Kangarooby : the case of a hybrid toponym

Abstract

The coining of toponyms involves various processes. The most common of these involve such factors as description or association (e.g. Coldwater Creek, Rocky Plain, Round Mountain, Powerline Creek, Shark Bay); the naming of a feature after someone or something (e.g. Mt Kosciuszko, Adelaide, Endeavour River, Collaroy etc.); or the commemoration of an event or occasion (e.g. Cape Tribulation, Agincourt Reefs, Whitsunday Islands) (See Tent & Blair, 2011). In a Placenames Australia article (Tent, 2017), I enumerated a number of other linguistic processes that are used in the coining of new toponyms. These include: copying (more commonly referred to as 'borrowing') of words, names or toponyms from other languages; affixation (the addition of one or more suffixes and/or prefixes to a root); blending (the formation of a placename by joining parts of two or more words/names, e.g. Belrose < 'Christmas bell' + 'native rose'); and compounding (the formation of a placename by conjoining two or more words, e.g. Cooktown, Castlecrag). The current paper deals with a toponym, Kangarooby ~ Kangaroobie, that might be described as a 'hybrid toponym' because it appears to be an amalgam of at least two of the afore mentioned four processes (copying and affixation). The origin and meaning of the toponym's root, Kangaroo, are well known and transparent enough (see below). However, its suffix is enigmatic. This paper examines the problem and attempts to find a resolution.