Kangaroo's Name Was Not a Shrug
Grey fur refutes the joke. The famous tale that kangaroo meant I do not know is not charming folklore but a colonial misreading, kept alive because it flatters outsiders with a joke about mutual incomprehension and converts a real language into a stage prop. The linguistic record says otherwise. Guugu Yimithirr speakers used gangurru for a particular grey kangaroo; English carried the sound away, ...More
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