> Feyli (the ethnic attire of the Maldivian) was worn both by men and women in Maldives during the monarchy.
Is it the same word used for both things, or maybe a slightly different word?
> The reason for this is regrettably all too common. When the first explorers from the warm lands around the Circle Sea travelled into the chilly hinterland they filled in the blank spaces on their maps by grabbing the nearest native, pointing at some distant landmark, speaking very clearly in a loud voice, and writing down whatever the bemused man told them. Thus were immortalised in generations of atlases such geographical oddities as Just A Mountain, I Don't Know, What? and, of course, Your Finger You Fool."
--Terry Prachett
(It lists only ethnic wear as a translation for “feyli.”)
Op is being asked by natives of he'd like some local clothes while he repeatedly jams his foot into the wet sand and points at it.
You might be thinking of "kangaroo", which is also said to originate from a local word for "I don't know", but in that case it's not a serious hypothesis.