Mid 16th century; earliest use found in William Turner (d. 1568), naturalist and religious controversialist. In some forms from the genitive of dog + the plural of stone; in some forms from dog + the plural of stone; after either classical Latin cynosorchis (itself after Hellenistic Greek κυνὸς ὄρχις) or post-classical Latin testiculus canis; ultimately so called on account of the shape of the tubers.