Aelianus (Tacitus) The Tactiks of Aelian Or the art of embattailing an army after ye Grecian manner. Englished & illustrated with figures throughout & notes upon ye chapters of ye ordinary motions of ye Plalange by J.B…  

The “J.B.” here is the author John Bingham, whose book was published in 1616. The “Square of Horses” seems to me to be a fine addition to a named bestiary, in addition to a “murder” of crows and an “unkindness” of ravens (and a “crush” of rhinos, and on and on, as we can see below). 

Names given the collectives or gatherings or units of animals are useful and informative, and occasionally fabulous and bizarre.  It seems to me that such characterizations could be made with people as well,  Why should humans have such a uniform label for collective employment members (a “group” of lawyers, a “gathering” of architects, and so on) when animals have such a rich vocabulary to draw from?  Admitedly, animals don’t go out and get lawyers when they feel maligned by a broadly advanced descriptor, so there’s little chance that more appropriate upfittings could be applied to different job classifications.  Unless of course you consider the “managed corporate associate monetary inventorialist” (cashier) as an example—but that is not what I’m talking about. 

In the animal world, for example, a group of gorillas is a simple “band”, chicks a “clutch”, and quail a “covey”, which is simple enough.  The names get more adventurous as things progress in the food chain:  hippos are a “bloat”, a word which seems to identify a characteristic of the animal, especially when they’re half-submerged, watching the sun move across the sky with their eyes just above the waterline..  Ferrets are a “business”, semi-inscrutable in their nervous activity. Hyenas are a “cackle”, hawks are a “boil” and finches are a “charm”.

A group of rhinos are beautifully referred to as a “crash”, and squirrels are poetically announced as a “scurry”

Perhaps the second greatest of all of these names is that for a gathering of crows, called a “murder”.  It is probably the crow which, among all animals, may be the only one “smart” enough to commit the crime—it is an undoubtedly intelligent animal, with a brain-to-body mass ratio third to that of humans (behind apes) and have been shown to work in concert with one another toward a common end, and have also used tools in the pursuit of food.  They have also been depicted for thousands of years in mythology and story as intelligent, crafty creatures.  My choice for the most fabulously-named:  an “unkindness” of ravens.   These birds enjoy a similar heritage to the crow, but have a greater literary heritage.  Unkindness and Poe seem to go together quite nicely. 

A leap of leopards, a gulp of cormorants, a romp of otters, a parliament of owls.  An ostentation of peacocks, a prickle of porcupines, a stand of flamingoes, a pride of lions, a wake of buzzards, a tower of giraffes: all seem to fit quite nicely. 

What would the human equivalent be?   A “grotesque” or a “provident” of attorneys,  a “shushing” or “shepherding” of librarians, a “scribble” or “release” of writers, an “envy” or “relief” of actors?  I think it needs to be Latin and deep for the politicians.  Very deep. 

(A directory of names follows in the continued reading section)