Das Nasobēm, usually translated into English as The Nasobame, is a short nonsense poem by German writer Christian Morgenstern (1871–1914). It was written around 1895 and published in his book Galgenlieder (1905).[1]

This poem is notable for, among other things, having inspired zoologist Gerolf Steiner to write in 1961 an extremely popular mock-scientific treatise on the fictitious animal order of the Rhinogradentia, also called "nasobames" or "snouters", whose nasal appendages had evolved in many amazing ways.[2] Poetic translations of this poem (by Robert Weill - French, G.G. Simpson - English and L. Chadwick - English) can be found in his 1988 sequel .[3]

References

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  1. ^ Christian Morgenstern (1905): Galgenlieder. Bruno Cassirer Verlag, Berlin.
  2. ^ Harald Stümpke [=Gerolf Steiner] (1967): The Snouters: Form and Life of the Rhinogrades. Translated by Leigh Chadwick. The University of Chicago Press.
  3. ^ Karl D.S. Geeste [=Gerolf Steiner] (1988): Stümpke's Rhinogradentia: Versuch einer Analyse. Gustav Fischer Verlag.