The word mascot can be traced to the Medieval Latin word masca meaning mask or witch. The popular idea of a mascot as a lucky charm stems from the 1880 French operetta La Mascotte, by Edmond Audran, in which a farm girl bestowed fortune on anyone she met.

Audran's operetta was so popular that it was translated into English as The Mascot, introducing into the English language a word for any animal, person or object that brings good luck.

In the British Army, the 1st Battalion, The Royal Welsh, has had a long tradition of travelling with a pet goat used in ceremonies. The Welsh regiment was presented with a goat from the Royal herd in 1746, and the current mascot, Billy, is a descendant from the same bloodline. In the United States, the first team mascot, an actual bulldog named Handsome Dan, was a tradition started by a Yale student in 1889.

The Royal Gazette asked students in a number of local schools to describe their mascot, and this week we have reports from Warwick Academy, Clearwater Middle School and Dellwood Middle School.

Lateef Trott of Clearwater Middle School writes:

I have been our school's mascot for two years now, and every time I put on my feathers I feel special and important. My job is to lift the spirits of the crowd and to cheer the loudest for my team. I have been told that my enthusiasm makes the crowd go crazy! I like that.

The first couple of times I "became" the Eagle, I felt nervous being in front of the whole school. But as soon as people in the crowd started laughing and cheering along with me, I got more comfortable and began to really love being the Clearwater Eagle.

The last lines of our school creed say, "Just as an eagle soars to the sky, we, too, will strive and set our goals high." My goal is set: I will graduate this year and then next year I will be off to Berkeley Institute.

Go, Eagles, Go!

The Warwick Academy Bear, report Ciara Svensen and Sonia Ooi, is both the focus of our school crest and our sports mascot. The crest shows a bear chained up for bear baiting, which in the 17th century was a form of sport!

The reason Warwick Academy has a bear on its crest is because the House of Warwick, in England, since earliest times had a bear on its heraldic crest. (In 'Henry VI'part 2, Act 5, scene 1, the Earl of Warwick prepares for battle by placing his crest atop his helmet, stating, "Now, by my father's badge, old Nevil's crest,/The rampant bear chain'd to the ragged staff,/This day I'll wear aloft my burgonet," – JH) The Earl of Warwick owned land in Bermuda on which the original school was built.

Our school decided to have the Bear as our mascot. It pumps up the crowds at all of our school sports events. Our mascot wears the school's P.E. uniform. The Bear is really a student in costume! In the gym it runs around the bleachers to try to motivate the players and enthuse the supporters. The energy rises and everyone has a good time. The Bear is very important to our school.

Dellwood Middle School's mascot is a lion, a fierce beast, also known as the king of the jungle. Dellwood is represented by a lion because of the spirit and drive of the children here at our school, report Lady Carmela Gualberto and Waverley Moran. Students at Dellwood are known to have their own minds, show magnificent work and behaviour, and to be fierce in all competitions, much like a lion in the wild.

The lion was chosen as the mascot of Dellwood Middle School because Dellwood has always been known as "The Home of the Roaring Lions'', so a lion was an obvious choice. Why is Dellwood home of the roaring lions, you ask? Dellwood has a reputation of being roaring lions at school events, such as Sports Day and Spirit Day, not to mention Inter School Sports. Dellwood students are also strong and determined.

We always bring spirit and cheer to events, whether academic or athletic. The mascot is a symbol of spirit. The lion helps us cheer on our representatives in various events so that they would excel in the event they are participating in. Mystery surrounds who actually wears the costume. It could be a student but most students think it is a teacher.

Every time we thought we had solved the mystery of the Dellwood Mascot, we always ended up seeing the teacher we thought it was. One day the mystery will be solved when a lucky student will find out who is behind the mask.

Until then our lion will continue to lead us in doing our best.

If you would like to profile the mascot in your school, email Jennifer Hind, jhind@royalgazette.bm