Patagon
/ˈpatəɡ(ə)n/Now historical
noun
A member of a South American Indian people inhabiting a region in southern Argentina and Chile, and alleged by early European travellers to be the tallest known people.
Origin
Mid 16th century. From Spanish patagón inhabitant of Patagonia from Patagón, the name of a dog-headed monster in the Spanish romance Primaleón, perhaps because the Patagonian people Magellan met in 1520 had dog-head battle masks or because of their physical size.