What Does “A Drove of Hogs” Mean?
Like “drove of pigs,” “drove of hogs” comes directly from traditional livestock droving, moving hogs on foot, historically often significant distances, to market once fattened for sale. Hogs were frequently allowed to forage semi-freely through woodland under the historic practice of pannage, feeding on fallen acorns, beechnuts, and other forest mast before being gathered and driven to market as the season ended.
Droving hogs required particular skill and patience; pigs are notably intelligent and independent-minded, prone to investigating anything interesting along the route rather than moving in a tidy, predictable line the way sheep or cattle more readily do. A good drover working hogs relied on real understanding of pig behavior to keep a drove moving efficiently, a practical skill largely lost to history now that modern transport has made walking livestock to market unnecessary.
Example: “A drove of hogs was brought down from the woodland pannage grounds each autumn, fattened and ready for market.”
Other Collective Nouns for Hogs
A group of hogs goes by more than one name. You might also hear:
Related: Collective Nouns for Mammals