Etymology
The word “butter” is believed to be derived from the Greek word bou-tyron, the approximate meaning of which is “cowcheese.” (dubious) However, some believe the word came from the Scythian culture, as the ancient Greeks tended to herd sheep and goats, whose milk is not as optimal for butter making as cows, which the Scythians primarily herded. The word "churn" is from the Old English ċyrin, to churn. This is probably derived from the Old English cyrnel, "kernel," due to the appearance of butter grains after milk has been churned.
The butter churn gave its name to the milk churn, early examples of which were based on butter churns. The milk churn is not however, used for the act of churning, rather to transport milk.
Read more about this topic: Butter Churn
Famous quotes containing the word etymology:
“The universal principle of etymology in all languages: words are carried over from bodies and from the properties of bodies to express the things of the mind and spirit. The order of ideas must follow the order of things.”
—Giambattista Vico (1688–1744)
“Semantically, taste is rich and confusing, its etymology as odd and interesting as that of “style.” But while style—deriving from the stylus or pointed rod which Roman scribes used to make marks on wax tablets—suggests activity, taste is more passive.... Etymologically, the word we use derives from the Old French, meaning touch or feel, a sense that is preserved in the current Italian word for a keyboard, tastiera.”
—Stephen Bayley, British historian, art critic. “Taste: The Story of an Idea,” Taste: The Secret Meaning of Things, Random House (1991)