The word vögel, in
German, means "bird". There's an intereting slang
verb in
German related to this word. Vögeln is roughly the
equivalent of the
English word
screw as applied to
copulation. So in German, if you want to say someone is screwing, you say they are
birding, instead, i.e.:
active construction:
Mikael vögelt Gretchen
translation: Mikael is birding Gretchen
passive construction:
Gestern abend ist Gretchen von Mikael vögelt geworden.
translation: Gretchen got birded by Mikael last night.
It is said that this usage of the noun, vögel, in
German came about sometime in the
Middle Ages, when particularly
amorous lords and ladies were referred to as "screwing like birds." Eventually, it shortened into a
verb form.