A great ape, particularly an orangutan; sometimes used as slang in British English for a dull or stupid person.
From Bantu languages (possibly 'mpungu' or similar), referring to apes found in central Africa. The word entered European languages in the 17th century through colonial contact. The slang usage is British military slang, likely from WWII.
Pongo traveled from African languages into English as colonizers encountered great apes—it's one of the few animal names English imported rather than invented.
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