So the Anglo-Saxon pig became the French porc, which was Anglicized to pork; the Anglo-Saxon cow became the French boeuf, which became beef; and sheep became mouton, (later mutton).

Why do we call it beef?

It's All French to Me

The French referred to cow as boeuf, which then got morphed to today's beef. The French words stuck and that is how we got the word beef and not cow, which makes sense, seeing as how French words tend to litter the English language.

Why is beef not called cow meat?

Etymology. The word beef is from the Latin bōs, in contrast to cow which is from Middle English cou (both words have the same Indo-European root *gʷou-). After the Norman Conquest, the French-speaking nobles who ruled England naturally used French words to refer to the meats they were served.