An archaic or alternate name for the dodo bird, the extinct flightless bird that once lived in Mauritius.
From Dutch 'dronte' or 'dronten,' which was used by Dutch sailors in the 17th century to describe the dodo they encountered. The word possibly derives from Dutch 'drontig' (sluggish/sad-looking).
The dodo got its famous name from Portuguese 'doudo' (stupid), but the Dutch called it 'dronte,' and that linguistic rivalry actually tells us something about how Europeans stereotyped each other's observations!
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