Sunday, January 27, 2013

Fair dinkum, not exactly Oxford English, but Aussie lingo.

Below is an interesting explanation how the phrase “fair dinkum” came about. It is interesting to know that it is only used in Australia and New Zealand, yet originated in England. Below you will find an explanation of the origin of “Fair dinkum,” but first my story about the English language.

English is not my mother tongue, but my adopted language,
and I have become fascinated with it – and that is “fair dinkum.” It has become more or less a hobby for me, and I have accumulated over the years a large vocabulary of English words and I continue to add more to it. The English language stands out in its wealth of vernaculars. But we Australians have our own unique reservoir of vernaculars; phrases, and slang, the latter often not flattering and inappropriate for formal occasions.

This evokes memories of my first job as a cane cutter in northern New South Wales (Australia)

When I came to Australia in 1954 I volunteered to cut sugar cane and was sent to the Maclean district in northern NSW.
I was in a gang of five German migrants and we were given instructions with the help of an interpreter. Then the Cane inspector from the sugar Mill asked, “Who of you speaks English?” I said, kind of reluctantly, that I had completed a correspondence course in English in Germany. “OK,” said the cane inspector, “you are the ganger!” I had to ask what “ganger” meant and entailed, as I had never come across this word in my correspondence course. After it had been explained what my duties were, I was overwhelmed by this sudden promotion.

Although I had completed an English correspondence course, I soon realised that there was a big difference between reading the language, understanding what is being said, and speaking it. 
Conversation between the farmer and me usually went something like this: he would give me instructions and after every sentence I would say, “Yes”. After about four instructions and four yeses, he would ask me, “Do you understand?” To which I would reply, “No”. The exasperation clearly showed on his face, and he would scratch his head mumbling to himself and walking away to organise an interpreter.  I wasn’t sure what he mumbled, but I had the feeling it contained some expletives (plus perhaps – “Bloody New Australians”) as migrants were called then.
*****

Then I remembered the advice my cousin Paul gave me back in Germany; he had learned English at the University, but had never been in a crash-course situation like me.
  He gave me the following counsel. "In Germany we speak different dialects, but everybody can also speak the High-German or school German. The same situation exists in England, and I'm sure the same applies in Australia”. (I remembered the language problem I’d had in the canteen in Bremen speaking my dialect).  “The equivalent of the school German in the English language is Oxford English", Paul said, “the English you learned in your correspondence course”.

With this in mind I faced the next day with additional confidence.  During "smoko" time the farmer came along to tell us something, and I was ready to try this new tack.  After he finished the first sentence I said, “Would you speak Oxford English please?” For a moment I thought he was going to have convulsions; in order not to swallow his tongue he coughed and his cigarette dropped from between his lips. “Hey? Oxford English? Oxford English?” he slowly repeated again with a perplexed facial expression. “You must be bloody joking, ha, ha, ha”, and finishing with a guttural laugh. 

He then turned around, calling out to his brother who was a bit further down the paddock. “This fellow here” he said, pointing to me, “wants me to speak bloody Oxford English. Can you speak it?” he asked with a chuckle. Needless to say I have never asked anybody to speak Oxford English since. Following is the explanation, of "fair dinkum" courtesy of, “A phrase a Week” that I subscribed to. http://www.phrases.org.uk/a-phrase-a-week/index.html

Fair dinkum.
Meaning: Honest; genuine; fair play.
Origin
. There could hardly be a more Southern Hemisphere expression than 'fair dinkum'. The phrase, which is hardly used outside Australia and New Zealand, conjures up images of horny-handed ranchers with corks on their hats. A 'fair-dinkum Aussie' is indeed what the locals call someone who embodies the nation's values. So, where did the phrase originate? Alice Springs? Auckland? No, Lincolnshire in England. That claim will take a little justifying, especially to readers down under, so here goes.

Firstly, let's get out of the way the folk-etymological tale that the phrase derives from the expression 'din gum', used by Chinese miners with the meaning ‘real gold’. My Chinese is less than perfect and I can't comment on whether or not 'real gold' is a correct translation, but I can say that there's no evidence to link the phrase to China. There is, however, a mining connection in the phrase's background.

'Dinkum' is a slang term that appears to have grown up with two meanings, 'work' and 'fair play'. These may in fact be drawn from one original meaning, that is, 'honest toil'. The 'work' meaning of dinkum is found in print in documents from both Australia and the UK in the late 19th century, the earliest being in the classic Australian novel Robbery under Arms, published by Thomas Alexander Browne, using the pseudonym Rolf Boldrewood, in 1888. It also appears in Sidney Addy's Glossary of Words Used in the Neighbourhood of Sheffield, 1891:

‘I can stand plenty o' dincum.’ This word is used by colliers at Eckington. [Eckington is in East Derbyshire]

The 'honesty' or 'fair play' meaning is what people now mean by the phrase. The 'fair' was added to dinkum for emphasis, much in the same way that it was added to 'square' to make 'fair and square'. The 'fair play' meaning was known in England from at least 1882, as in this example from a report of a political meeting in Lincoln, reported in the Nottingham Evening Post, February 1882. The paper reports the opinions of Richard Hall, a local magistrate who was complaining about the unfair policies of the Gladstone government, which he believed favoured the wealthy: In all of these things he thought there should be fair 'dinkum' to all classes of people.

'Fair dinkum' also appeared in Australia, in the Sydney newspaper The Bulletin, in 1894. 'Fair dinkum' was used by the colliers of the UK's East Midlands from the 1880s and by Australians from a few years later. In the late 19th century, in addition to the numerous criminals who were transported, many mineworkers migrated from England to Australia, taking their working language with them. Significantly as far as the derivation of this phrase is concerned, the direction of migration was very much one way and few migrants ever came back.
To learn more about Australian slang, click here.
*
Here are some interesting links for people visiting Australia who want to familiarise themselves with our "unique" Australian "LINGO". *
1. Australian Slang explained. Click here.
2. More elucidation about our lingo. Click here.

3. A video presentation about our slang. Click here.
*
Here is an interesting poem written by June Courtney from the Gold Coast Australia. June and her late husband migrated to Australia from Ireland after World War Two.

*
Aussie Slang (and more)

By June Courtney

Since arriving in Australia I’ve learnt a thing or two
Any argument you may have is referred to as a "Blue"
The Aussie phrase "Fair Dinkum" means I kid you not
And Christmas comes in summer when everything is hot
The saying "Ridgy Didge" means I’m telling you no lie
And when the food is ready "Tucker’s Up" is then the cry
If you are not too well it is said you’re "Feelin’ Crook"
And if complaining all the time you will be called a "Sook"
Your "Clobber" is your gear and your "Cobber" is your mate
And your girlfriend is your "Sheila" when you’re going on a date
There is just one other thing with you I’d like to share
Since living in Australia I know a Koala’s not a bear.
*
My thought for today.Werner
A good time to keep your mouth shut is when you're in deep water. - Sidney Goff
*

How to make a comment about this posting? Read annotation below.
*

Sunday, January 13, 2013

It pays to be honest.

While looking for a file in my computer I rediscovered “The Seed," a wonderful little story that gives a valuable lesson, which you should give your children and grandchildren to read as a kind of "lesson for life" to instill into their minds the moral of this story that "It pays to be honest." So I decided to share it with you. The old adage: You REAP what You SOW, fits this story nicely. – Werner

The Seed.

A successful Christian business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together.
 
He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you." The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued.

"I am going to give each one of you a seed today.
It's one very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO."

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed.

Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, and still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.*
Six months went by, still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however. He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil. He so wanted the seed to grow.
 
A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot, but she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick at his stomach. It was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful, in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him!

When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today, one of you will be appointed the next CEO!"

All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the financial director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!" When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed. Jim told him the story.

The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive! His name is Jim!"

Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. How could he be the new CEO, the others said? Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But, I gave you all boiled seeds. They were dead. It was not possible for them to grow. All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you.

Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive!" -  Author Unknown. (What an interesting selection process. -Werner)
*

My thought for today. – Werner
Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom. Thomas Jefferson
*
How to make a comment about this posting? Read annotation below.

*