Читать книгу Rabbit Production - James I McNitt - Страница 16

According to the Oxford dictionary, the word rabbit is derived from rabotte, a word from an old dialect in northern France, or from the Walloon word robett, whereas Webster’s dictionary attributes the word to the old Middle English rabet . It is interesting to see the word for rabbit in a variety of languages:

Afrikaans – konyn

Danish – kanin

Dutch – konij

Finnish – kaniini

French – lapin

German – kaninchen

Hungarian – nyul

Indonesian – kelinci

Italian – conigli

Norwegian – kanin

Polish – królik

Portuguese – coelho

Spanish – conejo

Swahili – sungura

Swedish – kanin

Rabbits are well represented in folklore. The Easter Bunny has its origins in ancient pagan rituals. In early Easter or spring celebrations, rabbits and hares were symbols of fertility and new life. Qualities of the rabbit usually depicted in tales and folklore generally relate to gentleness, mischievousness, and being the dupe or victim of deception, such as Brer Rabbit. Other famous rabbits include Walt Disney’s Thumper in Bambi, Bugs Bunny, and Peter Rabbit in the Beatrix Potter tales.