Etymology

cooter

C3O1O1T1E1R1

Today it means: A freshwater turtle of the eastern United States of the genus Pseudemys. Full definition →

Gullah cootuh
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cooter · noun1

  1. Gullah · borrowed fromcootuh“turtle”
  2. English todaycooter

Borrowed from Gullah cootuh (“turtle”), from an African language, e.g. Bambara kuta (“turtle”). Attested in English from the 19th century.

cooter · noun2

Uncertain. Possibly identical to Etymology 1, above; compare clam, beaver. Alternatively, compare cooch from hootchy-kootchy.

cooter · noun3

See couter.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.