Chicken
pox has nothing to do with chickens, much to my disappointment.
The thought of spotty hens wandering around was quite appealing.
The origin of the name is debatable, with some suggesting that the
small spots look like they've been caused by the beaks of chickens
(I would like to point out that as a child I was pecked on a number
of occasions by my chickens during attempts to pet them, and this
really hurt and sometimes drew blood, but never made me look like
I had chicken pox). Most people, however, reckon the name comes
from the resemblance of the chickenpox spots to chick peas, with
the blisters looking like they have been placed on the skin. So
there you go. |
