Camel is called 'Ship of Desert'- why so?
By eshaan
@eshaan (6188)
India
July 1, 2007 5:00am CST
When I think of sayings like this I wonder,why they have chosen the word 'ship',why not car or truck of desert. Earlier I discussed the saying 'It was raining cats and dogs' and enjoyed it very much, now you are welcome to another naughty question.1..2..3.. start...
2 people like this
6 responses
@abroji (3247)
• India
1 Jul 07
May be because of the splendidness of the desert like that of the sea. In the midst of the desert there is seemingly no boundaries, it grows and grows and grows. That may be the reason for using the word ship as adjective of camel. Not only that at the time of origination of this nick name to the camel there was no truck or car or train, but ships and other vessals were already there. That could also be another reason.
Interesting topic, thank you.
@ESKARENA1 (18261)
•
1 Jul 07
I agree the view of the sand dunes, certainly in the Sahara desert do indeed look like the waves of the sea when seen from a distance
blessed be
2 people like this
@eshaan (6188)
• India
1 Jul 07
WOW! there are very intelligent people on mylot, I like sharing views with you all and so I say that mylot grabs away my rest, though I don't get enough time to spend and not enough money for our discussions, I can't keep myself away from you all.Thanks, thanks a looooot!!
@ESKARENA1 (18261)
•
1 Jul 07
well, anyone who has ever ridden on a camel will know that it is like sailing on a rough sea. Their gait is such that they walk with a roling motion much akin to sailing
blessed be
2 people like this
@praveenjena (1304)
• India
25 Sep 08
hello eshaan,
the camel is indeed the ship of the desert. The camels are able to travel vast distances in desert, drink from waterholes far more bitter or saline for others and eat almost anything, regardless of how tough or how thorny they are. People can even survive on what is in a camel' s stomach. Camels provide milk and fuel as its dry dung can burn readily. A camel has leathery mouth, tongue and tooth enamel, enabling it to eat thorny desert plants. They can drink 100 litres of water within 10 minutes for future use. They can live without taking in water for 3 or 4 days.The fur allows excess body temperature to radiate out and protect them from cold nights.
have a good day and happy postings!
@arqam2 (74)
• Pakistan
3 Jul 07
I think its an old saying and in the older times there were no cars,trucks,aero-planes,trains,buses,trucks,lorrie,motor-cycles,rickshaws,cycles,water-boat,three-wheelers,tri-cycles hmmmm.... nothing left for etc.
So they called it ship as it was the only mode for any kind of transportation[human as well as goods]
@rb200406 (1824)
• India
19 Jul 07
I think it is becauase ship is older than car or truck.In ships we transport haeavy goods from one place to another.This practice is from olden days even before there were cars or trucks.So camel is called so as he is used to transport goods in desert.
