On October 27, 2017, the next issue of Field of Miracles dedicated to the theme "Forest" was released on the screens of the Russian Federation. In this program, players and viewers were asked to guess the old and almost forgotten names of impenetrable or dense types of wooded areas. Let's take a look at them, and also consider which of the impenetrable forests were not mentioned in that issue.
What is a forest
Before dealing with its special species, it is worth remembering the meaning of the term "forest".
In a broader sense, this is the name of an ecological system in which trees are the dominant life form.
If we interpret this concept in a simpler language, then this is the name for large-scale areas of land densely overgrown with trees.
Types of woodland
Forests are classified according to different criteria:
- Origin - natural (virgin, natural, economic) and artificial.
- The age of the trees.
- The composition of forest-forming species - coniferous, deciduous,mixed.
- Form of ownership.
- Growth place (according to climatic geographical zones) - tropical, subtropical, temperate forests.
Also, depending on the density of tree growth, closed and sparse forests (the so-called light forests) stand out.
In addition to those listed, there are also such species as evergreen (wet tropical, coniferous or hard-leaved) and deciduous (deciduous in the temperate zone, monsoon, dry tropical deciduous), as well as semi-deciduous and mixed.
What is called the impenetrable forest
Having considered the main typology of wooded areas, it is worth finally knowing the main thing - what are impenetrable forests.
From the very name of this term it is clear that this is the name of those in which the density of growth of trees, shrubs and other plants is too dense (closed), which prevents them from moving freely through them. Because of this feature, such an impenetrable forest is also called dense.
Jungle as an example of impenetrable forest
Oddly enough, but the classic example of this phenomenon is the jungle. This is the name of impenetrable forests in the tropics and subtropics.
The main plants that inhabit them are not trees, but tall grasses and shrubs tied with numerous vines.
Trees are represented in such impenetrable forests in the minority. They are mainly fast-growing varieties of softwoods.
Debri. Thicket and forest: what is common and how do these words differ from each other
However, impenetrable forests can be found not only in the tropics and subtropics, but also in temperate zones. Judging by the number of synonyms for such a concept, there were also quite a few of them on Russian lands.
One of the most famous is the word "wilds". In addition to it, people who speak Russian associate a dense impenetrable forest with two others: a thicket and a forest. Moreover, many believe that both terms mean almost the same thing. But this is not entirely true, as they have different shades of meaning.
A thicket is an impenetrable closed forest, thickets. It is formed from the word "frequent", that is, in such an area the trees grow very close to each other. It is for this reason that such a place is quite dark compared to a sparse forest.
Pushcha is an impenetrable virgin primeval forest. This means that no human foot has set foot in it, thanks to which its own unique ecosystem, including rare breeds of animals, birds and plants, has been preserved.
By the way, the noun itself was formed from the words "empty" and "launched" - that is, a place where no human foot has set foot.
Unfortunately, there are very few real forests left today. That is why this name of an impenetrable forest with windbreaks and perennial thickets is more often used today as a full synonym for the word "thicket".
However, the possibility of the appearance ofnew forests. So, for example, after the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 1986, most of the nearby lands within a radius of 30 km were declared a contaminated zone and all its inhabitants were evicted. Being afraid of radiation, human beings almost never come here, but the animals, not being afraid of hunters, have bred in huge numbers. The same goes for plants and trees. Thanks to this, in thirty years the Chernobyl forests have become a miraculous wildlife sanctuary, and if they remain so in the next few decades, they can rightfully be called Pushcha.
What is the name of a dense impenetrable forest littered with windbreaks, according to the dictionary of V. I. Dahl?
The nouns "wilds", "forest" and "thicket" are familiar to almost everyone and continue to be actively used in speech today. But there are obsolete names in the Russian language for a dense impenetrable forest, windbreak.
The word is "slum". Today, for most of us, it is a term that means "poor residential neighborhoods or criminal dens." However, initially the word meant precisely the impenetrable thicket.
One of the proofs of this is the existence of this term in the "Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language" of 1863, written by V. I. Dal. Even earlier, this name was recorded by the “Academic Dictionary” of 1847
It is interesting that the Dahl slum is a "dense impenetrable forest" or a deep overgrown ravine, as well as any depression, hollow, tight impassable place.
By the way, in the second round of "Field of Miracles" from October 27, 2017d. it was this noun that was thought of.
What was the name of the impenetrable forest with ravines in the old days?
Continuing to consider the types of impassable forest terrain given in the "Field of Wonders", it is worth paying attention to the question of the final game.
It asked about the old name for a forest with ravines or impenetrable terrain.
Surprising as it may seem, but the ancestors called such a place the word "infection".
Why is that? Perhaps the etymology of this term will help to understand this. And it was formed from the verb "infect", which in turn arose on the basis of the word "strike" in the meaning of "injure", "break" or "pound".
Probably, the impenetrable forest with ravines was named so because the person who got out of there looked like he had been beaten decently.
By the way, it is possible that the habit of using the word "infection" as a swear word could also be connected with this interpretation of it, and not with the name of the infection.
Siberia and taiga - what is it?
Having learned what word in the old days called the forest ravines and impenetrable terrain, it is worth considering two more terms that the ancestors called impassable wilderness.
One of them was guessed in the third round of the same issue of the "Field of Miracles". We are talking about the word that in ancient times was called a swampy forest thicket, overgrown with birches. It turns out that this is the noun "Siberia". Scientists believe that a similar name came to Russian from the Mongolian language.
And the last ofof the considered names of the impenetrable forest is the noun “taiga”, which is well known to many.
This is the name of a strip of wild impassable or completely impassable wilds. Moreover, unlike those listed above, we are talking about coniferous, and not about deciduous areas.
Distinguish between dark coniferous and light coniferous forests of this kind. In the first of them, spruce and fir mainly grow, in the second - larches, pines and cedars.
Sometimes deciduous trees can also grow in the taiga. Mostly birch, mountain ash or bird cherry.
Bwindi National Park in Uganda
Considering various impenetrable wilds, one cannot fail to mention the Bwindi National Park. The peculiarity of this place is that its visitors get the opportunity to visit the almost virgin forest and enjoy the observation of wildlife, almost untouched by man.
However, it is worth remembering that in the impenetrable forests of Bwindi, many dangers await tourists, because many plants can be poisonous, and forest dwellers are not at all friendly. Therefore, this place of rest is suitable only for people who are ready to meet with dangers.
