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Hundreds of years ago, rabbits were called "coneys" (pronounced with a soft o, as in "honey"), and baby coneys were called "rabbits." Over time, the word coney was phased out, and the word rabbit came to be used for the adults; baby rabbits are now called "kittens" (or "kits"). The current nickname for rabbits, "bunnies," derives from their original name. Some languages still use the original name (e.g. the Spanish word for "rabbit" is "conejo"; the Dutch, "konijn").

Some species have the word "rabbit" in their name, like the jack rabbit, when they're not actually rabbits: e.g. jack rabbits are hares. Hares and rabbits are closely related, though (both lagomorphs).

It's a common misconception that "bunny" means a baby rabbit. Baby rabbits are called "kits." The word "bunny" is just a nickname for "rabbits."

Rabbits has a scientific name "Lagomorph" which means long ears, big feet, and continually growing teeth. So a man named a rabbit a rabbit for all its appearances.

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13y ago

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