Shearing is a synonym for "shearing"
The verb shear can be used in different ways. This is what the action of cutting the wool or hair of certain animals is called.
Synonym of "shearing"
In this sense, shearing is a synonym for shearing . Sheep , vicuñas and llamas are some of the species that are sheared to obtain their wool or hair, which can then be used to make multiple products since it can be woven.
It is common to decide to shear the specimens in the summer season because, in winter , the wool works as a coat to tolerate low temperatures. The shearer uses scissors or a machine to cut the hair, which later grows back.
Nowadays the use of electric instruments for shearing is common, although given the age of this practice, the first techniques were very different. Although at first glance it may seem like a very simple task, just like shaving your head with a shaver, these are two very different things: the shearer must act very precisely so that the wool obtained is of good quality , and in At this point, experience is almost essential.
In addition to the time of year, another factor that is usually taken into account when deciding when it is best to shear the sheep is whether they have already given birth, although on each farm the conditions may vary depending on other issues. As a curious fact, we can mention that in Spain, shearers used to recite a prayer dedicated to the Virgin once they finished their work, the so-called Salve de los esquiladores .
History of shearing
Continuing in the meaning that makes it synonymous with shearing , humans have been using the wool of certain animals for millennia to make different kinds of coats. For example, there is evidence of the use of sheep as early as the third millennium BC. C. in the ancient city of Ur, south of Mesopotamia. Sheep were obtained by collecting taxes from other cities, and were counted like any other economic resource. During the spring they were sheared, in principle without tools but simply removing the part of the wool that was least attached to the body.
We can also mention the city of Knossos , the most prominent in Crete and considered the oldest on the European continent, which took considerable advantage of sheep wool for its economy . There are written tests on tablets detailing both the breeding of these animals and the shearing. In medieval England, on the other hand, sheep wool was traded, which was obtained every year from the month of June and ended with a festival.
Other meanings
Another meaning of shearing refers to cutting a person's hair without technique or order . Thus the hair is cut in clumps and in a messy manner. Given the beauty standards and the imposition of fashion in today's life, this is not very common, since people usually go to hairdressing professionals to get a well-defined cut.
Cutting hair in a messy manner is also shearing
In colloquial language, according to the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ), shearing can be used to refer to breaking, reducing or deteriorating something, dividing it or removing a part . For example: “There were leaders who were in charge of shearing the party, expelling militants who did not agree with their ideas” , “With so many taxes, the State only manages to shear investors and discourage the development of new projects” , “No I know who authorized the shearing of such an important historic building with an absurd remodeling…”
Finally, it should be noted that the idea of shearing is used in expressions such as “He went for wool and came back sheared,” “Shear and not skin” and “He came out sheared.”