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Pelican

Birds
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A large waterbird mythically believed to feed its young with its own blood.

Detailed Definition
The pelican’s legendary self-sacrifice made it a powerful Christian symbol of Christ’s redemption and maternal devotion. In poetry, it represents unconditional love, charity, and suffering for others. Though the myth is biologically inaccurate, its emotional resonance endures—poets invoke the pelican to explore themes of nurturing, martyrdom, and the cost of compassion in a broken world.
Example
Example in poetry:
In medieval bestiaries and religious poetry, the pelican feeds its young with its own blood, symbolizing Christ’s sacrifice; Poets use the pelican to explore maternal devotion and selfless love; In conservation verse, the pelican’s recovery from DDT poisoning represents ecological hope; Its large beak pouch becomes a metaphor for holding grief or nurturing community; The pelican’s group flight evokes themes of collective care and shared survival.
Additional Notes
The pelican is mythically believed to feed its young with its own blood, making it a powerful Christian symbol of Christ’s sacrifice and maternal devotion. Though biologically inaccurate, this legend endures in religious and devotional poetry. Related terms: “self-sacrifice,” “nurturing martyr,” “charity emblem.” Modern ecopoetry also highlights its ecological role and recovery from pollution.
Also Known As
Great White Pelican Brown Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus Pelecanus occidentalis
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