Western Australian English

Western Australian English

Western Australian English, or West Australian English, is the collective name given to the variety or varieties of English spoken in the Australian state of Western Australia (WA). As with the other regional varieties within Australian English, these have distinctive vocabularies.

While there is no well-known "West Australian accent", some linguists have suggested that Western Australians tend to pronounce words such as beer with two syllables (IPA|/biː.ə/ or "be-ah"), in cases where other Australians use one syllable (IPA|/biə/). [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/01/28/1106850111479.html]

According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the Macquarie Dictionary, there are three localised, regional varieties of English in WA: "Perth English"; "Central West Australian English" and "Northern West Australian English". While there are many commonalities, each has its own variations in vocabulary. [http://abc.net.au/wordmap/default.htm]

Some common British usages, which are rare in other parts of Australia, have survived, such as "verge" (meaning the area between a road and a paved footpath), which is known by the term "nature strip" in the rest of Australia.

Some US terms, such as "crosswalk" (also known as a "pedestrian crossing" or "zebra crossing") have also found a niche in WA.

Many words from Aboriginal languages have found their way into West Australian English. Examples include "gidgee" (or "gidgie"), a Noongar word for spear, as used in modern spear fishing; and "gilgie" (or "jilgie"), the Noongar name for a small freshwater crayfish of the South West. Another (or possibly an invented word intended to sound "Aboriginal") is "boondie" which means a small stone (and is pronounced with a ʊ, like the vowel in "bull").

There are also many unique, invented slang words, such as "ding", meaning an Italian immigrant. (This word is often considered derogatory and/or offensive).

ee also

*Australian English
*Regional variation in Australian English
*Australian words
*Australian English phonology
*Other regional varieties:
**South Australian English

References

*Maureen Brooks and Joan Ritchie, "Words from the West: A Glossary of Western Australian Terms." Oxford University Press (1994). ISBN 0-19-553628-2
*Rhonda Oliver, Graham McKay and Judith Rochecouste, "Lexical Variation among Western Australian Primary School Children", "Australian Journal of Linguistics", vol. 22, no. 2 (October 01, 2002) pp. 207 - 229.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Australian English — (AusE, AuE, AusEng, en AU[1]) is the name given to the group of dialects spoken in Australia that form a major variety of the English language. English is the primary language spoken throughout Australia …   Wikipedia

  • South Australian English — is the collective name given to the varieties of English spoken in the Australian State of South Australia. As with the other regional varieties within Australian English, these have distinctive vocabularies. To a lesser degree there are also… …   Wikipedia

  • Australian English vocabulary — Many works giving an overview of Australian English have been published; many of these are humour books designed for tourists or as novelties. One of the first was Karl Lentzner s Dictionary of the Slang English of Australia and of Some Mixed… …   Wikipedia

  • Western Australian Certificate of Education — The Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) is the credential given to students who have completed Year 11 and Year 12 of their secondary schooling in the state of Western Australia, Australia, and is intended to become the Western… …   Wikipedia

  • Regional variation in Australian English — It is sometimes claimed that regional variations in pronunciation and accent of Australian English exist, but if present at all they are very small compared to those of British, Irish and North American English ndash; sufficiently so that… …   Wikipedia

  • Western Australia — Western Australian. a state in W Australia. 1,273,624; 975,920 sq. mi. (2,527,635 sq. km). Cap.: Perth. * * * State (pop., 2001: 1,906,114), western Australia. Covering 976,790 sq mi (2,529,880 sq km), it constitutes one third of the continent s… …   Universalium

  • Western Desert Language — Spoken in Australia Region Desert areas of Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory Native speakers several thousand  (date missing) Language family …   Wikipedia

  • Australian literature — began soon after the settlement of the country by Europeans. Common themes include indigenous and settler identity, alienation, exile and relationship to place but it is a varied and contested area. Early works Early popular works tended to be of …   Wikipedia

  • Australian regional rivalries — refers to the rivalries between Australian cities or regions. Contents 1 Sydney Melbourne rivalry 2 Queensland and southern states 2.1 New South Wales vs Queensland …   Wikipedia

  • Australian rules football in Australia — Contesting for possession in an indigenous community football game in the Northern Territory Governing body Australian Football League National team Australia First playe …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”