Quoll
WiktionaryText
Etymology
From . Recorded by Banks (quote below) but then virtually forgotten for 150 years, with the term native cat used instead. Today readopted and gaining in popularity. (Reference: R. M. W. Dixon, Australian Aboriginal Words, Oxford University Press, 1990, ISBN 0-19-553099-3, page 79-80 and 221-2.)
Noun
- The various carnivorous marsupials of the genus Dasyurus found in Australia and New Guinea, roughly the size of a cat.
- 1770: Another was calld by the natives Je-Quoll: it is about the size and something like a polecat, of a light brown spotted with white on the back and white under the belly. — Joseph Banks, The Endeavour Journal of Sir Joseph Banks, extended description following entry for 26 August 1770 http://gutenberg.net.au/plusfifty.html#banks