1624: cuckold and cuckquean May 26, 2019

A number of birds are considered to be brooding parasites, because they lay their eggs in other birds' nests. One such bird is the cuckoo bird, and while its name is imitative, it has lead to more words later on. The term 'cuckold' comes from the relation to the birds laying eggs in another bird's nest, and moreover, cuckoos were common in folklore of the Middle Ages, which helped to popularize the idea. While the term 'cuckold' has around since at least the 13th century, by the 16th century, the term 'cuckquean' was coined as the feminine form.