Up in the air, Junior Birdmen. Dear Word Detective: Where did
the word “cockpit” come from? Was there a petcock or cocktail or
peacock involved in the naming for the pilot’s area of an
airplane? Secondly, how about “pilot”? — David Blanton. Petcocks
and cocktails and peacocks in the cockpit, oh my! Makes me wish
I’d learned to fly. Then again, given my eyesight, we’re all
glad I didn’t. In fact, I realized the other day that I haven’t
been on an airplane in more than fifteen years. I’ll bet it’s
much more fun than it used to be, right? “Cockpit” in the sense
of “area of an aircraft where the pilot, co-pilot, navigator, et
al., sit” is just about as old as powered flight itself, first
appearing in print around 1914. But the word “cockpit” itself is
much older, dating back the the late 16th century, and the
“sport” which is the source of “cockpit” is probably much, much
older. A “cockpit” in the original literal sense is a pit dug in
the ground where cockfights are held, “cockfights” being staged
battles betwee