Domestic rabbit
A domestic rabbit or domesticated rabbit (Oryctolagus), more commonly known as simply a rabbit, is any of the domesticated varieties of the European rabbit species. Rabbits were first domesticated in the Middle Ages and are used as sources of food, fur, and wool, as research subjects, and as pets. The male is called a buck and the female is a doe; a young rabbit is a kitten, kit, bunny or even pup.
History
Phoenician sailors visiting the coast of Spain c. 12th century BC, mistaking the European rabbit for a species from their homeland (the rock hyrax Procavia capensis), gave it the name i-shepan-ham (land or island of hyraxes). A theory exists that a corruption of this name, used by the Romans, became the Latin name for the peninsula, Hispania – although this theory is somewhat controversial. In Rome rabbits were raised in large walled colonies.
Selective breeding of rabbits began in the Middle Ages, when they were first domesticated as farm animals. By the 16th century, several new breeds of different colors and sizes were being recorded.