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Cockaigne

or Cock·ayne

[ko-keyn]
noun
  1. a fabled land of luxury and idleness.
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Origin of Cockaigne

1250–1300; Middle English cokaygn(e) < Middle French (paide) cocaigne (land of) Cockaigne, idler's paradise < Middle Low German kōkenje, equivalent to kōken (see cookie) + -je diminutive suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

Cockaigne, Neverland

Examples from the Web for cockaigne

Historical Examples

  • Her face had the melancholy of Russia, but her voice was as the voice of Cockaigne.

    Nights in London

    Thomas Burke

  • She had the haunting melancholy of Russia in her face, but her voice was as the voice of Cockaigne.

    Modern Essays

    John Macy

  • Cockaigne is a delightful country, and the Cockaigne of criticism is as agreeable as the other provinces.

  • His kingdom was the “Land of Cockaigne,” a borrowing, most probably, from the thirteenth century satire by that name.

  • "He may be a veritable subject of the kingdom of Cockaigne, for aught I know," replied his friend.

    Sybil

    Benjamin Disraeli

British Dictionary definitions for cockaigne

Cockaigne

Cockayne

noun
  1. medieval legend an imaginary land of luxury and idleness
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Word Origin

C14: from Old French cocaigne, from Middle Low German kōkenje small cake (of which the houses in the imaginary land are built); related to Spanish cucaña, Italian cuccagna
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cockaigne

Cockaigne

n.

c.1300, from Old French Cocaigne (12c.) "lubberland," imaginary country, abode of luxury and idleness. Of obscure origin, speculation centers on words related to cook (v.) and cake (cf. Middle Dutch kokenje, a child's honey-sweetened treat; also cf. Big Rock Candy Mountain). The German equivalent is Schlaraffenland.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper