A short sojourn in NY City didn't prepare me for the huge, flying cockroaches of Thailand and environs. Cockroach is from the Spanish cucaracha by folk etymology. (The cock for rooster and the roach for a kind of fish.) A-H gives L cuca 'caterpiller' as the origin, but Meyer-Lübke gives coccum 'fruit kernel' (cf. Gk kokkos & Welsh goch 'red' origin of the surname Goooch) which is actually the cochineal or kermes a small insect that gives us carmine a red food coloring (not kosher, the locust is the only insect that may be consumed) that makes so many of our foods a nice, bright red. Scarlet, vermillion. (The latter from vermes 'worm', so little worm.)

http://www.snopes.com/food/ingredient/bugjuice.htm