A penguin is a black-and-white bird that cannot fly but is a strong swimmer, living mostly in cold regions of the Southern Hemisphere. Penguins use their wings like flippers to move quickly through water.
The origin of “penguin” is uncertain, but it may come from Welsh *pen gwyn*, meaning “white head,” first used for a different bird, the great auk. The name was later transferred to the Antarctic birds we now call penguins.
“Penguin” may have started as the name for a totally different bird in the North Atlantic, then jumped to the Southern Hemisphere when sailors saw a similar shape. The word traveled farther than the birds ever could. It’s a reminder that names sometimes stick to looks, not to genetics.
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