nagapie, noun

/ˈnaxɑːpi/
Forms:
nagaapie, nacht aapieShow more Also nagaapie, and (formerly) nacht aapie, nacht aapje, nacht apie, nacht apje.
Origin:
Afrikaans, South African Dutch, DutchShow more Afrikaans, earlier South African Dutch nachtaapje from Dutch nacht night + aapje little monkey (see -ie).
bush baby. Also attributive, and figurative. Occasionally also nagaap.
1835 A. Smith Diary (1940) II. 160Galago maholi is the Bush Baby or nag-aapie.
1918 S.H. Skaife Animal Life in S. Afr. 270The lemurs, or nacht aapjes, are the lowest members of this order, and two species are found in South Africa. One occurs in the wooded districts of the Transvaal and Rhodesia and the other is found in Natal and Zululand.
1933 J. Juta Look Out for Ostriches 46I knew immediately those eyes belonged to only one creature, the shy, mysterious little nagaapie.
1947 H.C. Bosman in L. Abrahams Cask of Jerepigo (1972) 188The various other members of the simian race (including that wonderful little creature, the nagapie), have always fascinated me.
1953 D. Jacobson Long Way from London 125One of those small animals that people are always warned against domesticating, for there is such great danger of their becoming rabid: a nagaap or bush-baby, a meerkat, one of those.
1976 Sunday Times 11 Apr. 8Who could bear to see the nagapie charms of Goldie besmirched by association with serious sin?
1984 S. Afr. Panorama Nov. 15 (caption)Like a cuddly Walt Disney creation, is this wide-eyed nagapie (night ape), closely related to the large bushbaby.
1991 Weekend Post 5 Jan. 3 (caption)It’s watermelon time again. Ronel Louw..shares the delicious pink fruit with her pet nagapie (also known as a night-ape or owl monkey).
bush baby. Also attributive, and figurative. Occasionally also nagaap.
Entry Navigation

Visualise Quotations

Quotation summary

Senses

18351991

Browse Related Words

By Category

Mammals

By Origin

Afrikaans
Dutch

By Usage

figurative or allusive
nagana, nounn.Nagmaal, nounn.
Copyright © 2023 Dictionary Unit for South African English.