An archaic or variant spelling of barnacle, referring to the marine crustacean or the mythical goose of medieval legend.
Medieval English variant of 'barnacle,' often spelled differently in manuscripts; associated with the folk legend about geese supposedly born from barnacles, which persisted into the 16th century.
Medieval people genuinely believed that barnacle geese grew from shellfish found on shipworms—this wasn't stupidity but a real scientific mystery that finally got solved with better microscopes!
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