There is no definite answer. Apparently it originated in the Germanic countries, where the migratory storks return nine months after Midsummer, when lots of kids were engendered. Storks would often return to the same nest, were thought to mate for life, and to be kind parents to their own brood. Their fertility, fidelity, parental virtues, and reputation for bringing good luck translated into them being bearers of children to the house.
When parents needed a satisfying but off-putting answer to a curious youngsters' question to where babies come from, the harried mom or dad could point to a bird seemingly large enough to carry one and whose nest was too far away for meddling investigation.
Includes work by Scot Gustafson, Arthur Szyk, Frank C. Pape, W. W. Denslow (Thanks, Aputsiaq!), and J. C. Leyendecker.
I wonder why a stork?
ReplyDeleteThere is no definite answer. Apparently it originated in the Germanic countries, where the migratory storks return nine months after Midsummer, when lots of kids were engendered. Storks would often return to the same nest, were thought to mate for life, and to be kind parents to their own brood. Their fertility, fidelity, parental virtues, and reputation for bringing good luck translated into them being bearers of children to the house.
ReplyDeleteWhen parents needed a satisfying but off-putting answer to a curious youngsters' question to where babies come from, the harried mom or dad could point to a bird seemingly large enough to carry one and whose nest was too far away for meddling investigation.
I wrote a bit about storks as baby deliverers in this post.
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