Time for an Animaniacs style pony anatomy lesson! If you aren't completely familiar with every single curve and point on an equine after this, then you are doing it wrong. Check it out after the break!
As somebody who has been around horses for well over half her life, it is relieving to finally see bronies learn about actual horses. :) Wonderful, and quite accurate. Some of the more particular parts like the point of buttock and the point of shoulder as well as the gaskin (my favorite part) and such are missing, but the essentials that have been missing for so long are wonderfully illustrated.
Having lived around horses for my entire life, I can tell you that this is 100% accurate. And also convenient, because now I have a hand-dandy reference sheet for whenever I forget the name of a certain part of a horse.
Could have really used the wing diagram, though. In my writing a few weeks ago, I had to piece together several different bird charts to find the proper names of the Primary Coverts. And I never did find out what the Margin is, so this handy guide did me some good.
I've always known this. People call them Alicorns because one of the storyboard artists called them that. "Alicorn" is actually the material a unicorn's horn is composed of...it doesn't mean a horse with wings and a horn. Many people seem to graze over the fact in the show's prologue, in the very first episode; it calls Celestia and Luna unicorns.
The term "alicorn" is indeed used to describe horses with wings and a horn, and has been used by well-known fantasy authors like Piers Anthony. It is the combination of the Latin words for wing (ala) and horn (cornu).
As a mythology buff, I knew that unicorn horns were made of alicorn well before this, too. Why people called them alicorns was confusing, considering the narration in episode freakin' one calls Celestia and Luna "unicorn sisters." I would guess it's in part Kkat and other fanfic writers' faults because throughout Fallout Equestria and others, the princesses are called alicorns.
So what DO you call a winged unicorn then? Pegacorn? Unisus? Unipeg? C'mon, bronies, we need to make up a new word. We've proven remarkably good at that so far.
We don't need a new word to "correct" a non-issue. We all know the material horns are composed of (unless FiM decides to name it something else), but the term Alicorn is quite acceptable and widely understood within the fandom.
As CanterEdlund pointed out, Alicorn has been used to describe a cross between Unicorn and Pegasus long before this show came into existence (source)
Moreover, I am quite sure that in the very first episode, Celestia and Luna are referred to as "two regal sisters". The only time 'Unicorn' is mentioned is in the sentence "The eldest used her Unicorn powers to raise the Sun".
You cannot call the Royal Sisters Unicorns, because that suggests ignorance of the fact that they have wings. Pegacorn and Unisus are common words, but sound awkward and cut up (at least to me). Alicorn isn't used as often, so it has a more exotic sound to it, and it is still a correct way of describing what the Royal Sisters are.
If you're going to blame anyone, you can blame Piers Anthony for promoting the use of the word Alicorn to mean Winged Unicorns. I personally like the use of Alicorn, and I highly doubt another word will be accepted as a replacement.
I've never liked alicorn, unisus, pegacorn, or winged unicorn because it glosses over the fact that the Royal Pony Sisters* are part unicorn, part pegasus, and part earth pony.
*It always bugs me when people say "Solar Sisters"; "sol" means "sun".
True, true. But since then, the Royal Sisters haven't been referred by their race, either by name only or by title of Princess. So it's all anyone's guess. On the one hand, the storybook intro uses Unicorn to describe Celestia's powers, and who Luna is. On the other hand, they are not Unicorns due to the presence of wings, and the fanbase's generally accepted name of such a creature is Alicorn.
As if MLP didn't already give me an Animaniacs vibe to it, (I mean Pinkie's a modern day Yakko!) but then something like this comes out and makes me love this fandom even more :).
This video is awesome. I don't see any problem using Alicorn for both the material the horn is made of and the term to describe a pony with both wings and a horn. It should be pretty clear what one is talking about when using the term.
Haha. I really like that, it was an adorable song. Entertaining and a learning experience too for anyone not familiar with all the different parts of pony anatomy. :)
Alicorn is the substance that makes up a unicorn's horn. NOT a pony with a horn and wings. If you're wondering what you should call them from now, try pegacorn. That's always worked for me. :P
Guys, for anyone still reading and commenting and arguing about this, someone on my Youtube comments actually posted an etymologically-sound explanation.
Alicorn = Ali+Corn/Cornus or something like that, meaning "Some Horn", i.e. the substance a unicorn's horn is made of.
Alacorn = Ala+Corn/Cornus or whatever, meaning "Wing Horn", i.e. Celestia/Luna. Both would be pronounced the same and Alicorn is the less obscure term, so they just got merged into the single one because people didn't know there was a difference between the words.
The royal sisters are Alacorns, however due to popular usage, don't go crazy if people use Alicorn in its place, just consider it an alternate spelling.
Actually, it was originally cornos/cornus/corne (horn in Greek, Latin, and various early Romance languages), then li corne (the horn, still in early Romance languages), and then al- licorn (Arabic article added on by Arabic speakers). So, a unicorn's horn is an alicorn, meaning the-the-horn. (And this is what a narwhal horn used to be called as a trade good -- an alicorn -- because people thought it came from unicorns, or at least, from the sea unicorn.)
Unicornus alatus would be "winged unicorn", as Piers knew perfectly well.
But there's no reason why "alicorn" wouldn't also be used to denote a winged unicorn. As we say that someone is the head of a group, it's quite likely that a unicorn would call a leader the horn of all unicorns, or even the horn of ponies. Celestia and Luna, and any of their kind, are clearly the alicorns of ponykind.
No matter how much we debate, the sisters will always be widely dubbed "Alicorns" or "Alacorns" within the fandom. Sometimes you gotta accept things and move on. :)
Oh, and by the way I am FREAKING AMAZED by this! The ryming is just... epic! I love this fandom! XDDD <3 AWESOME JOB!
Alicorn - what is this? A word that may have *Le Gasp* 2 definitions?! THE HORROR, THE HORROR.
I wish I had the time to discuss this more but I must bow out so I can get to the bow of my ship in time to meet up with my club. I might have to fast a few days since I'm not fast enough to club anything to eat along the way. A bow might work if I knew the way to use it. Oh well.
At least I will be away from anyone using this linguistic horror of a word that may be easy to tell the definition of due to context but why would any language have something like that left in it, right? Right. Or was that left.
77 comments:
I used to love the Animaniacs! yay for knowledge!
Intredasting
So many lines!
Its educational and fun. I love BronyMike's videos.
Sweet mother of Celestia... I love this way more than I should. Insta-download.
That was helpful.
Huh, part of the hind legs are called "Cannon". Appropriate given the firepower of Applejack's Buckin'.
Who knew pony anatomy could be so catchy ? I never would have thought I'd hear breeze rhyme with axillaries. Brilliant.
(Oh, and shameless promotion, it's for the good cause : http://broniesforgood.org/?page_id=302 )
Now I know more about pony anatomy than human anatomy. Once again, proving ponies > education :)
Oh BronyMike, you so silly. Great vid my man!
good stuff
SLOW. CLAP.
Yakko himself couldn't have done it better.
You lost the plot! :P
that was great. now hopefully people will stop using flank as a synonym for ass. they are not analogous!
... This has just become a mandatory part of the Equestrian school curriculum.
No, truly, I am writing the edict right now.
Dat was AWESOME!!!!
Time to bust out my frankenstein set, I'm making a pony!
Catchy and interesting!
@Ali
Inorite?
We invented the word "plot" for a reason. Use it. If you really want to talk about a pony's ass, at least do it right.
Epic! Totally downloading this when I do my "Pony Cross-sections" Drawing project
Now if I could just draw the damn things!
WINGBONER! O_O
@Masquerade
I know that feel bro....
As somebody who has been around horses for well over half her life, it is relieving to finally see bronies learn about actual horses. :) Wonderful, and quite accurate. Some of the more particular parts like the point of buttock and the point of shoulder as well as the gaskin (my favorite part) and such are missing, but the essentials that have been missing for so long are wonderfully illustrated.
@megan
Actually, I just noticed that they did include the gaskin :D
And now that we all know what the term "alicorn" actually means.. what do we call Celestia and Luna? D:
That image has been saved. It will be useful to consult when writing.
Having lived around horses for my entire life, I can tell you that this is 100% accurate. And also convenient, because now I have a hand-dandy reference sheet for whenever I forget the name of a certain part of a horse.
Could have really used the wing diagram, though. In my writing a few weeks ago, I had to piece together several different bird charts to find the proper names of the Primary Coverts. And I never did find out what the Margin is, so this handy guide did me some good.
This is amazing. I've seen this already, but still amazing
Oh Celestia that was glorious :D I was smiling like an idiot the whole time.
I would explode if my anatomy teacher gave us a quiz on pony anatomy :o
I now know the parts of a pony. Thanks =D
@C.Olimar788
I've always known this. People call them Alicorns because one of the storyboard artists called them that. "Alicorn" is actually the material a unicorn's horn is composed of...it doesn't mean a horse with wings and a horn. Many people seem to graze over the fact in the show's prologue, in the very first episode; it calls Celestia and Luna unicorns.
The term "alicorn" is indeed used to describe horses with wings and a horn, and has been used by well-known fantasy authors like Piers Anthony. It is the combination of the Latin words for wing (ala) and horn (cornu).
mmm so good
@ToTheMoonYourHighness Maybe they're composed of the same material as a unicorn's horn? :0
As a mythology buff, I knew that unicorn horns were made of alicorn well before this, too. Why people called them alicorns was confusing, considering the narration in episode freakin' one calls Celestia and Luna "unicorn sisters." I would guess it's in part Kkat and other fanfic writers' faults because throughout Fallout Equestria and others, the princesses are called alicorns.
So what DO you call a winged unicorn then? Pegacorn? Unisus? Unipeg? C'mon, bronies, we need to make up a new word. We've proven remarkably good at that so far.
So... a lung OR two. I sure hope it's mostly two.
I love this fandom.
@Mitchell Bonds
We don't need a new word to "correct" a non-issue. We all know the material horns are composed of (unless FiM decides to name it something else), but the term Alicorn is quite acceptable and widely understood within the fandom.
As CanterEdlund pointed out, Alicorn has been used to describe a cross between Unicorn and Pegasus long before this show came into existence (source)
Moreover, I am quite sure that in the very first episode, Celestia and Luna are referred to as "two regal sisters". The only time 'Unicorn' is mentioned is in the sentence "The eldest used her Unicorn powers to raise the Sun".
You cannot call the Royal Sisters Unicorns, because that suggests ignorance of the fact that they have wings. Pegacorn and Unisus are common words, but sound awkward and cut up (at least to me). Alicorn isn't used as often, so it has a more exotic sound to it, and it is still a correct way of describing what the Royal Sisters are.
If you're going to blame anyone, you can blame Piers Anthony for promoting the use of the word Alicorn to mean Winged Unicorns. I personally like the use of Alicorn, and I highly doubt another word will be accepted as a replacement.
@Mitchell Bonds
Alicorn is both used to describe the material that a unicorn horn is comprised of, as well as a name for a winged unicorn.
@Mattatatta
"One fateful day, the younger unicorn refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn."
Proper attribution is proper and courteous. Took me 30 seconds to find. Expend some effort, people.
Chart is by Dave Bryant.
Original EQD posting at this post
I've never liked alicorn, unisus, pegacorn, or winged unicorn because it glosses over the fact that the Royal Pony Sisters* are part unicorn, part pegasus, and part earth pony.
*It always bugs me when people say "Solar Sisters"; "sol" means "sun".
Glad I'm not the only one who knew what the word alicorn really means.
Nice
@Nulono
True, true. But since then, the Royal Sisters haven't been referred by their race, either by name only or by title of Princess. So it's all anyone's guess. On the one hand, the storybook intro uses Unicorn to describe Celestia's powers, and who Luna is. On the other hand, they are not Unicorns due to the presence of wings, and the fanbase's generally accepted name of such a creature is Alicorn.
As if MLP didn't already give me an Animaniacs vibe to it, (I mean Pinkie's a modern day Yakko!) but then something like this comes out and makes me love this fandom even more :).
This video is awesome. I don't see any problem using Alicorn for both the material the horn is made of and the term to describe a pony with both wings and a horn. It should be pretty clear what one is talking about when using the term.
He forgot a few.....
I have multiple pockets where I have my party cannon
goog job this was very informitive
Wow. Nice. Cheerilee gives it a gold star. Applebloom has to give her report next.
"How th' hay am I supposed t'follow that??"
excellent job! mad rhyming skills :P
Haha. I really like that, it was an adorable song. Entertaining and a learning experience too for anyone not familiar with all the different parts of pony anatomy. :)
I must be the odd one out then. I immediately thought of Pinkie and the Brain first before Yakko's songs.
BRAINSTEM! BRAINSTEM!!!
(Of course, I think of Pinkie as the modern day... er, Pinkie.)
He forgot the penis.
I'm sorry.
lol We've just been educated, I guess.
@ToTheMoonYourHighness it never calls them unicorns. It calls their magic "unicorn powers," which I think is a necessary distinction.
I was wondering, isn't alicorn the material that the horn is made out of, not the horn itself?
That was awesome.
Lol. I turned off Doctor Who so I could listen to this... I don't regret that decision at all.
I loved the Animaniacs as a kid, and the silly but educational songs were part of why. xD
And I immediately started looking for "croup, dock, haunch, shoulders, hip".
I have listened. And I now consider myself a fully qualified pony doctor.
@Mattatatta Who says a unicorn can't have wings? She could be a winged unicorn, and a horned pegasus, and a winged horned earth pony.
@fb3826fc-2e7e-11e1-86bc-000bcdca4d7a
"One fateful night, the younger unicorn refused to lower the moon."
@C.Olimar788
'What do we call Celestia and Luna?'
I think 'Your Majesty' or 'Your Highness' usually suffices for formal occasions.
That was way more awesome than it should be. ^v^
THANK YOU FOR SUBMITTING THIS.
Alicorn is the substance that makes up a unicorn's horn. NOT a pony with a horn and wings. If you're wondering what you should call them from now, try pegacorn. That's always worked for me. :P
just call them goddesses
(did I spell that right?)
I'm sticking with Alicorn to describe the Princesses' species.
Video is awesome :D Learning is fun.
Guys, for anyone still reading and commenting and arguing about this, someone on my Youtube comments actually posted an etymologically-sound explanation.
Alicorn = Ali+Corn/Cornus or something like that, meaning "Some Horn", i.e. the substance a unicorn's horn is made of.
Alacorn = Ala+Corn/Cornus or whatever, meaning "Wing Horn", i.e. Celestia/Luna. Both would be pronounced the same and Alicorn is the less obscure term, so they just got merged into the single one because people didn't know there was a difference between the words.
The royal sisters are Alacorns, however due to popular usage, don't go crazy if people use Alicorn in its place, just consider it an alternate spelling.
@fb3826fc-2e7e-11e1-86bc-000bcdca4d7a
"One fateful day the younger "UNICORN" refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn.
Yes! Yay for Animaniacs and Ponies, 2 Amazing shows!
Actually, it was originally cornos/cornus/corne (horn in Greek, Latin, and various early Romance languages), then li corne (the horn, still in early Romance languages), and then al- licorn (Arabic article added on by Arabic speakers). So, a unicorn's horn is an alicorn, meaning the-the-horn. (And this is what a narwhal horn used to be called as a trade good -- an alicorn -- because people thought it came from unicorns, or at least, from the sea unicorn.)
Unicornus alatus would be "winged unicorn", as Piers knew perfectly well.
But there's no reason why "alicorn" wouldn't also be used to denote a winged unicorn. As we say that someone is the head of a group, it's quite likely that a unicorn would call a leader the horn of all unicorns, or even the horn of ponies. Celestia and Luna, and any of their kind, are clearly the alicorns of ponykind.
No matter how much we debate, the sisters will always be widely dubbed "Alicorns" or "Alacorns" within the fandom. Sometimes you gotta accept things and move on. :)
Oh, and by the way I am FREAKING AMAZED by this! The ryming is just... epic! I love this fandom! XDDD <3 AWESOME JOB!
So much education! :D
Alicorn - what is this? A word that may have *Le Gasp* 2 definitions?! THE HORROR, THE HORROR.
I wish I had the time to discuss this more but I must bow out so I can get to the bow of my ship in time to meet up with my club. I might have to fast a few days since I'm not fast enough to club anything to eat along the way. A bow might work if I knew the way to use it. Oh well.
At least I will be away from anyone using this linguistic horror of a word that may be easy to tell the definition of due to context but why would any language have something like that left in it, right? Right. Or was that left.
Post a Comment