Goose bumps, goose pimples or goose flesh, the medical term cutis anserina or horripilation, are the bumps on a person's skin at the base of body hairs which may involuntarily develop when a person is cold or experiences strong emotions such as fear, nostalgia, pleasure, euphoria, awe, admiration, and sexual arousal.hen a goose's feathers are plucked, its skin has protrusions where the feathers were, and these bumps are what the human phenomenon resembles. It is not clear why the particular fowl, goose, was chosen in English, as most other birds share this same anatomical feature.