Owls have a reputation problem in South Africa.
In many communities, long-held superstitions associate them with witchcraft, bad luck and death. Owls seen near homes will often be chased away or killed, a level of persecution that costs thousands of birds their lives each year.
Now a local non-profit OwlProject.org is trying to rewrite that story, one classroom at a time.
Its Owl Naming Programme uses a simple linguistic gap: although South Africa has 12 owl species, most local languages have only one word for “owl”. In isiZulu and isiXhosa it’s isikhova; in Sepedi it’s lerubise. With no distinction between species, the birds easily remain anonymous — and feared.
The project turns naming into a classroom activity. Learners study the different species, learn their quirks and ecological role, then suggest new vernacular names based on what they’ve discovered.
The aim is deeper than vocabulary. Owls are extraordinarily useful in rodent-heavy areas, and by understanding their value — and seeing them up close — children often replace inherited fear with curiosity, affection and a desire to protect them.
Teachers say the shift can be dramatic: once a species has a name, it becomes something to know, not something to fear.
The African scops owl, for instance, now has several newly coined names that reference its size, camouflage, even its “serious” expression:
• Sesotho/Sepedi: Sephooko sa bohola
• isiZulu: Isikhova sase-Afrika esineminqa emnyama
• isiXhosa: Isikhova sineengca emnyama sase-Afrika
• Xitsonga: Xinkhova xa le-Afrika xa timhondzo
The programme now aims to expand into isiSwati, isiNdebele, Tshivenda, Afrikaans and SA Sign Language.
OwlProject.org also runs a wider range of education-led conservation projects — from school talks to community outreach — all centred on replacing myth with knowledge. Learn more at owlproject.org.
