A manger or trough is a rack for fodder, or a structure or feeder used to hold food for animals. The word comes from the Old French mangier (meaning "to eat"), from Latin mandere (meaning "to chew").[1]
Mangers are mostly used in livestock raising[2] and generally found at stables and farmhouses. They are also used to feed wild animals, e.g., in nature reserves.
A similar trough providing drinking water for domestic or non-domestic animals is a watering trough and may be part of a larger watering structure called abreuvoir.
The manger in Christianity
editThe manger is associated with nativity scenes where Mary and Joseph, forced by necessity to stay in a room for animals instead of a guest room, used a manger as a makeshift crib for the Baby Jesus.[3] (Greek: φάτνη phatnē; Luke 2:7).[4]
Gallery
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Donkey eating apples from a steel trough -
Nativity at Night by Geertgen tot Sint Jans, c. 1490.
See also
edit- Away in a Manger, a Christmas carol
- Bird feeder
- The Dog in the Manger, a metaphor
References
edit- ^ Harper, Douglas. "manger". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
- ^ Mahoney, Leonardo (1996). 5,000 years of Architecture in Malta. Malta: Valletta Publishing. Format. p. 123-124. ISBN 9990958157. ISBN 9789990958157
- ^ William, Francis Dawson (1902). Christmas: Its Origin and Associations. E. Stock. Retrieved 2014-12-25.
- ^ "I know Jesus was born in a manger, but why is that important and what does it mean?". Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. 2021-11-06. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
External links
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Media related to Feeding troughs at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition of manger at Wiktionary
