Where does “cantankerous” come from?

I need to point out that there's a mismatch in your request. The chain provided traces *contentious/contentious* and *rancor*, but the headword you've asked me to write about is *cantankerous*, which doesn't appear in the chain. Cantankerous has a different etymological origin (possibly from Middle English or dialectal sources, with less certain ancestry). Could you clarify: should I write the summary for a word that does appear in your chain (like *contentious* or *rancor*), or do you have the correct etymological chain for *cantankerous*?

cantankerous (English): Given to or marked by an ill-tempered nature;...