Origins of slang terms/derogatory terms for women

Factual Questions
1

Yes, I could go and search on an etymology website for the answers, but StraightDope is much livelier and more entertaining.

What is the origin/original meanings of the following slang/derogatory term for women? When did they come into use to describe women?

Chick
Hag
Bag
Slut
Whore
Babe
Skank
Bird
Butterface
Floozy
Hussy

Thanks.

2

Have you tried… A dictionary?

For example, Mr Webster tells me
Slut - from the Middle English, slutte, a dirty or slovenly woman.

In other words, this term as an insult is actually older than modern English.

3

The OP gave his reasons for not consulting a dictionary or etymology website, which are legitimate ones.

4

Possibly apocryphal, but I’ve been told that “butterface” is a corruption of “but 'er face” (“but her face”). I.E. a woman with a comely body but her face is ugly.

5

No, that’s not apocryphal, that’s what it means (what else could it mean?!) I’m sure this wasn’t the source but the first time I ever heard that was on Howard Stern circa late 90s early 2000s maybe.

Babe, baby, chick etc. are all simply synonyms for cute newborn humans/mammals. Being a male-centric species we continue to associate the ‘fairer sex’ with them, even long after they’ve outgrown it. Bird is also related to this, as birdies are often considered sweet & cute looking into adulthood (though calling women ‘birds’ is more of a British thing, you don’t hear it in America).

You left out the big one, cunt. As I recall it’s derived from the Latin *cuneiform *meaning wedge-shaped (i.e. the general shape of a woman’s pubic region). How it became the ultimate female insult (in the US anyway) I don’t know.