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''Cunt'' is a vulgar term for female genitalia, and is used as a term of disparagement for females and males. The earliest known use of the word, according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', was as a placename for the London street Gropecunt Lane, c. 1230. Scholar Germaine Greer said in 2006 that ''cunt'' "is one of the few remaining words in the English language with a genuine power to shock." Use of the word as a term of abuse is relatively recent, dating from the late nineteenth century. Reflecting different national usages, ''cunt'' is described as "an unpleasant or stupid person" in the ''Compact Oxford English Dictionary'', whereas Merriam-Webster has a usage of the term as "usually disparaging and obscene: woman", noting that it is used in the U.S. as "an offensive way to refer to a woman"; and the ''Macquarie Dictionary'' of Australian English gives "a contemptible person." When used with a positive qualifier (good, funny, clever, etc.) in Britain, New Zealand, and Australia, it can convey a positive sense of the object or person referred to.〔For example, ''Glue'' by Irvine Welsh, p.266, "Billy can be a funny cunt, a great guy..."〕 The word appears to have not been strongly taboo in the Middle Ages, but became taboo towards the end of the eighteenth century, and was then not generally admissible in print until the latter part of the twentieth century. The term has various derivative senses, including adjective and verb uses. ==Etymology== The etymology of "cunt" is a matter of debate, but most sources consider the word to have derived from a Germanic word (Proto-Germanic '' *kuntō'', stem '' *kuntōn-''), which appeared as ' in Old Norse. Scholars are uncertain of the origin of the Proto-Germanic form itself.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Cunt )〕 There are cognates in most Germanic languages, such as the Swedish, Faroese and Nynorsk '; West Frisian and Middle Low German '; Middle Dutch '; Dutch ' & '; Middle Low German '; Middle High German ' ("英語:prostitute"); German ''ドイツ語:kott'', and perhaps Old English '. The etymology of the Proto-Germanic term is disputed. It may have arisen by Grimm's law operating on the Proto-Indo-European root ' "英語:create, become" seen in gonads, genital, gamete, genetics, gene, or the Proto-Indo-European root ' "英語:woman" ((ギリシア語:''gunê''), seen in gynaecology). Relationships to similar-sounding words such as the Latin ''ラテン語:cunnus'' ("英語:vulva"), and its derivatives French ''フランス語:con'', Spanish ', and Portuguese ', or in Persian ' (), have not been conclusively demonstrated. Other Latin words related to ''cunnus'' are ''ラテン語:cuneus'' ("英語:wedge") and its derivative ''ラテン語:cunēre'' ("英語:to fasten with a wedge", (figurative) "英語:to squeeze in"), leading to English words such as ''cuneiform'' ("英語:wedge-shaped"). In Middle English, ''cunt'' appeared with many spellings, such as ', ' and ', which did not always reflect the actual pronunciation of the word. The word in its modern meaning is attested in Middle English. ''Proverbs of Hendyng'', a manuscript from some time before 1325, includes the advice: 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cunt」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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