Cinnamon bird facts for kids

The cinnamon bird is a creature from ancient myths. People in old stories believed it was a giant bird. This bird was said to collect cinnamon to build its nests. It's also known by names like Cinnamologus or Cinomolgus.

What Herodotus Said

The ancient Greek historian Herodotus wrote about the cinnamon bird. He described it in his book, The History. Herodotus said the bird lived in Arabia. At that time, Arabia was the only place known for cinnamon.

These giant birds would gather cinnamon sticks. They brought them from a secret land where cinnamon trees grew. The birds used the sticks to build their nests. Their nests were stuck high up on steep cliffs.

The people of Arabia had a clever plan to get the cinnamon. They would cut up oxen and other large animals. Then, they would place the meat pieces near the birds' nests. The people would then hide far away. The cinnamon birds would fly down to grab the meat. They would carry the heavy chunks back to their nests. The weight of the meat would break the nests from the cliffs. This made the cinnamon sticks fall to the ground. The Arabians could then safely collect the fallen cinnamon.

What Aristotle Said

Another famous Greek thinker, Aristotle, also wrote about the cinnamon bird. He mentioned it in his book, Historia Animalium (History of Animals). Aristotle's story was a bit different. He said the cinnamon bird brought cinnamon from unknown places. It used the cinnamon to build nests on thin branches of very tall trees.

The people living there had a different trick. They would attach heavy lead weights to their arrowtips. They would then shoot these arrows at the nests. The heavy arrows would knock the nests down. This allowed the people to collect the cinnamon sticks inside. Aristotle called this bird kinnamômon orneon in Greek.

What Pliny the Elder Said

Pliny the Elder was a Roman writer. He had a more doubtful view of the cinnamon bird. He even thought the name cinnamolgus was wrong. In his book, Naturalis historia (Natural History), he disagreed with Herodotus. Pliny believed that these stories were made up by the local people. He thought they invented the tales to make cinnamon seem rare and special. This would help them sell it for a higher price.

Other Ancient Writings

The cinnamon bird also appeared in other old books.

• De Natura Animalium (On Animals) by Claudius Aelianus
• Collectanea Rerum Memorabilium (Collection of Remarkable Facts) by Solinus
• Physiologus, a collection of animal stories with moral lessons.
• A Latin book from the 12th century, which included Aristotle's version of the cinnamon bird.
• How We Visited the Land of Satin from Gargantua and Pantagruel by François Rabelais, where the birds were called cinnamologi.