The name originally came from the German words ''lämmers'' + ''geier'', which literally meant "lamb's vulture"<ref>http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lammergeier</ref><ref>http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lammergeier</ref>, in reference to attacks on sheep in the central Alps. The older word ''ossifrage''<ref>http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ossifrage</ref> is based on Latin for "bone-breaker" (''oss'', "bone" + ''frangere'', "to break"), which was used in Leviticus 11:13 to identify this bird specifically, as well as prohibit the ancient Israelites from eating this or any other bird of prey.