Boot (of a motor car)

It is obliquely related to the boot one wears on the feet because from the early 1600s it referred to part of a horse-drawn coach, a sort of running board, where the footman would stand. From this position, the footman could alight smartly and open the passenger door. By the 18th century, it had evolved to a place for luggage, which was then extended to motor cars when they began to replace horse-drawn transport. The Americans of course call it a trunk, simply where one places a trunk, a chest, or more latterly, a suitcase. See also to boot and get the boot.