus Linnaeus, 1758

The donkey or ass, Equus asinus, is a member of the Equidae or horse family, and an odd-toed ungulate. Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for Equidae is the family of horse-like animals which belong to the order Perissodactyla. The odd-toed ungulates are browsing and Grazing Mammals which compose the order Perissodactyla. The words donkey and ass are applied to the domesticated E. Domestication (from Latin domesticus) refers to the process whereby a Population of Animals asinus. The animal considered to be its wild ancestor is the African Wild Ass, also E. The African Wild Ass ( Equus africanus) is a wild member of the horse family Equidae. asinus.

Colloquially, the term "ass" is often used today to refer to a larger, horse-sized animal, and "donkey" to a smaller, pony-sized one. The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. A pony is a small Horse with a specific conformation and temperament In the western United States, a small donkey is sometimes called a burro. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A male donkey or ass is called a jack, a female a jenny, and offspring less than one year old, a foal (male: colt, female filly). A jenny is the term used to describe a female ass or Donkey. Occasionally a female Mule may be referred to as a jenny but more often the term " A foal is a Horse that is one year old or younger More specific terms are colt for a Male foal and Filly for a Female foal A colt is a young Male Horse, under the age of four However in olden days the word 'colt' referred to any young or infant horse regardless of gender A filly is a young Female Horse too young to be called a mare.

While different species of the Equidae family can interbreed, offspring are almost always sterile. Equidae is the family of horse-like animals which belong to the order Perissodactyla. Nonetheless, horse/donkey hybrids are popular for their durability and vigor. In Biology, hybrid has two meanings The first meaning is the result of interbreeding between two animals or plants of different taxa. A mule is the offspring of a jack (male) donkey and a mare (female horse). In its common modern meaning a mule is the offspring of a male Donkey and a female Horse, which is classified as a kind of F1 hybrid. The much rarer successful mating of a male horse and a female donkey produces a hinny. The word "hinny" is also a term of endearment used in North East England, equivalent to "honey" see Geordie.

Asses were first domesticated around 3000 BCE^[1], approximately the same time as the horse, and have spread around the world. There are a number of hypotheses on many of the key issues regarding the domestication of the horse. The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. They continue to fill important roles in many places today and domesticated species are increasing in numbers (although the African wild ass and another relative, the Onager, are endangered species). The Onager ( Equus hemionus) is a large Mammal belonging to the horse family and native to the deserts of Syria, Iran, Pakistan An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming Extinct because it is either few in numbers or threatened by changing environmental or predation As "beasts of burden" and companions, asses and donkeys have worked together with humans for centuries.

Contents 1 Characteristics 2 Etymology of the name 3 History 4 Economic use 5 Present status 6 Donkeys in warfare 7 Types of donkeys 7.1 Domestic donkey breeds 7.2 Burro 7.3 Donkey hybrids 7.4 Wild Ass, Onager, and Kiang 8 Cultural references 8.1 Religion and myth 8.2 Fable and folklore 8.3 Literature 8.4 Film 8.5 Proverb and idiom 8.6 Pub names 8.7 Advertising 8.8 Insult and vulgarity 8.9 Politics 9 See also 10 Notes 11 References 12 External links

Characteristics

Donkeys range considerably in size, depending on breed and management. Most domestic donkeys range from 0. 9 to over 1. 4 m tall, though the Mammoth Jack breed is taller, and the Andalucian-Cordobesan breed of southern Spain can reach up to 1. Andalusia (Andalucía is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the most populous and the second largest in terms of land area 6 m high.

Donkeys are adapted to marginal desert lands, and have many traits that are unique to the species as a result. A desert is a Landscape or region that receives very little precipitation. Wild donkeys live separated from each other, unlike tight wild horse and feral horse herds. The Wild Horse ( Equus ferus) is a member of the Horse genus which currently is native only in Asia. Feral horses are free-roaming untamed horses descended from domesticated Horses. Donkeys have developed very loud vocalizations, which help keep in contact with other donkeys over the wide spaces of the desert. The best-known call is referred to a "bray," which can be heard for over three kilometers. Donkeys have larger ears than horses. Their longer ears may pick up more distant sounds, and may help cool the donkey's blood. Donkeys in the wild can defend themselves with a powerful kick of their hind legs as well as by biting and striking with their front feet.

Donkeys' tough digestive system is somewhat less prone to colic than that of horses, can break down near-inedible vegetation and extract moisture from food very efficiently. The anatomy of the horse comes with a large number of Horse specific terms Colic in Horses is defined as Abdominal pain, but it is a clinical sign rather than a diagnosis As a rule, donkeys need smaller amounts of feed than horses of comparable height and weight. Equine nutrition is the feeding of Horses ponies, Mules Donkeys and other equines Correct and balanced Nutrition is a critical Because they are easy keepers, if overfed, donkeys are also quite susceptible to developing a condition called laminitis. An easy keeper, easy doer or ( British English) good doer is a Livestock animal that can live on relatively little food Laminitis is a disease of the digital Laminae of the Hoof ( Foot of an Ungulate)

Etymology of the name

Until recent times, the synonym ass was commonly used to refer to Equus asinus (e. This article deals with the general meaning of the term "synonym" g. , as in jackass, meaning "male donkey"); ass has clear cognates in most other Indo-European languages. Cognates in Linguistics are words that have a common origin They may occur within a language such as shirt and skirt as two English words descended from However, its homonymity in the United States with the vulgar term ass for "buttocks" probably influenced its gradual replacement by donkey when referring to Equus asinus. In linguistics a homonym is one of a group of words that share the same pronunciation but have different meanings and are usually spelled differently The word donkey is an etymologically obscure word. Etymology is the study of the History of Words &mdash when they entered a language from what source and how their form and meaning have changed over time The first written use dates to 1785. ^[2] No credible cognate for donkey has yet been identified. Cognates in Linguistics are words that have a common origin They may occur within a language such as shirt and skirt as two English words descended from Hypotheses on its derivation include the following:

• Perhaps a diminutive of dun (dull grayish-brown), a typical donkey colour. The dun gene is a Dilution gene that affects both red and black pigments in the coat color of a Horse. ^[3][2]
• Perhaps from the name Duncan. ^[4][2]
• Perhaps of imitative origin. ^[4]

History

The ancestors of the modern donkey are the Nubian and Somalian subspecies of African wild ass. An ancestor is a Parent or ( recursively) the parent of an ancestor (i The African Wild Ass ( Equus africanus) is a wild member of the horse family Equidae. ^[5][6] The African Wild Ass was domesticated around 4,000 BCE. Domestication (from Latin domesticus) refers to the process whereby a Population of Animals The donkey became an important pack animal for people living in the Egyptian and Nubian regions as they can easily carry 20% to 30% of their own body weight and can also be used as a farming and dairy animal. A pack animal is a Beast of burden used by Humans as means of Transporting materials by attaching them so their weight bears on the Animal This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. This article is about the region in Africa for other uses see Nubia (disambiguation. By 1800 B. C. , the ass had reached the Middle East, where the trading city of Damascus was referred to as the “City of Asses” in cuneiform texts. The Middle East is a Subcontinent with no clear boundaries often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East. Damascus ( دمشق,, also commonly known as الشام ash-Shām) is the capital and largest city of Syria. Syria produced at least three breeds of donkeys, including a saddle breed with a graceful, easy gait. Syria ( سوريّة or) officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic ar الجمهورية العربية السورية These were favored by women.

For the Greeks, the donkey was associated with the Syrian god of wine, Dionysus. The Greeks ( Greek: Έλληνες) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions In Classical mythology, Dionysus or Dionysos (in Greek, Διόνυσος or Διώνυσος; associated with Roman The Romans also valued the ass and would use it as a sacrificial animal. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC Sacrifice (from a Middle English verb meaning "to make sacred" from Old French, from Latin sacrificium: sacr, "sacred"

Equines had become extinct in the Western Hemisphere at the end of the last Ice Age. In Biology and Ecology, extinction is the cessation of existence of a Species or group of taxa. The Western Hemisphere, also Western hemisphere or western hemisphere, is a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies West An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets However, horses and donkeys were brought back to the Americas by the Conquistadors. This article is about the Spanish explorer soldiers of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuriesfor other uses see Conquistador (disambiguation A Conquistador In 1495, the ass first appeared in the New World when Christopher Columbus brought four jacks and two jennys. The New World is one of the names used for the non-Eurasian/non-African parts of the Earth specifically the Americas and Australia. Christopher Columbus (1451 &ndash May 20 1506 was an Italian Navigator, colonizer It is from this bloodline that many of the mules which the Conquistadors used while they explored the Americas were produced. This article is about the Spanish explorer soldiers of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuriesfor other uses see Conquistador (disambiguation A Conquistador The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World, consisting of the Continents of North America and South America Shortly after America became independent, President George Washington imported the first mammoth jack stock into the country. George Washington (February 22 1732 December 14 1799 served as the first President of the United States of America (1789&ndash1797 and led the Because the existing Jack donkeys in the New World at the time lacked the size and strength he sought to produce quality work mules, he imported donkeys from Spain and France, some standing over 1. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. 63 m tall. One of the donkeys Washington received from the Marquis de Lafayette, named "Knight of Malta," stood 1. 43 m and thus was regarded as a great disappointment. Viewing this donkey as unfit for producing mules, Washington instead bred Knight of Malta to his jennys and, in doing so, created an American line of Mammoth Jacks (a breed name that includes both males and females).

Despite these early appearances of donkeys in America, the donkey did not find widespread distribution in America until it was found useful as a pack animal by miners, particularly the gold prospectors, of the mid-1800s. A packhorse (UK or pack horse (USA refers generally to an Equid such as a Horse, Mule, Donkey or Pony used for carrying Mining is the extraction of valuable Minerals or other geological materials from the earth usually (but not always from an Ore body Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 Prospecting is the physical search for Minerals Fossils precious metals or mineral specimens and is also known as Fossicking. Miners preferred this animal due to its ability to carry tools, supplies, and ore. An ore is a volume of rock containing components or Minerals in a mode of occurrence that renders it valuable for mining Their sociable disposition and adaptation to human companionship allowed many miners to lead their donkeys without ropes. They simply followed behind their owner. As mining became less an occupation of the individual prospector and more of an industrial underground operation, the miners' donkeys lost their jobs, and many were simply turned loose into the American deserts. Descendants of these donkeys, now feral, can still be seen roaming the Southwest today. A feral organism is one that has escaped from Domestication and returned partly or wholly to its wild state

By the early 20th century, donkeys began to be used less as working animals and instead kept as pets in the United States and other wealthier nations, while remaining an important work animal in many poorer regions. A working animal is an animal that is kept by humans and trained to perform tasks The donkey as a pet is best portrayed by the appearance of the miniature donkey in 1929. Robert Green imported miniature donkeys to the United States and was a lifetime advocate of the breed. Mr. Green is perhaps best quoted when he said "Miniature Donkeys possess the affectionate nature of a Newfoundland, the resignation of a cow, the durability of a mule, the courage of a tiger, and the intellectual capability only slightly inferior to man's. " Standing only 32-40 inches, many families recognized the potential of miniature donkeys as pets and companions for their children.

Although the donkey fell from public notice and became viewed as a comical, stubborn beast which was considered “cute” at best, the donkey has recently regained some popularity in North America as a mount, for pulling wagons, and even as a guard animal. Some standard species are ideal for guarding herds of sheep against predators, since most donkeys have a natural wariness toward coyotes and other canines and will keep them away from the herd.

Economic use

Donkeys have a reputation for stubbornness, but this is due to some handlers' misinterpretation of their highly-developed sense of self-preservation. Skegness is a seaside town and Civil parish within the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It is difficult to force or frighten a donkey into doing something it sees as contrary to its own best interest. .

Although formal studies of their behaviour and cognition are rather limited, donkeys appear to be quite intelligent, cautious, friendly, playful, and eager to learn. Ethology ( from Greek ἦθος ethos, "character" and λόγος logos, "knowledge") is the scientific study of Animal Animal cognition is the title given to a modern approach to the mental capacities of (non-human Animals. They are often pastured or stabled with horses and ponies, and are thought to have a calming effect on nervous horses. If a donkey is introduced to a mare and foal, the foal will often turn to the donkey for support after it has been weaned from its mother. A foal is a Horse that is one year old or younger More specific terms are colt for a Male foal and Filly for a Female foal ^[7]

Once a person has earned their confidence they can be willing and companionable partners and very dependable in work. For this reason, they are now commonly kept as pets in countries where their use as beasts of burden has disappeared. A pet is an Animal kept for companionship and enjoyment or a househeld animal as opposed to Livestock, Laboratory animals Working animals They are also popular for giving rides to children in holiday resorts or other leisure contexts. Donkey rides have been a traditional feature of Seaside resorts in England.

Present status

There are about 44 million donkeys today. China has the most with 11 million, followed by Ethiopia and Mexico. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National NOTE This intro is the result of careful NPOV work Please do not make potentially controversial edits to it without first discussing on the talk page The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. Some researchers think the real number is higher since many donkeys go uncounted. ^[8]

The vast majority of donkeys are used for the same types of work that they have been doing for 6000 years. Their most common role is for transport, whether riding, pack transport, or pulling carts. They may also be used for farm tillage, threshing, raising water, milling, and other jobs. Other donkeys are used to sire mules, as companions for horses, to guard sheep, and as pets. A few are milked or raised for meat^[8]

The number of donkeys in the world continues to grow, as it has steadily throughout most of history. Some factors that today are contributing to this are increasing human population, progress in economic development and social stability in some poorer nations, conversion of forests to farm and range land, rising prices of motor vehicles and gasoline, and the donkeys' popularity as pets. A forest is an area with a high density of Trees There are many definitions of a forest based on various criteria ^[8][9]

In prosperous countries, the welfare of donkeys both at home and abroad has recently become a concern and a number of sanctuaries for retired and rescued donkeys have been set up. The largest is the Donkey Sanctuary of England, which also supports donkey welfare projects in Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, and Mexico. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the north Somalia to the northeast Tanzania to the south ^[10]

Donkeys in warfare

Donkeys have been used throughout history for transportation of supplies, pulling wagons, and, in a few cases, as riding animals. During World War I a British stretcher bearer, John Simpson Kirkpatrick, serving with the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, used a donkey named Duffy to rescue wounded soldiers, carrying them to safety in Gallipoli. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located John (Jack Simpson Kirkpatrick ( July 6, 1892 &ndash May 19, 1915) was a stretcher bearer with the Australian and New Zealand Gallipoli peninsula (Gelibolu Yarımadası is located in Turkish Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles There is a statue of John Simpson Kirkpatrick and his donkey in his home town, South Shields. South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne.

According to British food writer Matthew Fort, donkeys were until recently used in the Italian Army. Matthew Fort (born January 29, 1954) is a British food writer and critic The Italian Army (Esercito Italiano is the ground defense force of the Military of Italy. The Mountain Fusiliers each had a donkey to carry their gear and in extreme circumstances, the animal could be eaten. A pack animal is a Beast of burden used by Humans as means of Transporting materials by attaching them so their weight bears on the Animal Horse meat is the culinary name for meat cut from a Horse. It is slightly sweet tender low in fat and high in protein ^[11] In 2006, security forces in Afghanistan prevented a man taking a donkey which he had laden with 30 kg (66lb) of explosives and a number of landmines, which would have been set off by a remote controlled detonator, from entering a town in Zabul Province. Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت, The pound or pound-mass (abbreviation lb, lbm, or sometimes in the United States #) is a unit of Mass An explosive material is a material that either is chemically or otherwise Energetically unstable or produces a sudden expansion of the material usually accompanied A land mine is an Explosive device designed to be placed on or in the ground to explode when triggered by an operator or the Proximity of a vehicle person For the Ratt album see Detonator (album A detonator is a device used to trigger an Explosive device. Zabul ( زابل) is a historic province of Afghanistan. Zabul became an independent province from neighbouring Kandahar in 1963 with Qalat ^[12]

Types of donkeys

Domestic donkey breeds

An incomplete list of domestic donkey breeds includes the:

• Abyssinian Donkey
• American Spotted Donkey
• Cypriot Donkey
• Mammoth Donkey
• Mammoth Jack
• Miniature Mediterranean Donkey
• Poitou Donkey: The Poitou Donkey breed was developed in France for the sole purpose of producing mules. Poitou was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. In its common modern meaning a mule is the offspring of a male Donkey and a female Horse, which is classified as a kind of F1 hybrid. It is a large donkey breed with a very long shaggy coat and no dorsal stripe.
• Spotted Ass
• Standard Donkey

Burro

The Spanish brought donkeys, called "burros" in Spanish, to North America, where they were prized for their hardiness in arid country and became the beast of burden of choice by early prospectors in the Southwest United States. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. In the western United States the word "burro" is often used interchangeably with the word "donkey" by English speakers. Sometimes the distinction is made with smaller donkeys, descended from Mexican stock, called "burros," while those descended from stock imported directly from Europe are called "donkeys. "

The wild burros (or more accurately, feral burros) on the western rangelands descend from animals that ran away, were abandoned, or were freed. Grazing generally describes a type of Predation in which an Herbivore feeds on Plants (such as Grasses, or more broadly on a multicellular A feral organism is one that has escaped from Domestication and returned partly or wholly to its wild state Wild burros in the United States were protected by Public Law 92-195, The Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971. These animals, considered to be a living legacy, are periodically at risk when there are severe drought conditions. To reduce herd populations and preserve grazing land, the Bureau of Land Management conducts roundups of burro herds and holds public auctions. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's Public lands totaling approximately

Wild burros can make good pets when treated well and trained properly. They are clever and curious. When trust has been established, they appreciate, and even seek, attention and grooming.

Donkey hybrids

A male donkey (jack) can be crossed with a female horse to produce a mule. In its common modern meaning a mule is the offspring of a male Donkey and a female Horse, which is classified as a kind of F1 hybrid. A male horse can be crossed with a female donkey (jennet or jenny) to produce a hinny. The word "hinny" is also a term of endearment used in North East England, equivalent to "honey" see Geordie. (In the United Kingdom, the word hinny is not used). A female donkey in the UK is called a mare, or jenny and the word jennet in the UK is more commonly applied to the offspring of a female donkey and a male horse, regardless of whether the foal is female or male. A Jennet or Spanish Jennet was a small Spanish Horse. It was noted for a smooth naturally Ambling gait, compact and well-muscled

Horse-donkey hybrids are almost always sterile because horses have 64 chromosomes whereas donkeys have 62, producing offspring with 63 chromosomes. In Biology, hybrid has two meanings The first meaning is the result of interbreeding between two animals or plants of different taxa. Female infertility|Male infertility Infertility primarily refers to the biological inability of a Man or a Woman to contribute to conception. A chromosome is an organized structure of DNA and Protein that is found in cells. Mules are much more common than hinnies. This is believed to be caused by two factors, the first being proven in cat hybrids, that when the chromosome count of the male is the higher, fertility rates drop (as in the case of stallion x jennet). The lower progesterone production of the jenny may also lead to early embryonic loss. In addition, there are less-scientific reasons: Due to different mating behavior, jacks are often more willing to cover mares than stallions are to breed jennys. In Biology, mating is the pairing of opposite- Sex or hermaphroditic Organisms for copulation and in Social animals also to raise their Further, mares are usually larger than jennys and thus have more room for the ensuing foal to grow in the womb, resulting in a larger animal at birth. It is commonly believed that mules are more easily handled and also physically stronger than hinnies, making them more desirable for breeders to produce, and it is unquestioned that mules are more common in total number.

The offspring of a zebra-donkey cross is called a zonkey, zebroid, zebrass, or zedonk;^[13] zebra mule is an older term, but still used in some regions today. Zebras are African Equids best known for their distinctive white and black stripes A zebroid is a cross between a Zebra and any other Equid: essentially a zebra hybrid. The foregoing terms generally refer to hybrids produced by breeding a male zebra to a female donkey. Zebra hinny, zebret and zebrinny all refer to the cross of a female zebra with a male donkey. Zebrinnies are rarer than zedonkies because female zebras in captivity are most valuable when used to produce full-blooded zebras. ^[14] There are not enough female zebras breeding in captivity to spare them for hybridizing; there is no such limitation on the number of female donkeys breeding.

For at least the past century, a few donkeys and burros in Mexico have been painted with white stripes to amuse tourists. These are not hybrids.

An animal which may look like a zebra-donkey hybrid because of its distinctly striped hindquarters and hind legs is the okapi, which has no relationship to either of those species. The Okapi ( Okapia johnstoni) is a Mammal native to the Ituri Rainforest, located in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Okapi are most closely related to the giraffe. The giraffe ( Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African Even-toed ungulate Mammal, the tallest of all land-living Animal Species In addition to the rear stripes, okapi have some striping near the top of their forelegs.

Wild Ass, Onager, and Kiang

With domestication of almost all donkeys, few species now exist in the wild. Some of them are the African Wild Ass (Equus africanus) and its subspecies Somalian Wild Ass (Equus africanus somaliensis). The African Wild Ass ( Equus africanus) is a wild member of the horse family Equidae. The Asiatic wild ass or Onager, Equus hemionus, and its relative the Kiang, Equus kiang, are closely related wild species. The Onager ( Equus hemionus) is a large Mammal belonging to the horse family and native to the deserts of Syria, Iran, Pakistan The Kiang ( Equus kiang) also khyang and sometimes Tarpan (not to be confused with the separate extinct Tarpan) or Gorkhar,

There was another extinct subspecies called the Yukon Wild Ass (Equus asinus lambei). The Yukon Wild Ass Equus asinus lambei is an extinct subspecies of the horse family Equidae, that ranged across North America until approximately 10000 In the wild the asses can reach top speeds equalling zebras and even most horses. Zebras are African Equids best known for their distinctive white and black stripes The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae.

Cultural references

The long history of human use of donkeys means that there is a rich store of cultural references to them. The National Geographic Magazine is the official journal of the National Geographic Society.

Religion and myth

• Greek mythology includes the story of King Midas who judged against Apollo in favor of Pan during a musical contest, and had his ears changed to those of a donkey as punishment. Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and Heroes the nature of the world and the origins and significance In Greek mythology, Midas or King Midas (in Greek Μίδας is popularly remembered for his ability to turn everything he touched into Gold Pan ( Greek, Genitive) is the Greek god of shepherds and flocks of mountain wilds hunting and rustic music paein means to pasture
• In both Jewish and Christian traditions, the messiah (Jesus Christ in the later case) was often described as riding on a donkey. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth This article is about the concept of a Messiah in religion notably in the Christian Islamic and Jewish traditions Jesus of Nazareth (7–2 BC / BCE —26–36 AD / CE) As noted, in the context of the Hebrew Bible this connoted wealth and affluence befitting the House of David, as at the time commoners are described as simply going on foot. The term Hebrew Bible is a generic reference to those books of the Bible originally written in Biblical Hebrew (and the related Biblical Aramaic However, in later times when the aristocracy used horses, depicting the messiah as riding a donkey came to have an opposite connotation, as indicating a simple, sober way of life and avoiding luxury. The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. The same connotation is evident in the description of saints such as Francis of Assisi as riding donkeys. A saint (from the Latin sanctus) is a human being to whom has been attributed (and who has generally demonstrated a high level of Holiness and Sanctity For the opera by Olivier Messiaen see Saint-François d'Assise.
• In contemporary Israel, the term "Messiah's Donkey" (Chamoro Shel Mashiach חמורו של משיח) stands at the center of a controversial religious-political doctrine, attributed to Rabbi Avraham Yitchak Hacohen Cook, under which it was the Heavenly-imposed "task" of secular Zionists to build up a Jewish State, but once the state is established they are fated to give place to the Religious who are ordained to lead the state. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. Abraham Isaac Kook (1865–1935 was the first Ashkenazi Chief rabbi of the British Mandate for Palestine, the founder of the Religious Zionist History of Zionism|Timeline of Zionism|World Zionist Organization|Zionist political violence Zionism is an international political movement that originally supported the The terms " Jewish state " and " homeland of the Jewish people " are used to describe the State of Israel and refer to its status as a Nation-state Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonized The secularists in this analogy are "The Donkey" while the religious who are fated to supplant them are a collective "Messiach". A book on the subject, published in 1998 by the militant secularist Sefi Rechlevsky, aroused a major controversy in the Israeli public opinion. ^[15]
• In Genesis the King of Shechem (the modern Nablus), killed by Jacob's sons, is called "Hamor" - showing that at the time this animal was held in high enough esteem that it was no disrespect for royalty to use its name as their first name. Shechem ( Sichem, Shkhem or Shachmu, Hebrew: שְׁכֶם‎ / שְׁכָם, Standard Nablus ( sometimes Nābulus; Arabic:; næːblʊs is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank, approximately north of Jerusalem Jacob ( Hebrew: יַעֲקֹב, Standard   Yaʿaqov Tiberian   Yaʿăqōḇ; (See Dinah, Shechem, Animal names as first names in Hebrew). According to the Hebrew Bible, Dinah ( was the daughter of Jacob, one of the Patriarchs of the Israelites and Leah, his first wife Shechem ( Sichem, Shkhem or Shachmu, Hebrew: שְׁכֶם‎ / שְׁכָם, Standard The Hebrew Language has many First names which are Animal names, some of which are derived from the Bible, while others are more modern
• In Numbers 22:22-41 "The Lord opened the mouth of the donkey" (vs. 28) and it speaks to Balaam. Balaam ( Hebrew: בִּלְעָם, Standard Bilʻam Tiberian Bilʻām) is a Prophet In Judges 15:13-17 where the hero Samson slays Philistines with the jawbone of an ass. Samson, Shimshon ( Hebrew: שמשון, Standard Šimšon Tiberian Šimšôn; meaning Additional references can be found in Deuteronomy 22:10, Job 11:12, Proverbs 26:3 and elsewhere.
• Muhammad, the prophet of Islam said that dogs and donkeys - if they pass in front of men in prayer - they will void or nullify that prayer. IMPORTANT PLEASE READ ##### For all questions relating to the addition of (pbuh peace be upon him or other honorifics For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. ^[16] He also said that "when you hear the braying of donkeys, seek Refuge with Allah from Satan for (their braying indicates) that they have seen a devil. Satan, ( Standard Hebrew Satan'el, English accuser) is a term that originates from the Abrahamic faiths, being traditionally "^[17]
• Several were buried in Hor-Aha's tomb
• The ass was a symbol of the Greek god Dionysus, particularly in relationship to his companion, Silenus. Hor-Aha is considered the second Pharaoh of the first dynasty of Ancient Egypt in current Egyptology In Classical mythology, Dionysus or Dionysos (in Greek, Διόνυσος or Διώνυσος; associated with Roman The Silenoi (Σειληνοί were followers of Dionysus. They were drunks and were usually bald and fat with thick lips and squat noses and had the legs of a human
• The most common Greek word for ass appears roughly 100 times in the Biblical text. In the Gospels, Jesus rides a donkey into Jerusalem (Mark 11:1 in which colt refers to a donkey colt). This article is about the canonical books of the New Testament Jesus of Nazareth (7–2 BC / BCE —26–36 AD / CE) Jerusalem (יְרוּשָׁלַיִם, he-Latn Yerushaláyim; Arabic: ar القُدس, ar-Latn al-Quds) is the
• There are numerous references to the donkey ("hamor" or "chamor" חמור) in the Hebrew Bible, (Old Testament). The term Hebrew Bible is a generic reference to those books of the Bible originally written in Biblical Hebrew (and the related Biblical Aramaic In Western Christianity, the Old Testament refers to the books that form the first of the two-part Christian Biblical canon. It mostly appears reflecting the natural environment of Israel and as an aspect of the agricultural economy. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. Ownership of many donkeys is a sign of God’s blessing. The Bible often specifies whether a person rode donkeys, since this was used to indicate a person’s wealth in much the same way luxury cars do today. (Horses at that time were used solely for war, powerful kings such as Solomon being the only ones who could afford to import them from Egypt. The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. King Solomon ( Ge'ez: ስለሞን Arabic: ar سليمان, Sulayman, all from the Triliteral root S-L-M, "peace" This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. )
• Traditionally, Mary is portrayed as riding a donkey while pregnant. Legend has it that the cross on the donkey’s shoulders comes from the shadow of Christ’s crucifixion, placing the donkey at the foot of the cross. Crucifixion (from Latin crucifixio, noun of process crucifixio, from perfect passive participle crucifixus, fixed to a cross from It was once believed that hair cut from this cross and hung from a child’s neck in a bag would prevent fits and convulsions.

Fable and folklore

• An Indian tale has an ass dressed in a panther skin gave himself away by braying. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country A black panther is a black ( melanistic) color variant of one of several Species of larger cat which are often known by the term panther.
• European folklore claims that the tail of a donkey can be used to combat whooping cough or scorpion stings. Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious Disease caused by the Bacterium Bordetella pertussis; it derived its Scorpions are eight-legged Carnivorous Arthropods They are members of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida.
• One of Aesop's fables has an ass dressed in a lion skin who gives himself away by braying. Aesop (also spelled Æsop, from the Greek Αἴσωπος — Aisōpos) (620-560 BC) known only for the genre of Fables A fable is a succinct story in prose or verse that features Animals Plants inanimate objects, or forces of nature which are

Literature

• Benjamin, the skeptical donkey from George Orwell's Animal Farm. Benjamin is a fictional Donkey in George Orwell 's novel Animal Farm. In ordinary usage skepticism or scepticism ( Greek 'σκέπτομαι' skeptomai, to look about to consider see also spelling differences Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950 who used the Pseudonym George Orwell, was an English writer Animal Farm is a Novel by George Orwell, and is the most famous satirical Allegory of Soviet Totalitarianism

Any number of donkeys appear in world literary works.

• Eeyore, the gloomy donkey from A.A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh books. Eeyore ( is a character in the Winnie-the-Pooh Book series by A Alan Alexander Milne (ˈmɪln (18 January 1882 &ndash 31 January 1956 was an English Author, best known for his Books about the Teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh, commonly shortened to Pooh Bear and once referred to as Edward Bear, is a fictional Bear created by A
• In Don Quixote, Sancho Panza rides a donkey named Rucio. es '''''Don Quixote''''' (, see spelling and pronunciation below fully titled es '''''El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha''''' ("The Ingenious Hidalgo Don Sancho Panza is a Fictional character in the novel Don Quixote written by Spanish author Don Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra in
• In Pinocchio, naughty boys turn into donkeys and are sold off to hard labour by the evil Coachman. Pinocchio (piˈnɔkːjo in Italian is a fictional character that first appeared in 1883, in The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi, and A coachman was a man whose business it was to drive a coach, a horse-drawn vehicle designed for the conveyance of more than one passenger — and of mail — and covered for In the book, Pinocchio turns into a donkey for a time.
• In William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, the character Bottom has his head turned into that of a donkey by Puck who was told by Oberon, king of the fairies, to change it. William Shakespeare ( baptised A Midsummer Night's Dream is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, suggested by " The Knight's Tale " from Oberon, also Auberon, King of Shadows and Fairies, is best known as a character in William Shakespeare 's play A Midsummer Night's Dream
• Platero in Juan Ramon Jimenez's Platero and I
• Puzzle in CS Lewis's The Last Battle. Juan Ramón Jiménez Mantecón ( Moguer, Spain, 24 December, 1881 – Santurce, Puerto Rico, 29 May, 1958 This article is about a fictional character for other uses of Puzzle see Puzzle (disambiguation Puzzle is a fictional character in The Last Battle Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963 The Last Battle is the seventh and final novel in The Chronicles of Narnia series by C

Film

• Donkey is the name of a fictional donkey (voiced by Eddie Murphy) in the animated movies Shrek, Shrek 2 and Shrek the Third, all from DreamWorks Pictures. Donkey is a fictional talking Donkey from the Shrek series of films voiced by Eddie Murphy. Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3 1961 is an Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe - Screen Actors Guild Award -winning American The bouncing ball animation (below consists of these 6 frames Shrek is a 2001 computer-animated American Comedy film, directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson, and Shrek 2, released in the United States on 19 May 2004, is the 2004 Academy Award nominated Sequel to the Shrek the Third, released 6 years after the first ''Shrek'' and 3 years after the second ''Shrek'', is a 2007 Animated film, and the DreamWorks LLC, also known as DreamWorks Pictures, DreamWorks SKG, or DreamWorks Studios, is a major American Film studio
• A donkey is the central character of the film Au hasard Balthazar by Robert Bresson. Au hasard Balthazar, also known as Balthazar, is a 1966 French film directed by Robert Bresson, starring Anne Robert Bresson (ʁɔbɛʁ bʁɛˈsɔ̃ in French ( September 25, 1901 &ndash December 18, 1999) was a French Film director
• The Disney film Fantasia (1940) features a Dionysian character on a donkey. Fantasia is a 1940 Animated film produced by Walt Disney, and is the third film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics.

Proverb and idiom

• A German proverb claims a donkey can wear a lion suit but its ear will still stick out and give it away.
• British colloquial expressions also include "donkey's years" which means for a long time or for many years, "to talk the hind leg off a donkey" means to tire somebody with one's talk.
• Classical Greek expressions about donkeys included: onos pros eortēn = "a donkey at the festival" (gets all the work); onos hyetai = "a donkey is rained on" (i. Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία e. he is unaffected or insensitive), onos pros phatnēn = "a donkey at a feed trough" (like the English expression "in clover").
• English proverbs include "better be the head of an ass than the tail of a horse", "if an ass goes a-traveling, he'll not come back a horse", and "better ride on an ass that carries me home than a horse that throws me" (though all these are now obsolete).

Pub names

• The Jack and Jenny is a common pub-name in Britain.

Advertising

• Budweiser used a donkey in advertising during Super Bowl in 2004, called the Budweiser donkey he trains to be a Budweiser Clydesdale complete with hair extensions.

Insult and vulgarity

• Because of its connection with ignorance, in modern slang, referring to someone as a dumbass means that they are unintelligent. Slang is the use of highly informal Words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's Dialect or Language. Intelligence (also called intellect) is an Umbrella term used to describe a property of the Mind that encompasses many related abilities such as the capacities Many people would find this term vulgar and rude. " Vulgarism " (also called scurrility) derives from Latin vulgun, the "mean folk" and has carried into English its original
• In Arabic, حمار (ḥemar), meaning "donkey", is a derogatory term that refers to someone of very limited intelligence. Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language Another usage is حمار شغل (ḥemar shuġl, literally "work donkey"), roughly equivalent in meaning to workaholic but with a distinct derogatory note and typically implying that the work is routine and non-creative; for example, someone might say, "Give that job to Ali, he's a work donkey anyway and he won't mind. A workaholic, colloquially is a person who is addicted to work "
• In contrast, to refer to someone as a jackass in modern slang provides a connotation of being obnoxious, rude, and thoughtless, with or without the added connotation of stupidity. This usage is also considered vulgar. " Vulgarism " (also called scurrility) derives from Latin vulgun, the "mean folk" and has carried into English its original A less vulgar substitute is donkey itself.
• In football, especially in the United Kingdom, a player who is considered unskilful, and to rely overly on his physical attributes to cover up his technical shortcomings, is often dubbed a "donkey. Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located "
• In horse racing in the British Isles, unsuccessful horses are often labeled donkeys. This article is about the sport For other uses see Horserace (drinking game or Horse race (politics. The British Isles (Irish variously Na hOileáin Bhriotanacha, Oileáin Iarthair Eorpa, Éire agus an Bhreatain Mhór; Ellanyn Goaldagh Eileanan
• The donkey has long been a symbol of ignorance. Examples can be found in Aesop's Fables, Apuleius's The Golden Ass (The Metamorphoses of Lucius Apuleius) and Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Aesop (also spelled Æsop, from the Greek Αἴσωπος — Aisōpos) (620-560 BC) known only for the genre of Fables Apuleius should not be confused with Lucius Appuleius Saturninus, a Roman demagogue or with Pseudo-Apuleius, an author The Metamorphoses of Lucius Apuleius, which according to St Augustine was referred to as The Golden Ass ( Asinus aureus William Shakespeare ( baptised A Midsummer Night's Dream is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, suggested by " The Knight's Tale " from
• The term "donkey" is frequently used to refer to unskilled poker players, especially those playing in a predictably loose and unthinking fashion. Poker is a type of Card game in which players bet on the value of the card combination (" hand " in their possession by placing a bet into Compare "patzer" in chess.
• The unmodified word ass has entered common use in the English language as a term used to describe a person who is stubborn, foolish, or disagreeable.

Politics

• In an election under a preferential voting system, a vote that simply writes down preferences in the order of the candidates (1 at the top, then 2, and so on) is called a donkey vote. An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office Instant-runoff voting ( IRV) is a Voting system used for single-winner elections in which voters have one vote and rank Candidates in order of In Australia, where all State Federal and Territory Electoral systems combine compulsory turnout with some form of Preferential voting, a donkey vote refers
• The donkey is also the symbol for the Democratic Party of the United States, originating in a cartoon by Thomas Nast of Harper's Weekly (Nast also originated the elephant as the symbol of the Republican Party (United States). The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. The word cartoon has various meanings based on several very different forms of Visual art and Illustration. Thomas Nast ( September 27, 1840 – December 7, 1902) was a famous German-American Caricaturist and Editorial cartoonist Harper's Weekly ( A Journal of Civilization) was an American political Magazine based in New York City. Elephants ( family: Elephantidae) are large land Mammals of the order Proboscidea.

See also

• Burro Racing
• Hinny
• Jenny (donkey) ("Jennet" was a type of medieval horse)
• Mule
• Ponui donkey
• Safe Haven for Donkeys in the Holy Land

Notes

References

• Blench, R. 2000. The History and Spread of Donkeys in Africa. Animal Traction Network for Eastern and Southern Africa (ATNESA)
• Clutton-Brook, J. 1999. A Natural History of Domesticated Mammals. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521634954
• The Donkey Sanctuary (DS). 2006. Website. [2] (accessed December 2, 2006).
• Huffman, B. 2006. The Ultimate Ungulate Page: Equus asinus. (accessed December 2, 2006).
• International Museum of the Horse (IMH). 1998. Donkey. (accessed December 3, 2006).
• Nowak, R. M. , and J. L. Paradiso. 1983. Walker's Mammals of the World. Baltimore, Maryland, USA : The Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0801825253
• Oklahoma State University (OSU). 2006. Breeds of Livestock. (accessed December 3, 2006).
• Starkey, P. and M. Starkey. 1997. Regional and World trends in Donkey Populations. Animal Traction Network for Eastern and Southern Africa (ATNESA) [3]

External links

• American Donkey and Mule Society Zebra Hybrids
• Animal Traction Network for Eastern and Southern Africa
• Biennial Donkey and Mule Conference, held in early October 2007 on the island of Hydra, Greece
• Breeds of livestock - Poitou Donkey
• Donkey Shelter Inc. Victoria (Australia)
• Freshfields Donkey Village, home of The Michael Elliott Trust
• Island Farm Donkey Sanctuary in Oxfordshire
• LongearsMall.com – Online Donkey & Mule Community and Resource Directory
• Longhopes Donkey Shelter, Colorado
• National Wild Horse and Burro Program
• Nerja Donkey Sanctuary, Spain
• Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue, Tehachapi, CA
• SPANA (Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad) helps working animals in some of the world's poorest countries.
• The American Donkey and Mule Society
• The Donkey Sanctuary, Sidmouth, Devon The UK's largest Donkey Sanctuary
• Yankee Donkey and Mule Society

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