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Ramban on Exodus 12:30/רמב"ן על שמות י״ב:ל׳

אכִּי אֵין בַּיִת אֲשֶׁר אֵין שָׁם מֵת לְשׁוֹן רַשִׁ"י (רש"י על שמות י"ב:ל') הָיָה שָׁם בְּכוֹר, מֵת, אֵין שָׁם בְּכוֹר, גְּדוֹל הַבַּיִת מֵת, שֶׁקָּרוּי "בְּכוֹר", שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים פט כז) "אַף אָנִי בְּכוֹר אֶתְּנֵהוּ". ד"א מִצְרִיּוֹת מְזַנּוֹת תַּחַת בַּעְלֵיהֶן וְיוֹלְדוֹת מֵרַוָּקִים פְּנוּיִם, וְהָיוּ לָהֶם בְּכוֹרוֹת הַרְבֵּה, פְּעָמִים הֵם חֲמִשָּׁה לְאִשָּׁה אַחַת, וְכָל אֶחָד בְּכוֹר לְאָבִיו. וְעַל דֶּרֶךְ הַפְּשָׁט הַבְּכוֹרוֹת שֶׁמֵּתוּ בְּמִצְרַיִם בְּכוֹרֵי פֶּטֶר רֶחֶם הָיוּ, וְעַל כֵּן קִדֵּשׁ תַּחְתֵּיהֶם כָּל בְּכוֹר פֶּטֶר רֶחֶם בִּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּאָדָם וּבַבְּהֵמָה (שמות י"ג:ב'), וְהָיָה בְּכוֹר פַּרְעֹה הַיֹּשֵׁב עַל כִּסְאוֹ (שמות י"ב:כ"ט) פֶּטֶר רֶחֶם לְאִמּוֹ, וְכֵן מִנְהַג הַמְּלָכִים לִהְיוֹת הַגְּבִירָה הַמּוֹלֶכֶת בְּתוּלָה כְּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בַּאֲחַשְׁוֵרוֹשׁ (אסתר ב ג).
אֲבָל עַל דַּעַת רַבּוֹתֵינוּ נְתָרֵץ שֶׁהִכָּה בְּמִצְרַיִם כָּל בְּכוֹרֵיהֶם, כְּלוֹמַר בְּכוֹר הָאָב רֵאשִׁית אוֹנוֹ, וּבְכוֹר הָאֵם פֶּטֶר רֶחֶם, וְגַם גְּדוֹל הַבַּיִת וְלֹא רָצָה לְקַדֵּשׁ תַּחְתֵּיהֶם בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל רַק בְּכוֹר הָאֵם, שֶׁהוּא יָדוּעַ וּמְפֻרְסָם יוֹתֵר, וּבַבְּהֵמָה לֹא יִוָּדַע כְּלָל רַק בְּכוֹר הָאֵם, וּבָחַר מִכֻּלָּם הַמִּין הַהוּא. וְכִדְמוּת רְאָיָה לָזֶה "וַיַּךְ כָּל בְּכוֹר בְּמִצְרָיִם רֵאשִׁית אוֹנִים בְּאָהֳלֵי חָם" (תהלים עח נא), כִּי עַל הַזָּכָר יֹאמַר כֵּן:

1FOR THERE WAS NOT A HOUSE WHERE THERE WAS NOT ONE DEAD. Rashi comments: “If there was a firstborn there, he died; if there was no firstborn there, the chief person in the house died because he is called b’chor (firstborn), as it is said, I also will appoint him firstborn.²⁷⁵ Another interpretation: The Egyptian women led dissolute lives under their husbands and bore children from unmarried young men. Thus they had many firstborn sons, sometimes [as many as] five to one woman, each one being the firstborn to his own father.”In line with the plain meaning of Scripture, the firstborn that died in Egypt were the firstborn of their mothers, and this is why He sanctified in their place all the firstborn, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and of beast.²⁷⁶ The firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne²⁷⁷ was the firstborn to his mother. And such indeed is the custom among kings that the reigning mistress be a virgin, something like it is said in the case of Ahasuerus.²⁷⁸ But in accordance with the opinion of our Rabbis [who say that the firstborn of a father also died], we shall explain that in Egypt, He smote all their firstborn. That is to say, the firstborn of the father, since he is the first-fruit of his strength,²⁷⁹ and the firstborn of the mother, since he opened the womb, and also the chief person in the house. Yet it was His desire to sanctify in Israel in their place only the firstborn of the mother, because that is a matter more known and of open knowledge. In cattle, only the firstborn of the mother is known at all, and therefore He chose from among all of them only [the firstborn of the mother]. A sort of proof for this [statement of the Rabbis that the firstborn of the father was also smitten] is the verse: And He smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the first-fruits of their strength in the tents of Ham,²⁸⁰ for such an expression, [i.e., the first-fruits of his strength], is said only of a male.