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Comment by masklinn | Hacker News Reader

Beef is the culinary name of bovine meat[0]. Calling whale meat beef is roughly equivalent to calling cow meat "pork".

[0] and afaik culinary names come from the corresponding animal's name in french: beef comes from boeuf (~ox, a castrated bos taurus male), pork from porc, veal is veau, mutton is mouton and venison is venaison (replaced by "gibier" in modern french).

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Calling whale meat beef is roughly equivalent to calling cow meat "pork"

Yes. But I didn't. I called whale meat whale beef. That would be more like calling cow meat cow pork.

Why is this a discussion?

People found it an interesting topic and started discussing it.

We're a pedantic bunch. I've long noted the tendency of people to eviscerate a casual comment in an online conversation just because it does not extend to encyclopedic thoroughness. Elsewhere I was just upbraided for failing to note that Switzerland was arguably(!) not independent for 0.6% of its 800 year history.

You're right, this conversation is useless. Let's get back to pragmatically discussing how old whales are.

Technically correct, the best kind of correct.

OK. But does whale meat have a culinary term? Do the Japanese, Norwegians or Icelanders have a term for it, that is not a literal 'whale meat'?

While on the topic- why does english have a term for most domestic meats except for 'lamb'. Lamb is lamb, while most other non-game meats have a culinary term.

"Chicken" is the same.

Mutton is an english language term for some to most lamb meats, depending on your area.

The Faroe Islanders have it: tvøst (pronounced like tvirst). Norwegians and Danes don't.

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