When the English settlers landed in Australia, they noticed a strange animal that jumped extremely high and far. They asked the aboriginal people using body language and signs trying to ask them about this animal. The aboriginal peoples responded with “Kan Ghu Ru”. The English then adopted this words and named the animal kangaroo.
What the aboriginal people were really trying to say was “We don’t understand you”, “Kan Ghu Ru”. Have a nice day. 🙂
Note: There is some argument whether or not this story is true, but I thought it was funny, so here it is.
I’ve not heard that before! It is funny!
Ana?
True or false?
I’ve heard it means “There he goes,” but I have no idea if that’s true either.
Found this at the Online Etymology Dictionary
kangaroo
1770, used by Capt. Cook and botanist Joseph Banks, supposedly an aborigine word from northeast Queensland, Australia, usually said to be unknown now in any native language. However, according to Australian linguist R.M.W. Dixon (“The Languages of Australia,” Cambridge, 1980), the word probably is from Guugu Yimidhirr (Endeavour River-area Aborigine language) /gaNurru/ “large black kangaroo.”
“In 1898 the pioneer ethnologist W.E. Roth wrote a letter to the Australasian pointing out that gang-oo-roo did mean ‘kangaroo’ in Guugu Yimidhirr, but this newspaper correspondence went unnoticed by lexicographers. Finally the observations of Cook and Roth were confirmed when in 1972 the anthropologist John Haviland began intensive study of Guugu Yimidhirr and again recorded /gaNurru/.” [Dixon]
where the hell has Ana been,shes not on here much anymore
And tenderkiss, and WooHoo????
Jesus infi, I just looked at your new picture thingy
and what the hell is that??? Looks like a whole bunch
of fun bags and a tiny woman behind them. GROSS
Funny.
I hear something similar, about how spaniards named the Yucatan peninsula:
When Hernandez de Cordova arrived to the coast of the Yucatán, he asked the inhabitants the name of this land and when they answered him, speaking very rapidly, in their native language “Tetec dtan” “Ma t natic a dtan” which just means “you speak very rapidly; we don’t understand your language.” The Spaniards understood the local inhabitants were telling them the name of the land. However, having difficulty pronouncing these words exactly, they ended up calling the place: Yucatán.
Another version that historians tell is that while the conquerors were exploring the coast, when they asked the locals something, they would answer (once again, in Mayan): “Tolo’ quin dtan” and point to the place, making them understand “further on I’m telling you, keep going.”

A third version explains that when the conquerors arrived the natives had women’s necklaces in their hands. While the conquerors were interested in knowing the name of the place and the Indians realized they were being asked a question, they understood they were being asked about the necklaces to which they answered “U Yu c-atan” (“these are the necklaces of our wives.”)
And yet one more version explains that when the Spaniards asked what the people of this place are called, the Mayan answered “Yucatán” which means “I’m not from here.”
here is the webpage: http://yucatantoday.com/en/topics/origin-name-yucat-n
Bella they could be a little bigger, ok I will change it
Shrek…I’ve heard similar stories about the Fugowi and Hekowi tribes…
This is one of my favourite Aboriginal words that was mistaken:
Wallaroo (South Australia): The name “Wallaroo” comes the Aboriginal word ‘Wadlu Waru’ meaning wallabies urine. The early settler’s tried to copy the aboriginals by calling it Walla Waroo, however they found this too big to stamp on the wool bales, so they shortened it to Wallaroo.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallaroo,_South_Australia
Many say that the Melbourne river, the Yarra, was named when an explorer asked an Aboriginal man who was fishing what the river was called. He said, “Yarra!” which meant (in polite wording) “Go away!” because he was scaring the fish! Melbournians will try to tell us that it means “Flowing river” … but I prefer the other interpretation.
Hmmmm,did the European settlers ask the aboriginals about the kangaroo before or after they massacred them?.
Recently on a trip to the outback near Haast’s Bluff an Aboriginal woman told us the story about Captain Cook and his encounter with an Aboriginal man and a kangaroo – and that the word “Kangaroo” meant basically “I don’t know what you are talking about” I believe that this is the most frequently accepted explanation. Since there are so many aboriginal languages there are likely to be many names for these animals.