Birds inhabit many English words and phrases. The flower called larkspur is named for the way its blossom resembles the spur on the toe of a lark. Columbine derives from Latin columba, “dove,” a reference to the way this flower resembles doves...
The Greek word for the cuckoo bird, kokkux, is related to our word coccyx, the tailbone, because the bone looks like the bill of a cuckoo. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “The Cuckoo and Coccyx Connection” The Greek word for cuckoo...