AUSSIE SLANG Words and Phrases SPECIAL FOCUS April 1999

Dinky-di Aussie Swagman

"WALTZING MATILDA" Unofficial Aussie National Anthem "Waltzing Matilda" is a real Aussie song. It has a lively melody as well as lyrics that contain a number of words used only by Australians. Many Americans are familiar with the tune, but they may not be as familiar with the words and their meaning. Because "Waltzing Matilda" will be played frequently this month in memory of the Australians' Anzac Day, which is similar to our Veteran's Day in its recognition of all Australian veterans of all wars in which they fought, I thought it would be appropriate to dedicate this first "Special Focus" to the lyrics and an explanation of them. Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong Under the shade of a coolibah tree, The swagman is a tramp or itinerant who carries his swag, his bundle of clothes, cooking implements, etc, tied up in a blanket or bedroll. The billabong is a waterhole, most often found in the bed of a river. The coolibah tree is a species of eucalyptus found in inland Australia, often in areas that get flooded from time to time (hence the location near the billabong). And he sang as he watched And waited till his billy boiled You'll come a-waltzing matilda with me. The billy is a tin container used for boiling hot water for tea. No one is sure where the word comes from, but it's probably from the Scottish "bally," meaning bucket. The origin of the expression waltzing matilda is also uncertain but likely dates back to a German influence in the goldfields. The German equivalent of a swag is Matilda, the "girl" a man sleeps with when he's alone on the road. The term "waltzen" is used to denote German apprentices who travel from one town to another to learn their trade (in this case, the Barossa communities in South Australia). As a whole the expression refers to being on the road as a tramp. Down came a jumbuck to drink at the billabong Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tuckerbag You'll come a-waltzing matilda with me. The jumbuck is a sheep. This is thought to be aboriginal pidgin for "jump up," which is what the Aborigines presumably thought of as the most noticeable trait of sheep. The tuckerbag is the bag for food. Tucker is a British schoolboy word for food that still survives in Australian English. Up rode the squatter on his thoroughbred, Down came the troopers - one, two, three. Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tuckerbag You'll come a-waltzing matilda with me. This is the strong arm of the law arriving to arrest the swagman for stealing the jumbuck. Squatters were originally people who pioneered settlement on land that the government had not allocated yet. They unofficially squatted on land that they were not legally suppose to have. Eventually, of course, the government came around to their point of view and they became wealthy landowners, part of the squattocracy, the new aristocracy of pastoral Australia. This squatter rides a thoroughbred horse and can summon troopers (mounted police) to assist him. But the swagman he up and he jumped in the waterhole, Drowning himself by the coolibah tree; And his ghost may be heard as it sings in the billabong, You'll come a-waltzing matilda with me! This information has been taken from "Australian Phrasebook," (Nov 1998) published by Lonely Planet and written by various Australian and Aboriginal linguistics experts.

Chris Townsend, Sarcoid Connection
E-Mail address at Aussie Slang Home
Last Modified September 9, 2002