rara avis

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable | 2006 | 299 words | Copyright

rara avis Latin phrase meaning literally a ‘rare bird’; a phenomenon, a prodigy. The expression comes from the Roman satirist Juvenal (ad c.60–130), ‘Rara avis in terris nigroque simillima cycno [A rare bird on this earth, like nothing so much as a black swan].’

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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "rara avis." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "rara avis." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-raraavis.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "rara avis." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-raraavis.html

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