Warrigal

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Warrigal is another word for dingo, the Australian dog. Both dingo and warrigal are from the language of the Dharuk Aborigines of Port Jackson, Sydney.

While dingo has become the standard word for the dog, warrigal also has several other meanings, including "stranger", or "wild Aborigine" (ie, one not accustomed to European ways).

The word also appears in Australian English as an adjective meaning "wild, untamed", usually with regard to animals.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, warrigal was also recorded as meaning "wild horse" (see brumby).

[edit] References

Peters, Pam, The Cambridge Australian English Style Guide, Cambridge University Press, 1995, ISBN 0521434017