2018: 1st Foal & How He Got His Name

It was quite a surprise to hear that the first foal of 2018 was born in early February. The foal was born to the mare, Morgana, and sire, Johnston. When a foal is born there is great excitement and hope for the future of the Pryor Horses.

The foal was born into some tough conditions. The area has been hit with an arctic blast that has sent the temperatures down into sub-zero range with strong winds blowing the powdery snow. On the bright side, the area is filled with sheltered places perfect for hiding away from the wintry elements. Morgana is a very attentive mare, but she also has the help of her mother, Icara, to help care for the foal.

Morgana and her foal. The foal’s grandmother, Icara, stands guard.

With a new foal, comes the responsibility of a name. Naming the horses has historic roots and was done mainly to identify and monitor the horses. The naming of the Pryor horses started long ago when Lynn Taylor, one of the first BLM wild horse specialists, started naming the stallions back about the time the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range became the first public wild horse range in the United States. Lynn used a combination of names and numbers to identify the horses. Then as time passed, Reverend Floyd Schweiger began keeping record of the bands of horses. He, along with other local wild horse enthusiasts, Jerry Tippetts and Patti Martin, began naming the horses. Just recently Patti described why and how horses were named. She and the Reverend would go up to the mountain every weekend. They began identifying the bands by the horses with unique colors and/or markings. These were the horses they named first. For example, they named “Flower” because she had a flower design on her middle. Flash got his name because of his “flashy” blaze and socks. Pencil was a mare who had a thin “pencil” like blaze. The horse that caught her attention was a young filly with unique, bright color. Patti named  the horse, “Phoenix Rising with the Sun.” What a perfect name for the horse now called Phoenix.  These names serve as the foundation of the naming and monitoring system the Mustang Center continues to use. The Reverend, Jerry, and Patti gave thoughtful names that often represented and honored the Spanish and Native American influence on the herd.

In 2000, the BLM initiated an alphabetical naming system and all foals born that year were given names that started with the letter “A.” In subsequent years foals were named with, B, C, D and so on. At that time, the BLM kept the names internal and we actually had to use the FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) process to obtain a list that included all the names. The thinking was that the use of the names would promote anthropomorphism…the attribution of human characteristics to animals.

Around 2007, the BLM began using the Mustang Center’s horse list which included our names. Since that time, we have updated a form of the list that went back to Lynn Taylor’s time.  This is when Matthew Dillon served as the director of the Mustang Center. His rich background in natural sciences and history guided his use of interesting name choices. The system for naming developed further through this time with these guiding naming rules:

1. The names will continue with the alphabetical naming system started by the BLM in 2000.
2. The names will somehow link the lineage of the horse.
3. The name does not duplicate another name used for a Pryor Horse.

With the first two rules, the name provides quick pieces of information about the horse: the age and the bloodline.

Back in the 1990’s Ginger Kathrens entered the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse world. She, too, began naming the horses. The names became well known through her beautiful documentaries about Cloud.

As a result, there were two primary naming systems for the Pryor Horses. Many of us just learned both names. However, as more and more people gained interest in the horses and with the growing use of social media, confusion grew. In 2014, the Mustang Center and The Cloud Foundation joined together to provide a single name for the foals.

Once we get a report of a horse, conversations begin to find the perfect name for a horse that meets the two primary considerations developed by Matthew. We sincerely appreciate the person who makes the first report. Our practice is to get input from that person regarding the name choice and then finalize a name collaboratively. It sometimes takes a week or so to come up with a name that is fitting for the horse.

So now we come back to Morgana’s foal. Bill Pickett of the National Park Service was the first reporter on Thursday, February 8. Since that time we have kept in contact with him regarding both gender information and name ideas.  On Friday, February 16, Kristen Collett determined that the foal is a colt.  We knew right away that that the name will start with an “S.” That is the easy part. The hard part is finding a suitable name that relates to a lineage. We have decided to carry on the King Arthur legend that goes back to Sir Lancelot. This beautiful apricot dun stallion was the sire of Merlin, a name taken from the wizard in the King Arthur legend. Merlin’s daughter, Morgana, in turn got her name from the sorceress in the same legend. And that is where the idea for her new foal was formed. The newest Pryor foal’s name is “Sorcerer” in honor of his mother, Morgana, and grandsire, Merlin. The word is defined to be one who is believed to have magical powers. This little one will have to work some magic to survive the cold wintry world he was born into!

Through this post, we hope you see the history of the names and the complexity of the naming process we use. We do appreciate ideas for names that match the criteria defined above.  So when a new foal is born, don’t hesitate to drop us a message or an email if you want to suggest a name. Who knows…it might be the perfect name for the next Pryor foal!

Sorcerer….1st 2018 Pryor Mountain Wild Horse