A miller usually refers to a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a cereal crop to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents in other languages around the world ("Müller" or "Mueller" in German, "Molnár" in Hungarian,"Molinero" in Spanish, "Molinari" in Italian etc.). Milling existed in hunter gatherer communities, and later millers were important to the development of agriculture.
The materials ground by millers are often foodstuffs and particularly grain. The physical grinding of the food allows for the easier digestion of its nutrients and saves wear on the teeth. Non-food substances needed in a fine, powdered form, such as building materials, may be processed by a miller.
The most basic tool for a miller was the quern-stone - simply a large, fixed stone as a base and another movable stone operated by hand, similar to a mortar and pestle. As technology and millstones (the bedstone and rynd) improved, more elaborate machines such as watermills and windmills were developed to do the grinding work. These mills harnessed available energy sources including animal, water, wind, and electrical power. Mills are some of the oldest factories in human history, so factories making other items are sometimes known as mills, for example, cotton mills and steel mills. These factory workers are also called millers.
The rynd in pre-reformation Scotland was often carved on millers' gravestones as a symbol of their trade.
In a traditional rural society, a miller is often wealthier than ordinary peasants, which can lead to jealousy and to millers being targeted in bread riots at times of famine. Conversely, millers might be in a stronger position vis-a-vis feudal land owners than are ordinary peasants.
The traditional carnival held annually in the city of Ivrea, Italy commemorates a spirited "Mugnaia" (miller's daughter) who supposedly refused to let a local duke exercise his right of the first night, and proceeded to chop the duke's head off and spark a revolution. Whatever the historical validity of the story, it is significant it was the daughter of a miller to whom folk tradition assigned this rebellious role.
Other articles related to "miller":
... Miller was the focal point of a “This America Life” episode discussing a racial incident that occurred in the town ...
... Frederick Edward John Miller (born as "Friedrich Eduard Johannes Müller" November 24, 1824 in Riedlingen, Germany - May 11, 1888) was a brewery owner who founded ... Miller was born in Germany, and was married to Josephine Miller in Friedrichshafen, Germany on June 7, 1853 ... Their first child, Joseph Edward Miller, was born the next year ...
... of the buildings' black and green tiled facade Miller Block was born ... Throughout the 1990s, Neudorf designed, managed, owned and operated Miller Block with Tracy Pillsworth (aka Sugarpill), where he did much of his recording and production ... The merging of equipment, space and trust surrounding Miller Block resulted in a creative studio environment that flourished for six years, until the Fall of ...
... makes his way to the grave of Captain John Miller (played by Tom Hanks) and segues into the movie's opening battle sequence, the D-Day landing at Omaha ... The grave does not actually exist the headstone for Miller was only brought to the cemetery for the movie ... The Captain John Miller portrayed in the movie never existed, but the Private Ryan story is based upon the story of the Niland Brothers, two of whom are buried in the cemetery ...
... graduating from the University of Arkansas, Miller, who is known as "The Big O" because of his large size (6-foot-9, over 300 pounds), was selected by the Phoenix Suns as the 22nd ... Miller was known as a talented center with good passing skills, averaging 12.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.4 steals per game at his peak (1995–96 ... Following his initial stint in the NBA, Miller moved overseas, joining Iraklio BC in Greece for the 1998–99 season, before signing with the Kings in February 1999 to play in 4 games ...
Famous quotes containing the word miller:
“The miller believes that all the wheat grows so that his mill keeps running.”
—Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749–1832)
“Hope is a bad thing. It means that you are not what you want to be. It means that part of you is dead, if not all of you. It means that you entertain illusions. It’s a sort of spiritual clap, I should say.”
—Henry Miller (1891–1980)
“The word “civilization” to my mind is coupled with death. When I use the word, I see civilization as a crippling, thwarting thing, a stultifying thing. For me it was always so. I don’t believe in the golden ages, you see.... Civilization is the arteriosclerosis of culture.”
—Henry Miller (1891–1980)