River Kennet - Etymology

Etymology

It was formerly known as the "Cunnit". Local historian Michael Dames claims the name is related to the word "cunt", though it is more likely derived from the nearby Roman settlement of Cunetio (now Mildenhall).

Following this idea it may be related with the "Cynetes" a very ancient people.

In the "Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise" (dictionary of the Gallic language), Xavier Delamare proposes : cuno meaning "dog", and knowing in insulary Celtic otter is said "water dog", the name of Kennet could be "otter's lair".

e.g. : cuno ->Ki, Breton Ki-dour, cornish dowr-gi, Welsh dyfr-gi

Read more about this topic:  River Kennet

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)