Because I’d always wondered
What the etymology for cunt, pussy, and cunnilingus were:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=cunt&searchmode=none
Cunt:
“female intercrural foramen,” or, as some 18c. writers refer to it, “the monosyllable,” M.E. cunte “female genitalia,” akin to O.N. kunta, from P.Gmc. *kunton, of uncertain origin. Some suggest a link with L. cuneus “wedge,” others to PIE base *geu- “hollow place,” still others to PIE *gwen-, root of queen and Gk. gyne “woman.” The form is similar to L. cunnus “female pudenda,” which is likewise of disputed origin, perhaps lit. “gash, slit,” from PIE *sker- “to cut,” or lit. “sheath,” from PIE *kut-no-, from base *(s)keu- “to conceal, hide.” First known reference in Eng. is said to be c.1230 Oxford or London street name Gropecuntlane, presumably a haunt of prostitutes. Avoided in public speech since 15c.; considered obscene since 17c. Du. cognate de kont means “a bottom, an arse.” Du. also has attractive poetic slang ways of expressing this part, such as liefdesgrot, lit. “cave of love,” and vleesroos “rose of flesh.” Alternate form cunny is attested from c.1720 but is certainly much earlier and forced a change in the pronunciation of coney (q.v.), but it was good for a pun while coney was still the common word for “rabbit”: “A pox upon your Christian cockatrices! They cry, like poulterers’ wives, ‘No money, no coney.’ ” [Massinger, 1622]
Cunnilingus:
1887, from Mod.L. cunnus “vulva” (see cunt) + lingere “to lick” (see lick (v.)). The L. properly would mean “one who licks a vulva,” but it is used in Eng. in reference to the action, not the actor. The verb ought to be cunnilingue.
“Cunnilingus was a very familiar manifestation in classical times; … it tends to be especially prevalent at all periods of high civilization.” [Havelock Ellis, 1905]
Pussy(2):
slang for “cunt,” 1879, but probably older; perhaps from O.N. puss “pocket, pouch” (cf. Low Ger. puse “vulva”), but perhaps instead from the cat word (see pussy (1)) on notion of “soft, warm, furry thing;” cf. Fr. le chat, which also has a double meaning, feline and genital. Earlier uses are difficult to distinguish from pussy (1), e.g.:
“The word pussie is now used of a woman” [Philip Stubbes, “The Anatomie of Abuses,” 1583]
But the use of pussy as a term of endearment argues against the vaginal sense being generally known before late 19c., e.g.:
” ‘What do you think, pussy?’ said her father to Eva.” [Harriet Beecher Stowe, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” 1852]
Pussy-whipped first attested 1956.
