MISUNDERSTANDINGS



From the Manchester Guardian Words and terms that originated from misunderstood words or phrases in foreign languages.


Kilimanjaro (as in Mount K–) A reply to a missionary...means "What do you want to go up there for?"

Llama Spanish for "it's called/named..."

Kangaroo Aboriginal for "I don't know"...response when an early visitor saw a kangaroo and asked what that animal was. May be urban legend. Apparently, "ganguru" is the legitimate name for the kangaroo in the Yimidhirr language in Queensland.

Sahara "Desert"

Gobi "Desert"

Pendle Hill (Australia) All three syllables of "Pendle Hill" mean "hill."

Indri (an animal in Madagascar) Malagasy for "Look at that!"

Canada Possibly means "Nothing there."

Vasistas (French word for an opening window above a door) Repetition of German "Was ist das?" meaning "What is that?"

Maya When Spanish explorers asked who the indigenous people in Belize were, the answer was, "Maya," which means "I don't know."