Hornets in Japanese

[palver72202]

Hello,

I learned that apparently hornets in Japanese is called すずめばち　or 雀蜂 which is literally translated as "sparrow bee". Does anyone know why hornets is named like that?

Thanks,

Daniel

[community.japanese]

Daniel さん、
こんにちは。
Both of them mean ‘sparrow bee.’
Yuki　由紀
Team JapanesePod101.com