Words, words...

If I'd ever really thought about it, I had assumed that the word "flibbertigibbet" (there are various spellings) was a relatively modern invention.  Meaning a flighty or gossipy person, I had this vague idea that it originated in the 1920s - perhaps associating it with "flapper", so it came as a bit of a shock to find that it goes back to the 15th century and was used by Shakespeare in King Lear.  Just where it comes from nobody knows, but it has been suggested that it may be an onomatopoeic word which sounds like idle chatter.