Oxytocin is a hormone associated with feelings of love and affection — it also aids in childbirth, by stimulating the uterus to start contracting.
Oxytocin is most often associated with delivering and nurturing new babies, as it triggers warm, loving, and protective feelings. Nearly everyone experiences the release of oxytocin, even if they don't give birth; its nickname is "the love hormone," and if you've ever had a huge crush on someone, some of your feelings were likely caused by oxytocin! Oxytocin is derived from the Greek oxutokia, or "sudden delivery," a reference to the start of contractions before a baby is born.