where did the dodo bird get its name
Dodo
The etymology of the word dodo is unclear . Some ascribe it to the Dutch word dodoor for `` sluggard '' , but it is more probably related to Dodaars , which means either `` fat - arse '' or `` knot - arse '' , referring to the knot of feathers on the hind end . The first record of the word Dodaars is in Captain Willem Van West - Zanen 's journal in 1602 . The English writer Sir Thomas Herbert was the first to use the word dodo in print in his 1634 travelogue , claiming it was referred to as such by the Portuguese , who had visited Mauritius in 1507 . Another Englishman , Emmanuel Altham , had used the word in a 1628 letter , in which he also claimed the origin was Portuguese . The name `` dodar '' was introduced into English at the same time as dodo , but was only used until the 18th century . As far as is known , the Portuguese never mentioned the bird . Nevertheless , some sources still state that the word dodo derives from the Portuguese word doudo ( currently doido ) , meaning `` fool '' or `` crazy '' . It has also been suggested that dodo was an onomatopoeic approximation of the bird 's call , a two - note pigeon - like sound resembling `` doo - doo '' . 
The etymology of the word dodo is unclear . Some ascribe it to the Dutch word dodoor for `` sluggard '' , but it is more probably related to Dodaars , which means either `` fat - arse '' or `` knot - arse '' , referring to the knot of feathers on the hind end . The first record of the word Dodaars is in Captain Willem Van West - Zanen 's journal in 1602 . The English writer Sir Thomas Herbert was the first to use the word dodo in print in his 1634 travelogue , claiming it was referred to as such by the Portuguese , who had visited Mauritius in 1507 . Another Englishman , Emmanuel Altham , had used the word in a 1628 letter , in which he also claimed the origin was Portuguese . The name `` dodar '' was introduced into English at the same time as dodo , but was only used until the 18th century . As far as is known , the Portuguese never mentioned the bird . Nevertheless , some sources still state that the word dodo derives from the Portuguese word doudo ( currently doido ) , meaning `` fool '' or `` crazy '' . It has also been suggested that dodo was an onomatopoeic approximation of the bird 's call , a two - note pigeon - like sound resembling `` doo - doo '' .
The etymology of the word dodo is unclear. Some ascribe it to the Dutch word dodoor for ``sluggard'', but it is more probably related to Dodaars, which means either ``fat arse'' or ``knot arse'', referring to the knot of feathers on the hind end. Some sources still state that the word dodo derives from the Portuguese word doudo (currently doido), meaning ``fool'' or ``crazy''.
The etymology of the word dodo is unclear . Some ascribe it to the Dutch word dodoor for `` sluggard '' , but it is more probably related to Dodaars , which means either `` fat - arse '' or `` knot - arse '' , referring to the knot of feathers on the hind end . Nevertheless , some sources still state that the word dodo derives from the Portuguese word doudo ( currently doido ) , meaning `` fool '' or `` crazy '' .