beccafico

[ bek-uh-fee-koh ]

/ ˌbɛk əˈfi koʊ /

a small songbird, especially the European garden warbler, Silvia hortensis, eaten as a delicacy in France and the Mediterranean region.

Also called Orphean warbler.

Origin of beccafico

1620–25; < Italian: literally, figpecker < beccare “to peck” (< becco “beak” < Latin beccus) + fico “fig” (< Latin ficus)

becalm, becalmed, became, becard, because, beccafico, beccaria, bechance, becharm, bechet, bechstein

Beccafico, a European bird (Sylvia hortensis), the garden-warbler.

The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 3 |Various
The young birds themselves are said to be very delicate food, and not inferior in richness of flavour to the beccafico.

The History of Sumatra |William Marsden
She had just finished a beccafico, and seemed disposed for conversation.

Sketches and Studies in Italy and Greece |John Addington Symonds

beccafico

/ (ˌbɛkəˈfiːkəʊ) /

any of various European songbirds, esp warblers of the genus Sylvia, eaten as a delicacy in Italy and other countries

C17: from Italian, from beccare to peck + fico fig, from Latin fīcus