where does the term "beach bunny" come from?

[GladimnotnamedThad]

Also what about the terms just beach and bunny?

[RealityChuck]

Seems like you answered the question. It was used to designate attractive women who hung around beaches (most likely coined by surfers). “Bunny” probably comes from the Playboy bunnies.

[TheChileanBlob]

beach (n.)
1530s, “loose, water-worn pebbles of the seashore,” probably from Old English bæce, bece “stream,” from Proto-Germanic *bakiz. Extended to loose, pebbly shores (1590s), and in dialect around Sussex and Kent beach still has the meaning “pebbles worn by the waves.” French grève shows the same evolution. Beach ball first recorded 1940; beach bum first recorded 1950.

bunny (n.)
1680s, diminutive of Scottish dialectal bun, pet name for “rabbit,” previously (1580s) for “squirrel,” and also a term of endearment for a young attractive woman or child (c.1600). Ultimately it could be from Scottish bun “tail of a hare” (1530s), or from French bon, or from a Scandinavian source. The Playboy Club hostess sense is from 1960. The Bunny Hug (1912), along with the foxtrot and the Wilson glide, were among the popular/scandalous dances of the ragtime era.

Etymonline - Online Etymology Dictionary

[Johnny_L.A]

bunny (n.)
1680s, diminutive of Scottish dialectal bun, pet name for “rabbit,” previously (1580s) for “squirrel,” and also a term of endearment for a young attractive woman or child (c.1600). Ultimately it could be from Scottish bun “tail of a hare” (1530s), or from French bon, or from a Scandinavian source.

The word “bunny” first appeared in English in the 17th century as both a term for a pet rabbit and a term of endearment for a woman or young child. “Bunny” itself was a diminutive form of the earlier “bun,” which in the 16th century was not only used for rabbits and as a term of endearment but applied to squirrels as well.

The origin of that “bun,” unfortunately, is a bit of a mystery. It is possible, although not considered likely, that a perceived resemblance of the bunny’s tail to the bakery sort of bun explains the term. If true, this would also tie the rabbit sort of “bun” to the “bun” of hair worn on the back of the head in some hairstyles. Incidentally, the probable origin of this kind of “bun” is not very appetizing, being the Old French “bugne,” meaning “swelling” or “boil.”

Another possible source for the rabbit sort of “bun” is the Gaelic word “bun,” which means “stump or root.” This “bun” fits well with the stumpy tail of the rabbit, and is, in fact, the source of the use of “buns” to mean the human buttocks. But neither this stumpy “bun” nor the possible “bakery” derivation explains why the term was formerly also applied to squirrels, which, of course, sport luxurious tails.

‘Bunny’ is used as a term of endearment, since bunnies are cute things. ‘Beach Bunny’ may have come from surfer lingo for a cute thing (i.e., a cute girl) that hangs out at the beach.

Beach: 1530s, “loose, water-worn pebbles of the seashore,” probably from Old English bæce, bece “stream,” from Proto-Germanic *bakiz. Extended to loose, pebbly shores (1590s), and in dialect around Sussex and Kent beach still has the meaning “pebbles worn by the waves.” French grève shows the same evolution. Beach ball first recorded 1940; beach bum first recorded 1950.

[Exapno_Mapcase]

A very quick search in Google Books shows the term beach bunny first appearing in the 1960s, right around the time of the beach movie craze. There’s a reference to a 1965 Newsweek article describing a “beach bunny in Courreages new bathing suit” obviously expecting readers to get the reference. A Library of Congress catalog from 1964 has the term in a title, probably of a picture.

[Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker]

I found hits of the related ‘snow bunnies’ in Google News Archives as far back as January 1964.

[Telemark]

The “ski bunny” originally came from a 1931 poster of Hannes Schneider at St Anton.

Austrian St. Anton's Hannes Schneider Vintage Art Deco Ski Poster

[Colibri]

@Telemark

The “ski bunny” originally came from a 1931 poster of Hannes Schneider at St Anton.

http://www.vintageskiworld.com/St-Anton-s-Hannes-Schneider-Ski-Bunnies-Poster-p/poster-nesm-anton-bunny.htm

Perhaps not quite the image most people have when they hear “snow bunny.”

How about “dust bunny”?

[Der_Trihs]

Just to show that the trend is ongoing, there’s also “bridge bunnies”, originating from anime fandom.