Editing Rabbit (section)

==Terminology and etymology==
The word rabbit derives from the [[Middle English]] {{lang|enm|rabet}} ("young of the coney"), a borrowing from the [[Walloon language|Walloon]] {{lang|wa|robète}}, which was a diminutive of the French or [[Middle Dutch]] {{lang|dum|robbe}} ("rabbit"), a term of unknown origin.<ref name="EtymRabbit" /> The term ''coney'' is a term for an adult rabbit used until the 18th century; ''rabbit'' once referred only to the young animals.<ref name="Coney etymology">{{OEtymD|coney|accessdate=2024-09-17}}</ref> More recently, the term ''kit'' or ''kitten'' has been used to refer to a young rabbit.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Zapletal|first1=D.|last2=Švancarová|first2=D.|last3=Gálik|first3=B.|year=2021|title=Growth of suckled rabbit kits depending on litter size at birth|journal=Acta Fytotechnica et Zootechnica|volume=24|issue=1|pages=55–59 |doi=10.15414/afz.2021.24.01.55-59|doi-access=free | issn=1335-258X }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Booth |first1=J.L. |last2=Peng |first2=X. |last3=Baccon |first3=J. |last4=Cooper |first4=T.K. |year=2013 |title=Multiple complex congenital malformations in a rabbit kit (Oryctolagus cuniculi) |journal=Comparative Medicine |volume=63 |issue=4 |pages=342–347 |pmc=3750670 |pmid=24209970}}</ref> The endearing word ''bunny'' is attested by the 1680s as a diminutive of ''bun'', a term used in Scotland to refer to rabbits and [[squirrel]]s.<ref>{{OEtymD|bunny|accessdate=2024-10-21}}</ref>

''Coney'' is derived from ''cuniculus'',<ref name="Coney etymology" /> a [[Latin]] term referring to rabbits which has been in use from at least the first century BCE in [[Hispania]]. The word ''cuniculus'' may originate from a diminutive form of the word for "[[dog]]" in the [[Celtic languages]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ballester |first1=X. |last2=Quinn |first2=R. |date=2002 |title=''Cuniculus'' 'Rabbit' — A Celtic Etymology |url=http://www.continuitas.org/texts/ballester_cuniculus.pdf |journal=World Rabbit Science |volume=10 |issue=3}}</ref>

A group of rabbits is known as a ''colony,''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lipton |first=James |title=An Exaltation of Larks: The Ultimate Edition |date=1 November 1993 |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |isbn=0-140-17096-0}}</ref> ''nest'', or ''warren'',<ref name="usgs" /> though the latter term more commonly refers to where the rabbits live.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024 |title=Warren Definition & Meaning |url=https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/warren |access-date=2024-10-07 |website=Britannica Dictionary |language=en-US}}</ref> A group of baby rabbits produced from a single mating is referred to as a ''litter''<ref>{{cite news |last=McClure |first=Diane |date=August 2020 |title=Breeding and Reproduction of Rabbits |url=https://www.merckvetmanual.com/all-other-pets/rabbits/breeding-and-reproduction-of-rabbits |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002013152/https://www.merckvetmanual.com/all-other-pets/rabbits/breeding-and-reproduction-of-rabbits |archive-date=2 October 2024 |access-date=7 October 2024 |website=Merck Veterinary Manual |df=dmy-all}}</ref> and a group of domestic rabbits living together is sometimes called a ''herd''.<ref name="usgs">{{cite web|url=http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/about/faqs/animals/names.htm|title=Common Questions: What Do You Call a Group of...?|work=archived copy of Animal Congregations, or What Do You Call a Group of.....?|publisher=U.S. Geological Survey Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150320071411/http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/about/faqs/animals/names.htm|archive-date=20 March 2015|url-status=dead|access-date=26 February 2018}}</ref>

A male rabbit is called a ''buck'', as are male [[goat]]s and [[deer]], derived from the [[Old English]] {{Lang|ang|bucca}} or ''{{Lang|ang|bucc}}'', meaning "he-goat" or "male deer", respectively.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023 |title=Buck |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/buck |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=Dictionary.com Unabridged |publisher=Random House, Inc. |language=en}}</ref> A female is called a ''doe'', derived from the Old English {{Lang|ang|dā}}, related to {{Lang|ang|dēon}} ("to suck").<ref>{{Cite web |title=Doe |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/doe |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=Dictionary.com |language=en}}</ref>

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