Australian slang from its convict origins to today’s social media-influenced lingo will be the subject of a new research project at Monash University.
Aussie words that were in and out of fashion, and where they come from, would be explored, Kate Burridge from the university’s arts faculty said.
The “you-beaut Aussie lingo” of the past, which included words such as “sheila” , “bonzer” and “cobber” had long gone, but a new generation of words had emerged: Australians should be proud of creating “selfie” for the world to adopt, Professor Burridge said.
Certain words, however, had endured over time.
“Some of my favourite words are surviving from convict slang. A word like ‘bludger‘ , which is such a gorgeous word that was around in those days,” she said. “A ‘bludger’ was originally a pimp, someone who lived off the earnings of prostitutes. And they became a parasite or a hanger on.”
The project will also look at the life-cycle of slang, Professor Burridge said.
“We’re looking at how it’s changed over time and continues to change because that’s just the nature of slang, it’s got to change. Otherwise it’s not slang., ” she said.
“Sometimes they’re recycled. They come back from the dead. ‘Grouse‘ enjoyed a bit of a comeback. It was around in the 1930s and then disappeared and came back, but I don’t think it lingered long.”
Fellow Monash academics Keith Allan, Howie Manns and Simon Musgrave will work on the project, which will produce a book and podcasts.
CRIKEY, what a bonzer idea!
This article by IAN ROYALL is from the October 15, 2020 issue of The Herald Sun Digital Edition.
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Research projects into alcohol consumption during COVID-19, understanding Australian slang, Indigenous knowledge of trees and diversity in the jazz community have received funding by the Australian Research Council (ARC).
Federal Minister for Education Dan Tehan today announced funding for the Special Research Initiative for Australian Society, History and Culture, with over $1 million awarded to Monash researchers across the Faculties of Arts, Monash Art Design and Architecture, as well as Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences.
The ARC Special Research Initiative is designed to support excellent research into Australian society, history and culture; and build Australian research capacity in this area by supporting researchers of the highest international standing. The Monash research projects are:
Alcohol consumption during COVID-19
Dr Michael Savic from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, will lead a team including Associate Professor Steven Roberts, Dr Karla Elliott and Dr Brady Robards from the Faculty of Arts and Dr Robyn Dwyer from La Trobe University, to investigate how alcohol consumption in Australia is impacted by the global novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.The project expects to generate new knowledge in the area of the sociology of alcohol consumption, gender and social media.
“We are aiming to better understand how the meanings and practices of alcohol consumption in Australia are impacted by the COVID-19pandemic. We will also generate practical recommendations for responding to alcohol consumption in and beyond future crises,” said Dr Savic.
Investigating the uniqueness of Australian slang
Professor Kate Burridge from the Faculty of Arts leads a team including Keith Allan, Howie Manns and Simon Musgrave, investigating the uniqueness of Australian vernacular English from the late 1800s until today. This is an area of vocabulary which most people find fascinating, and yet its formal study has been largely ignored. The project expects to develop a new understanding of Australia’s novel, often entertaining, use of words.
“Australians have always regarded their colloquial language as an important indicator of their Australianness, but many also worry that Australian slang is under threat. This project seeks to understand its nature, how it has changed over time, the metaphors underlying Australian English expressions and what this language tells us about Australian culture and its embedded values. By distinguishing Australian colloquial English from other varieties, such as British and American English, the project seeks to uncover whether Australians really do live up to their popular image of having an unusually rich and creative slang — and if and how this language reflects Australian culture and identity,” said Professor Burridge.
More than a guulany (tree): Aboriginal knowledge systems
Dr Brian Martin, Associate Dean Indigenous and Associate Professor Brook Andrew from the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture will lead a project aiming to produce an Indigenous-led study of the significance of trees in southeast Australian Aboriginal cultures. The project expects to identify new evidence of this significance and generate new methods in art-making and exhibition development to improve the awareness and understanding of Indigenous cultural heritage.
“The research will focus on understanding the traditional practices of carving and scarring trees, as well as contemporary celebrations of living trees in southeast Australian Aboriginal Cultures. We hope this will create better recognition of the complexities of southeast Australian Aboriginal cultures, improved access for Aboriginal communities to cultural materials in institutional collections and new insights and resources for arts, heritage and museum professionals to engage appropriately with Indigenous cultural heritage. The funding also supports an Indigenous PhD candidate to build their research capacity, practice and career,” said Dr Martin.
Diversifying music in Australia: gender equity in jazz and improvisation
Emerging research demonstrates that the Australian jazz and improvisation cultural sector is not gender-inclusive and poses career development challenges for diverse communities.
Associate Professor Robert Burke from the Faculty of Arts will lead a team including Professor Margaret Barrett, Professor Cat Hope, Dr Clare Hall (Faculty of Education), Dr Louise Devenish and Dr Nicole Canham who aim to develop new knowledge in historical and contemporary practices of inclusion, exclusion and participation in order to identify the individual, collective and institutional facilitators and constraints on gendered participation.
The project’s significance lies not only in its contributions to the sector’s policy and practice, but also its mentoring of an emerging generation of researchers.
“We hope to challenge the measures taken to date that address persistent barriers to equality in jazz that have been inadequate. Through research and intervention, we aim to re-shape the way we perform, teach and compose music. Furthermore, we intend to inform and guide the music industry in creating a new norm in gender equity in jazz and the music sector,” said Associate Professor Burke.
Source: www.monash.edu
On 13 September 2002, the first known use of the word selfie in any paper or electronic medium appeared in an Australian internet forum – Karl Kruszelnicki’s ‘Dr Karl Self-Serve Science Forum’ – in a post by Nathan Hope.
Although Hope later dismissed the notion that he coined the term, describing it as “something that was just common slang at the time, used to describe a picture of yourself”, he wrote the following: “Um, drunk at a mates 21st, I tripped ofer [sic] and landed lip first (with front teeth coming a very close second) on a set of steps. I had a hole about 1cm long right through my bottom lip.
And sorry about the focus, it was a selfie.”
Source: wikipedia.org