It comes in many shapes and sizes.

Even though the turtle isn't ordinarily identified as a musical animal, the fact that we're supposed to understand that we're dealing with the turtledove makes musical references to it's voice rather logical. It's not clear to me, however, why both an Anthology of Cuban Literature, and an anthology of American Indian Literature both have the name Voice of the Turtle. I admit to being curious, but with the amount of searching I was willing to devote to the task the answer wasn't apparent. An historical novel by Mary Mills Ulrich, however, seems to have received that name because one of the main characters, probably a wise and elderly American Indian woman, is called "the turtle".

I don't know why a left wing journal that appears on the web is called Voice of the Turtle. No explanation is given, so I have no reason other than a guess to think that one of the friends who writes the journal is nicknamed the turtle.

The only use of a turtle in a clearly different context - one I admit I didn't expect but find very impressive - was the online newsletter of the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists. Under the Voice of the Turtle masthead comes the explanation:

Behold the turtle: It makes progress only when it sticks it neck out
Clearly, a different sort of voice. And even if it seems that the newsletter hasn't been updated in over a year, it's a voice that earns my respect.



Go to: Lots of ways of hearing it, or
Go to: On finding a turtle's voice.