Look up aardvark in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The word aardvark has traditionally been famous as the first word in the dictionary and many encyclopedias. However, this is not technically correct, as aa (pronounced ää) is the first noun, defined as "lava having a rough surface." Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary is a Wikimedia Foundation project intended to be a free wiki dictionary (hence: Wiktionary) (including thesaurus and lexicon) in every language. ...

In comedy and literature

The word aardvark is frequently used in comedy, being considered an inherently funny word. Comedy has a classical meaning (comical theatre) and a popular one (the use of humour with an intent to provoke laughter in general). ... The belief that certain words are inherently funny, for reasons ranging from onomatopoeia to sexual innuendo, is widespread among people who work in humor. ...

British comedians John Cleese and Graham Chapman wrote a bookshop skit (for At Last the 1948 Show), in which a customer, initially played by Marty Feldman, seeks out a book called Ethel the Aardvark Goes Quantity Surveying. This classic skit was subsequently performed on stage by Monty Python cast members. John Marwood Cleese (born October 27, 1939 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England) is an English comedian and actor best known for being one of the members of the comedy group Monty Python and for co-writing the TV series Fawlty Towers in which he played Basil Fawlty. ... Graham Chapman (8 January 1941–4 October 1989) was an English comedian and writer. ... From top to bottom: Aimi MacDonald, Graham Chapman, Marty Feldman, Tim Brooke-Taylor, and John Cleese. ... Actor Marty Feldman in Young Frankenstein (1974) Martin Alan Marty Feldman (July 8, 1934 – December 2, 1982) was a writer, comedian and film and television actor in the UK, famous for his bulging eyes, which were the result of a thyroid condition. ... The Python team. ...

In one episode of the British TV series Blackadder the Third, featuring the first appearance of Doctor Johnson's Dictionary, Edmund Blackadder notices that the word aardvark is missing from the manuscript. (Edmund had earlier come up with his own definition: "Medium-sized insectivore with protruding nasal implement.") Surprisingly, Blackadder is historically correct in this regard. Doctor Johnson's Dictionary does not in fact contain the word aardvark. Blackadder is the generic name that encompasses four series of an acclaimed BBC historical sitcom, along with several one-off instalments. ... Samuel Johnson circa 1772, painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds. ... A Dictionary of the English Language, one of the most influential dictionaries in the history of the English language, was prepared by Samuel Johnson and published on April 15, 1755. ... Any organism with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures is an insectivore. ...

Allan Sherman wrote and performed "The Laarge Daark Aardvark Song," a novelty song about the animal in a style reminiscent of The Chipmunks. Allan Sherman (sometimes incorrectly Alan and Allen), November 30, 1924 – November 20, 1973, was an American musician, parodist, satirist, and television producer. ... The Chipmunks are a fictional musical group, created by Ross Bagdasarian in 1958. ...