Popinjays and parrots are birds of a feather.
Popinjay, from the Middle French word
papegai, is the original name for a parrot in English. The French word, in turn, came from the Arabic word for the bird,
babghā’.
Parrot, which English speakers adopted later, is probably a modification of the Middle French
perroquet, which is also the source of the English
parakeet. In the days of Middle English, parrots were rare and exotic, and it was quite a compliment to
be called a
popinjay
after such a beautiful bird. But by the 1500s, parrots had become more
commonplace, and their gaudy plumage and vulgar mimicry helped
popinjay develop the pejorative sense we use today.
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