| Synopsis: |
The Australian National Dictionary (AND) is a dictionary of Australianisms. It includes words and meanings that have originated in Australia, that have a greater currency here than elsewhere, or that have a special significance in Australian history. Major features:It differs from general dictionaries in being based on historical principles, like the comprehensive Oxford English Dictionary. This means it describes the full history of a word, starting with its earliest appearance, establishing its origin, and documenting its use over time.All entries from the first edition, which was published in 1988, have been thoroughly revised and updated. 6000 new entries have been added.There are more than 16,000 Australian terms.They include:historical terms from the convict era, the gold rushes, farming, and the experience of warcolloquial terms, including rhyming slang and numerous lively and colourful idiomsregional terms from different states and territoriesterms from Aboriginal English, a major dialect of Australian English.New entries cover all aspects of Australian life, history, culture, and values, as indicated by this brief list:ambo, barbecue stopper, bogan, budgie smugglers, bunny rug, captain's pick, chiko roll, chook lit, chroming, copha, corkie, couldn't run a chook raffle, do a Bradbury, drop bear, fairy bread, firie, goon bag, grommet, hip-pocket nerve, hornbag, humidicrib, karak, land of the fair go, marn grook, negative gearing, not happy Jan, pizzling, reg grundies, schmick, schoolies' week, seachanger, secret women's business, shirt-front, skippy, songline, spunk rat, trackie daks, ute muster, welcome to country.There is detailed information on the origins of these Australian words, including comprehensive coverage of more than 550 words that have been borrowed from 100 Aboriginal languages.Quotations from books, newspapers, diaries, etc., show how words have been used over time. More than 123,000 quotations illustrate the entries.The Australian National Dictionary is the only comprehensive, historically based record of the words and meanings that make up Australian English. It is a unique lexical map of Australian history and culture. |