Puce for shame

Puce is a reddy-brown colour. It comes from the French puce, or 'flea-coloured'.

Fritz Senn in his essay 'Insects Appalling' in 'Twelve and a Tilly' suggests that there could be some relation to the German word 'blutschande' (blood shame), which means 'incest'. Incest is alluded to a few lines ealier - "to commence insects with him" - where insects and incest are suggected in the same word.