Online Etymology Dictionary

stool pigeon (n.): "police informer," 1859, American English; earlier "one who betrays the unwary (or is used to betray them)," 1821, originally a decoy bird (1812); said to be from decoys being fastened to stools to lure other pigeons. But perhaps related to stall "decoy bird" (c. 1500), especially "a pigeon used to entice a hawk into the net" (see stall (n.2)). Also see pigeon.
gull (n.2): cant term for "dupe, sucker, credulous person," 1590s, of uncertain origin. Perhaps from verb meaning "to dupe, cheat" (see gull (v.)). Or it is perhaps from (or influenced by) the bird name (see gull (n.1)); in either case with a sense of "someone who will swallow anything thrown at him." Another possibility is Middle English gull, goll "newly hatched bird" (late 14c.), which is perhaps from Old Norse golr "yellow," from the hue of its down.
plane (v.2): "soar, glide on motionless wings," early 15c., from Old French planer "to hover (as a bird), to lie flat," from plan (n.) "plane," from Latin planum "flat surface" (see plane (n.1)), on notion of bird gliding with flattened wings. Of boats, etc., "to skim over the surface of water," it is first found 1913. Related: Planed; planing.
falcon (n.): mid-13c., faucon, from Old French faucon "falcon" (12c.), from Late Latin falconem (nominative falco) "falcon" (source also of Old Spanish falcon, Portuguese falcão, Italian falcone, Old High German falcho, German Falke, Dutch valk), probably from Latin falx (genitive falcis) "curved blade, pruning hook, sickle, war-scythe" (see falcate); the bird said to be so called for the shape of its talons, legs, or beak, but also possibly from the shape of its spread wings.

The other theory is that the Latin bird name falx is of Germanic origin and means "gray bird" (from the source of fallow (adj.)), which is supported by the antiquity of the word in Germanic but opposed by those who point out that falconry by all evidences was imported from the East, and the Germans got it from the Romans, not the other way round.
perch (n.1): "where a bird rests," late 13c., originally only "a pole, rod, stick, stake," from Old French perche "unit of linear measurement" (5.5 yards), also "measuring rod, pole, bar" used to measure this length (13c.), from Latin pertica "pole, long staff, measuring rod," related to Oscan perek "pole," Umbrian perkaf "twigs, rods." Meaning "a bar fixed horizontally for a hawk or tame bird to rest on" is attested from late 14c.; this led to general sense of "any thing that any bird alights or rests on" (late 15c.). Figurative sense of "an elevated or secure position" is recorded from 1520s. The "land-measuring rod" sense also was in Middle English (c. 1200), hence surviving meaning "measure of land equal to a square lineal perch" (usually 160 to the acre), mid-15c.
curlew (n.): mid-14c., from Old French courlieu (13c., Modern French courlis), said to be imitative of the bird's cry but apparently assimilated with corliu "runner, messenger," from corre "to run" (see current (adj.)). The bird is a good runner.
neb (n.): "beak or bill of a bird," Old English nebb "beak, nose; face, countenance; beak-shaped thing," common Germanic (cognates: Old Norse nef "beak, nose," Middle Dutch nebbe "beak," Old High German snabul, German Schnabel "beak," Old Frisian snavel "mouth"), of uncertain origin.
finch (n.): common European bird, Old English finc "finch," from Proto-Germanic *finkiz "finch" (source also of Middle Low German and Middle Dutch vinke, Dutch vink, Old High German finco, German Fink), perhaps imitative of the bird's note (compare Breton pint "chaffinch," Russian penka "wren").
junco (n.): 1706 as a book-name (now obsolete) for the reed-sparrow, from Modern Latin junco "reed, bush," from Latin iuncus "reed, rush" (see jonquil). Later (by 1858) as the name of a North American snow-bird, from the use of the Modern Latin word as a genus name in the finch family.
wag (n.1): "person fond of making jokes," 1550s, perhaps a shortening of waghalter "gallows bird," person destined to swing in a noose or halter, applied humorously to mischievous children, from wag (v.) + halter. Or possibly directly from wag (v.); compare wagger "one who stirs up or agitates" (late 14c.).
tern (n.): gull-like shore bird (subfamily Sterninae), 1670s, via East Anglian dialect, from a Scandinavian source (compare Danish terne, Swedish tärna, Færoese terna) related to Old Norse þerna "tern" (also "maid-servant"), cognate with Old English stearn.
ovary (n.): 1650s, from Modern Latin ovarium "ovary" (16c.), from Medieval Latin ovaria "the ovary of a bird" (13c.), from Latin ovum "egg," from PIE *owyo-/*oyyo- "egg" (see egg (n.)). In classical Latin, ovarius meant "egg-keeper."
bittern (n.): heron-like bird, 13c., botor, from Old French butor "bittern," perhaps from Gallo-Roman *butitaurus, from Latin butionem "bittern" + taurus "bull" (see steer (n.)); according to Pliny, so called because of its booming voice, but this seems fanciful. Modern form from 1510s.
hoopoe (n.): 1660s, from Latin upupa, imitative of its cry (compare Greek epops "hoopoe," Polish dudek, Russian udodu).
If anybody smears himself with the blood of this bird on his way to bed, he will have nightmares about suffocating devils. [Cambridge bestiary, 12c.]
dodo (n.): 1620s, from Portuguese doudo "fool, simpleton," an insult applied by Portuguese sailors to the awkward bird (Didus ineptus) they found on Mauritius island. The last record of a living one is from 1681. Applied in English to stupid persons since 1886.
gull (n.1): shore bird, early 15c. (in a cook book), probably from Brythonic Celtic; compare Welsh gwylan "gull," Cornish guilan, Breton goelann; all from Old Celtic *voilenno-. Replaced Old English mæw (see mew (n.1)).
aquiline (adj.): "curved like an eagle's beak," 1640s, originally in English in reference to long, hooked noses, from Latin aquilinus "of or like an eagle," from aquila "eagle," of uncertain origin, usually explained as "the dark bird;" compare aquilus "blackish, of the color of darkness."
rooster (n.): 1772, agent noun from roost (v.); earlier roost cock, c. 1600, in sense of "the roosting bird." Favored in the U.S. originally as a puritan alternative to cock (n.) after it had acquired the secondary sense "penis" (and compare roach).
mynah (n.): type of passerine bird of India and the East, "talking starling," 1769, from Hindi maina "a starling," from Sanskrit madana- "delightful, joyful," related to madati "it gladdens," literally "it bubbles," from PIE root *mad- "moist, wet" (see mast (n.2).
aviation (n.): 1866, from French aviation, noun of action from stem of Latin avis "bird" (see aviary). Coined 1863 by French aviation pioneer Guillaume Joseph Gabriel de La Landelle (1812-1886) in "Aviation ou Navigation aérienne."
shrike (n.): 1540s, apparently from a survival of Old English scric "a shrike or thrush," literally "bird with a shrill call," probably echoic of its cry and related to shriek (compare Old Norse skrikja "shrieker, shrike," German schrik "moor hen," Swedish skrika "jay").
gannet (n.): Old English ganot, name of a kind of sea-bird, from Proto-Germanic *ganton- (source also of Dutch gent, Middle High German ganiz, Old High German ganazzo "a gander"), from PIE *ghans- "a goose" (see goose (n.)). Old French gante is from Germanic.
jabot (n.): 1823, "frill of a men's shirt," from French jabot "gizzard (of a bird), frill on a shirt front" (16c.), a word of unknown origin. Klein suggests a connection with gaver "to cram, gorge," and thus ultimately with English jaw (n.). Of women's clothing from 1869.
dipper (n.): late 14c., as a type of diving bird, agent noun from dip (v.). As a ladle or long-handled utensil for drawing liquid, from 1783, chiefly American English. As the popular U.S. name for the asterism known in Britain as The Plough or Charles' Wain, attested by 1833.
game (adj.2): "ready for action, unafraid, and up to the task;" probably literally "spirited as a game-cock," 1725, from game-cock "bird bred for fighting" (1670s), from game (n.) in the "sport, amusement" sense. Middle English adjectives gamesome, gamelich meant "joyful, playful, sportive."
swoop (n.): 1540s, "a blow, stroke," from swoop (v.). Meaning "the sudden pouncing of a rapacious bird on its prey" is 1605, from Shakespeare:
Oh, Hell-Kite! All? What, All my pretty Chickens, and their Damme, At one fell swoope? ["Macbeth," IV.iii.219]
skimmer (n.): "skimming utensil," late 14c., agent noun from skim (v.). From 1751 as "one who reads superficially." The North American shore bird (1785) is so called from its method of feeding. As "one who diverts money from earnings for some private purpose" by 1970.
augur (n.): 1540s, from Latin augur, a religious official in ancient Rome who foretold events by interpreting omens, perhaps originally meaning "an increase in crops enacted in ritual," in which case it probably is from Old Latin *augos (genitive *augeris) "increase," and is related to augere "increase" (see augment). The more popular theory is that it is from Latin avis "bird," because the flights, singing, and feeding of birds, along with entrails from bird sacrifices, were important objects of divination (compare auspicious). In that case, the second element would be from garrire "to talk."
sparrow (n.): small brownish-gray bird (Passer domesticus), Old English spearwa, from Proto-Germanic *sparwan (source also of Old Norse spörr, Old High German sparo, German Sperling, Gothic sparwa), from PIE *spor-wo-, from root *sper- (3), forming names of small birds (source also of Cornish frau "crow;" Old Prussian spurglis "sparrow;" Greek spergoulos "small field bird," psar "starling"). In use, with qualifying words, of many small, sparrow-like birds. Sparrowfarts (1886) was Cheshire slang for "very early morning."
wing (v.): c. 1600, "take flight;" 1610s, "fit with wings," from wing (n.). Meaning "shoot a bird in the wing" is from 1802, with figurative extensions to wounds suffered in non-essential parts. Verbal phrase wing it (1885) is said to be from a theatrical slang sense of an actor learning his lines in the wings before going onstage, or else not learning them at all and being fed by a prompter in the wings; but perhaps it is simply an image of a baby bird taking flight from the nest for the first time (the phrase is attested in this sense from 1875). Related: Winged; winging.
kenning (n.1): "periphrastic expression in early Germanic poetry" (such as swan-road for "sea," sky-candle for "sun"), 1871, a modern learned word from Old Norse kenning in a special sense "poetical periphrasis or descriptive name" (it also meant "teaching, doctrine; preaching; mark of recognition"), from kenna "to know, to recognize, to feel or perceive; to call, to name (in a formal poetic metaphor)."
In the whole poem of Beowulf there are scarcely half a dozen of them [similes], and these of the simplest character, such as comparing a ship to a bird. Indeed, such a simple comparison as this is almost equivalent to the more usual "kenning" (as it is called in Icelandic), such as "brimfugol," where, instead of comparing the ship to a bird, the poet simply calls it a sea-bird, preferring the direct assertion to the indirect comparison. [Henry Sweet, "Sketches of the History of Anglo-Saxon Poetry," London, 1871]
Cognate Old English cenning is attested as "procreation; declaration in court" (and see kenning (n.2)).
turkey (n.): 1540s, originally "guinea fowl" (Numida meleagris), a bird imported from Madagascar via Turkey, and called guinea fowl when brought by Portuguese traders from West Africa. The larger North American bird (Meleagris gallopavo) was domesticated by the Aztecs, introduced to Spain by conquistadors (1523) and thence to wider Europe. The word turkey first was applied to it in English 1550s because it was identified with or treated as a species of the guinea fowl, and/or because it got to the rest of Europe from Spain by way of North Africa, then under Ottoman (Turkish) rule. Indian corn was originally turkey corn or turkey wheat in English for the same reason.

The Turkish name for it is hindi, literally "Indian," probably influenced by Middle French dinde (c. 1600, contracted from poulet d'inde, literally "chicken from India," Modern French dindon), based on the then-common misconception that the New World was eastern Asia.
After the two birds were distinguished and the names differentiated, turkey was erroneously retained for the American bird, instead of the African. From the same imperfect knowledge and confusion Melagris, the ancient name of the African fowl, was unfortunately adopted by Linnæus as the generic name of the American bird. [OED]
The New World bird itself reputedly reached England by 1524 at the earliest estimate, though a date in the 1530s seems more likely. The wild turkey, the North American form of the bird, was so called from 1610s. By 1575, turkey was becoming the usual main course at an English Christmas. Meaning "inferior show, failure," is 1927 in show business slang, probably from the bird's reputation for stupidity. Meaning "stupid, ineffectual person" is recorded from 1951. Turkey shoot "something easy" is World War II-era, in reference to marksmanship contests where turkeys were tied behind a log with their heads showing as targets. To talk turkey (1824) supposedly comes from an old tale of a Yankee attempting to swindle an Indian in dividing up a turkey and a buzzard as food.
halcyon (adj.): "calm, quiet, peaceful," 1540s, in halcyon dayes (translating Latin alcyonei dies, Greek alkyonides hemerai), 14 days of calm weather at the winter solstice, when a mythical bird (also identified with the kingfisher) was said to breed in a nest floating on calm seas. The name of this fabulous bird is attested in Middle English as alcioun (late 14c.). The name is from Latin halcyon, alcyon, from Greek halkyon, variant (perhaps a misspelling) of alkyon "kingfisher," a word of unknown origin. The explanation that this is from hals "sea; salt" (see halo-) + kyon "conceiving," present participle of kyein "to conceive," literally "to swell" (see cumulus) probably is ancient folk-etymology to explain a loan-word from a non-Indo-European language. Identified in mythology with Halcyone, daughter of Aeolus, who when widowed threw herself into the sea and became a kingfisher.
kite (n.): European bird of prey, inferior hawk (Milvus ictinus, but applied elsewhere to similar birds), Old English cyta, probably imitative of its cry (compare ciegan "to call," German Kauz "screech owl"). Of persons who prey on others, 1550s.

The toy kite, a light frame covered with paper or cloth, is first so-called 1660s, from its way of hovering in the air like a bird. The dismissive invitation to go fly a kite is attested by 1942, American English, probably tracing to the popular song of the same name (lyrics by Johnny Burke), sung by Bing Crosby in "The Star Maker" (1939):
Go fly a kite and tie your troubles to the tail
They'll be blown away by a merry gale,
Go fly a kite and toss your worries to the wind
And they won't come back, they'll be too chagrined.
griffin (n.): c. 1200 (as a surname), from Old French grifon "a bird of prey," also "fabulous bird of Greek mythology" (with head and wings of an eagle, body and hind quarters of a lion, believed to inhabit Scythia and guard its gold), named for its hooked beak, from Late Latin gryphus, misspelling of grypus, variant of gryps (genitive grypos) "griffin," from Greek gryps (genitive grypos) "a griffin or dragon," literally "curved, hook-nosed" (opposed to simos).

Klein suggests a Semitic source, "through the medium of the Hittites," and cites Hebrew kerubh "a winged angel," Akkadian karibu, epithet of the bull-colossus (see cherub). The same or an identical word was used in mid-19c. Louisiana to mean "mulatto" (especially one one-quarter or two-fifths white) and in British India from 1793 to mean "newly arrived European," probably via notion of "strange hybrid animal."
stall (n.2): "pretense or evasive story to avoid doing something," 1812, from earlier sense "thief's assistant" (1590s, also staller), from a variant of stale "bird used as a decoy to lure other birds" (mid-15c.), from Anglo-French estale "decoy, pigeon used to lure a hawk" (13c., compare stool pigeon), literally "standstill," from Old French estal "place, stand, stall," from Frankish *stal- "position," ultimately from Germanic and cognate with Old English steall (see stall (n.1)). Compare Old English stælhran "decoy reindeer," German stellvogel "decoy bird." Figurative sense of "deception, means of allurement" is first recorded 1520s. Also see stall (v.2).
The stallers up are gratified with such part of the gains acquired as the liberality of the knuckling gentlemen may prompt them to bestow. [J.H. Vaux, "Flash Dictionary," 1812]
gander (n.): Old English gandra "male goose," from Proto-Germanic *gan(d)ron (source also of Dutch gander, Middle Low German ganre), from PIE *ghans- "goose" (see goose (n.)). OED suggests perhaps it was originally the name of some other water-bird and cites Lithuanian gandras "stork." Sometimes used 19c. in reference to single men or male-only gatherings (compare stag). Meaning "a long look" is 1912, from gander (v.).
haggis (n.): dish of chopped entrails, c. 1400, now chiefly Scottish, but it was common throughout England to c. 1700, of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Old French hacheiz "minced meat," from agace "magpie," on analogy of the odds and ends the bird collects. The other theory [Klein, Watkins, Middle English Dictionary] traces it to Old English haggen "to chop," or directly from Old Norse höggva "to hew, cut, strike, smite" (see hack (v.1)).
kiwi (n.): type of flightless bird, 1835, from Maori kiwi, said to be of imitative origin. As slang for "a New Zealander" (originally especially a soldier) it is attested from 1918. The kiwi fruit (Actinia chinesis), was so called in U.S. from c. 1966 when it was imported there, but it is known in New Zealand as Chinese gooseberry (1925).
jar (v.): 1520s, "to make a brief, harsh, grating sound," often in reference to bird screeches; the word often is said to be echoic or imitative; compare jargon (n.), jay (n.), garrulous. Figurative sense of "have an unpleasant effect on" is from 1530s; that of "cause to vibrate or shake" is from 1560s. Related: Jarred; jarring. As a noun in this sense from 1540s.
talon (n.): c. 1400, talounz "claws of a bird or beast," probably originally from Old French talon "heel or hinder part of the foot of a beast, or of a man, or of a shoe; foot-step" (12c.), from Medieval Latin talonem "heel," from Latin talus "ankle" (see talus (n.1)). "The extension to birds of prey, and subsequent stages, are peculiar to English" [OED].
raven (n.): Old English hræfn (Mercian), hrefn; hræfn (Northumbrian, West Saxon), from Proto-Germanic *khrabanaz (source also of Old Norse hrafn, Danish ravn, Dutch raaf, Old High German hraban, German Rabe "raven," Old English hroc "rook"), from PIE root *ker- (2), imitative of harsh sounds (source also of Latin crepare "to creak, clatter," cornix "crow," corvus "raven;" Greek korax "raven," korone "crow;" Old Church Slavonic kruku "raven;" Lithuanian krauklys "crow").
Raven mythology shows considerable homogeneity throughout the whole area [northern regions of the northern hemisphere] in spite of differences in detail. The Raven peeps forth from the mists of time and the thickets of mythology, as a bird of slaughter, a storm bird, a sun and fire bird, a messenger, an oracular figure and a craftsman or culture hero. [Edward A. Armstrong, "The Folklore of Birds," 1958]
Old English also used hræmn, hremm. The raven standard was the flag of the Danish Vikings. The Quran connects the raven with Cain's murder of Abel; but in Christianity the bird plays a positive role in the stories of St. Benedict, St. Paul the Hermit, St. Vincent, etc. It was anciently believed to live to great old age, but the ancients also believed it wanting in parental care. The vikings, like Noah, were said to have used the raven to discover land. "When uncertain of their course they let one loose, and steered the vessel in his track, deeming that the land lay in the direction of his flight; if he returned to the ship, it was supposed to be at a distance" [Charles Swainson, "The Folk Lore and Provincial Names of British Birds," London, 1886].
jonquil (n.): 1660s, species of narcissus, from French jonquille (17c.), from Spanish junquillo, diminutive of junco "rush, reed," from Latin iuncus "reed, rush," from Proto-Italic *joiniko-, from PIE *ioi-ni- (cognates: Middle Irish ain "reeds, rushes," Old Norse einir, Swedish en "juniper"). So called in reference to the form of its leaves.

From 1791 as the name of a pale yellow color, like that of the flower, and thus a type of canary bird (1865) of that color.
aerie (n.): "eagle's nest," 1580s (attested in Anglo-Latin from early 13c.), from Old French aire "nest," Medieval Latin area "nest of a bird of prey" (12c.), perhaps from Latin area "level ground, garden bed" [Littré], though some doubt this [Klein]. Another theory connects it to atrium. Formerly misspelled eyrie (1660s) on the mistaken assumption that it derived from Middle English ey "egg."
nightjar (n.): nocturnal bird, goatsucker, 1620s, from night + jar (v.). So called for the "jarring" sounds made by the male when the female is brooding, which have been described as a "churring trill that seems to change direction as it rises and falls." An Old English word for it was nihthræfn "night raven."
oriole (n.): 1776, from French oriol "golden oriole," Old Provençal auriol, from Medieval Latin oryolus, from Latin aureolus "golden," from PIE *aus- (2) "gold" (see aureate). Originally in reference to the golden oriole (Oriolus galbula), a bird of black and yellow plumage that summers in Europe (but is uncommon in England). Applied from 1791 to the unrelated but similarly colored North American species Icterus baltimore.
alb (n.): late Old English albe, from Late Latin alba (in tunica alba or vestis alba "white vestment"), fem. of albus "white," from PIE root *albho- "white" (source also of Greek alphos "white leprosy," alphiton "barley meal;" Old High German albiz, Old English elfet "swan," literally "the white bird;" Old Church Slavonic and Russian lebedi, Polish łabędź "swan;" Hittite alpash "cloud").
flamingo (n.): long-legged, long-necked brightly colored pink bird of the tropical Americas, 1560s, from Portuguese flamengo, Spanish flamengo, literally "flame-colored" (compare Greek phoinikopteros "flamingo," literally "red-feathered"), from Provençal flamenc, from flama "flame" (see flame (n.)) + Germanic suffix -enc "-ing, belonging to." Perhaps accommodated to words for Fleming (see flamenco).
fledge (v.): "to acquire feathers," 1560s, from Old English adjective *-flycge (Kentish -flecge; in unfligge "featherless," glossing Latin implumes) "having the feathers developed, fit to fly," from Proto-Germanic *flugja- "ready to fly" (source also of Middle Dutch vlugge, Low German flügge), from PIE *pleuk- "to fly" (see fletcher). Meaning "bring up a bird" (until it can fly on its own) is from 1580s. Related: Fledged; fledging.
martin (n.): kind of swallow-like bird (Chelidon urbica), 1580s, from Scot. martoune (mid-15c.), from Middle French martin, from the masc. proper name in some sense. Writers in 17c. said it was named for St. Martin of Tours (d. 397 C.E.), whose festival day (Martinmas) is Nov. 11, about the time the birds depart.