A kangaroo is a large Australian animal that moves by hopping on its strong back legs and carries its young in a pouch on its belly. It is a type of marsupial.
From the Guugu Yimithirr (an Aboriginal Australian language) word “gangurru”, referring to a specific species of kangaroo. Early English visitors borrowed the word in the 1700s.
The story that “kangaroo” means “I don’t understand you” in an Aboriginal language is a myth; it really was the animal’s name. The myth itself shows how eager people are to turn misunderstandings into neat little stories. Real languages are usually messier but more interesting.
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