ker-

Perhaps from Scots dialect car-, cur-, currie- (as in carfuffle, carwhuffle “to disarrange,” carnaptious “irritable,” curriebuction “a confused gathering, etc.”), based on car, earlier ker “left (hand or side),” from Scots Gaelic cearr “wrong, awkward, left-handed” (compare Middle Irish cerr “crooked, maimed”); variants without r probably reflect forms in r-less dialects