what exactly is a cupid. and where did the name come from?
110401
:}\nValentines Day wouldn't be the same without a visit from Cupid, the winged cherub with a bow and arrow which he uses to place people into love.\nThe origins of Cupid can be traced back to the days of the Roman Empire. Cupid is a Roman God, the symbol of passionate love. (He is the son of Venus, who remember is the Goddess of Love.) Cupid fell madly and completely in love with Psyche, whom it happened was a mortal. This did not please Venus at all and she gave Psyche a particularly hard time, consistently tempting her and driving her off. Eventually, through a small series of human faults, Psyche was tempted to look into the ‘box of beauty’ and when she did, she unleashed a deep slumber onto herself. Cupid then came to Earth and searched the world for her. He found her in her deep sleep. His love for her was so strong though that he was able to take the sleep from her and place it back into the box. Then he used an arrow to pierce her heart and awaken her.
585246
it is derived from the Greek 'krinon', a lily\nname applied to any of a large class (Crinoidea) of echinoderms usually having a somewhat cup-shaped body with five or more feathery arms -- so they are named for their flower-like appearance.
612880
Did you mean surname Hucks? I found one website that gives a good description of the origin, but I was unable to copy/paste it. The link is below :-)
1029309
The surname of Burls originated in England.  This was the name given to the cup bearers of noble families.  It is derived from the word "byrle" which means "cup bearer or butler."  Hope this helps.  You can view a picture of the Burls family crest at http://www.houseofnames.com/xq/asp.fc/qx/burles-family-crest.htm
829459
Cupid/Eros is the Greco-Roman god of love and sexual desire. In Hesiod's 'Theogony,' Eros is believed to be a contemporary of primeval Chaos, which makes him one of the oldest of all the gods. Eros was responsible for the mating of Gaia (earth) and Uranus (heaven) which led to the creation of the Greek mythical world.\n\nEros is usually depicted as a young winged boy, with his bow and arrows at the ready, to either shoot into the hearts of gods or mortals which would rouse them to desire. His arrows came in two types: golden with dove feathers which aroused love, or leaden arrows which had owl feathers that caused indifference\n\nThe Greeks regarded him as most beautiful and handsome, the most loved and the most loving. They placed statues of him in gymnasiums (as most athletes were thought to be beautiful). He was depicted on every form of utensil, from drinking vessels to oil flasks, usually showing him ready to fire an arrow into the heart of an unsuspecting victim.
637897
origin: English\n\nThe name Datts is tied to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of England.  It comes from the baptismal name Dade.  This old English personal name was originally derived from the Old English word daed, when translated means a deed or an exploit.  Baptismal names began to appear as surnames relatively late in the growth of the naming tradition.  This is a little surprising, given the popularity of biblical figures in the Christian countries of Europe. Nevertheless, surnames derived from baptismal names grew in popularity during the Middles Ages, and have become one of the foremost sources for surnames.\n\nSpelling Variations include: Dade, Dadey, Dady, and others\n\n\nSome of the first settlers of this name or some of it variates were: John Dade who settled in Virginia is 1676; William Dade settled in Charlestown Mass. in 1630; Dorothy Dadey settled in Salem Mass. in 1630; wife of William
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OK Cupid has lots of strange tests and matches you with people based on them. I know lots of people who use it, and at least some of them are looking for relationships.
991234
The same type Cupid uses............
183002
Eros is another name for Cupid (those crazy greeks and romans could never agree on what to call things, so they made up different names for the same stuff).
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I WAS TOLD A FEW YEARS AGO THAT THE WORD "BIPPY" COMES FROM LONDON, ENGLAND WHICH MEANS A CUP OF TEA OR A SPOT OF TEA.\nCHECK REFERENCES OR SLANG WORDS.COM
415806
"Where did the name ‘dragonfly’ originate? \nAnswer: We have not been able to find a definitive answer to this question. One interesting theory about its origin, however, can be found in a book written by Eden Emanuel Sarot in 1958 entitled Folklore of the Dragonfly: A Linguistic Approach. He theorized that the name dragonfly actually came about because of an ancient Romanian Folktale. In the folktale, the Devil turned a beautiful horse ridden by St. George (of St. George and the dragon fame) into a giant, flying insect. The Romanian names the people supposedly refed to this giant insect (when translated into English) mean ‘St. George’s Horse’ or, more commonly, ‘Devil’s Horse.’ According to Sarot, the peasantry of that time actually viewed the Devil’s Horse as a giant fly and that they may have started referring to it as the ‘Devil’s Fly’ (instead of Devil’s Horse). He stated that the Romanian word for Devil was "drac," but that drac was also the Romanian word for dragon. He thought that eventually the Romanian name for the Devil’s Fly was erroneously translated to the English Dragon Fly and this eventually evolved into the "dragonfly!"  "
98740
St. Valentine's Day falls on February 14, and is the traditional day on which lovers in certain cultures let each other know about their love, commonly by sending Valentine's cards, which are often anonymous. The history of Valentine's day can be traced back to a Catholic Church feast day, in honor of Saint Valentine. The day's associations with romantic love arrived after the High Middle Ages, during which the concept of romantic love was formulated.\n\nThe day is now most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of "valentines." Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, the practice of hand writing notes has largely given way to the exchange of mass-produced greeting cards. The Greeting Card Association estimates that, world-wide, approximately one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year behind Christmas. The association also estimates that women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines.
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Do you perhaps mean toxophilite?  And do you perhaps mean competitors rather than competitions?\n\nToxophilite is is of Greek origin - toxon means bow and philos means loving.  It can be used as either an adjective or noun, and describes anyone who favors archery as a pastime. \n\nEros (or his Roman twin, Cupid) could be described as a toxophilite:  he is a deity of archery (among other things), and is usually portrayed with a bow and a quiver of arrows.
168508
valentine:\n<[After saint Valentine] \nWord History: Lovers and the greeting card industry may have Geoffrey Chaucer to thank for the holiday that warms the coldest month. Although reference books abound with mentions of Roman festivals from which Valentine's Day may derive, Jack B. Oruch has shown that no evidence supports these connections and that Chaucer was probably the first to link the saint's day with the custom of choosing sweethearts. No such link has been found before the writings of Chaucer and several literary contemporaries who also mention it, but after them the association becomes widespread. It seems likely that Chaucer, the most imaginative of the group, invented it. The fullest and perhaps earliest description of the Valentine's Day tradition occurs in Chaucer's Parlement of Foules, composed around 1380, which takes place “on Seynt Valentynes day,/Whan every foul cometh there to chese [choose] his make [mate].”
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The greeks developed much of the basics of science, math, philosophy and government that we have today.  The planets are named either from the greek or roman names for the olympian gods.  Many words come from greek.  The fastest god, Hermes, or Mercury who was the messenger god is where we get the modern name for element number 80 formerly known as quick silver.  Everyone knows who cupid is.  The greek name for cupid is Eros from which we get the term erotic.  The early space missions were named after the gods mercury and apollo.  Many of the constellations are named for characters in greek myths such as pegasus, orion and cassiopea.  \n\nmuch of our culture comes from the classic greek and roman socities and their early democracies and knowing the stories tells us about their lives and civilizations, their values and customs.  For example one continuing theme in greek mythology is a hero is often struck down for thinking himself equal to the gods, a sin called huberis.  One of the themes is that man has a place beneath gods.  Perhaps this is a way to keep a people in line and perhaps some of our modern judeo christian myths are designed to do the same.  When the god Prometheus defied the king of the gods Zeus by giving man fire he was kicked out of heaven and bound to a rock where vultures ate him alive.  but being immortal he would heal every day and go through the same horror again.  when Lucifer challenged the throne of God he was cast down into Hell.  When Jonas refused to follow God's instruction he got to spend some quality time learning about the digestive tract of a whale.\n\n   Some myths talk about the Greek idea of heroism.  Odysseus, while traped on circe's island is offered immortality and rejects it on the grounds that what good is bravery if he can't die.
420213
I hope you weren't called that, 'cause it means in love with yourself. It's basically extreme vanity and an inflated ego.\n\nNarcissus was a mythical Greek god [or perhaps just a man, I can't remember] who fell in love with his own reflection in the smooth surface of a pond. What a freak.
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http://www.imdb.com/search\nunder the word search section type "Cupid" then select soundtrack in the field next to it.  I got these results:\n\nInnerspace (1987)\n\n- "CUPID" \n------------------------------------\n\nPrincess Diaries, The (2001)\n\n- "Stupid Cupid" \n------------------------------------\n\nRapture, The (1991)\n\nCupid Music \n-------------------------------------\n\nSubUrbia (1996)\n\n- "Bulletproof Cupid"