Mid 18th century; earliest use found in Guido Medley (fl. c1731). From Dutch malagas, mallegas Cape gannet, Morus capensis (rare or obsolete) from Portuguese mangas de veludo ‘sleeves of velvet’, wandering albatross, Diomedea exulans from manga sleeve + de of + veludo velvet. Later remodelled after South African Dutch, Afrikaans malgas (from Dutch).