Do you know how many accents of English there are in Australia? And how they vary from state to state?
How is British English distinct from American English and other accents?
Have you noticed how sometimes Australians finish a sentence on high note, which makes it sound like a question, but they’re not actually asking a question?
In this podcast, we talk about Australian English – the most common slangs with some having a unique flavour from the country’s Aboriginal culture. Our experts explain what they mean in English and how do they translate to our language.
Click this audio link to know some of the best-known (or not known) Australian slangs, as well as why different parts of the country have their own accents.
LISTEN TO
Australia Explained: If Aussie slang confused you, here’s ‘Pinglish’ served funny side up
SBS Punjabi
22:42
Paramjit Kaur, who has been teaching English in Sydney for around 30 years, discussed a range of Aussie accents.
“There are obvious differences when it comes to people living in urban and rural areas. The people from the countryside often tend to use heavy slang due to their unique way of living and interactions with the natives.
“For migrants, there has been a constant struggle to master Australian slang. But as we become more diverse, the way we speak English is also changing,” she explains.
Ms Kaur said that the English language, like any other, is mainly altered by the diversity of its speakers.
Source: SBS
“Multiculturism is altering the way we communicate in Australia. Australian English is influenced by various languages, giving it a unique texture,” she adds.
“It clearly means that our language is becoming richer and more diverse in vocabulary with so many alterations that often make people from other parts of the world scratch their heads in confusion,” she laughs.
Speaking about the local Punjabi community and its adaptation of Australian English, she says the community has developed its own specific words that are a blend of two languages.
“There are hundreds of English words that have been altered from their original form and mixed with the Punjabi language. This concoction sometimes sounds funny or strange but the new Punjabi-Australian generation has grown up with it.
“The inability of our elderly population to adopt English as a language has also resulted in many words that are very unique to this part of the world,” Ms Kaur analyses.
If there can be "Hinglish” – a blend of Hindi and English - there can most definitely be "Pinglish", "Punglish" or Punjabi-English, call it what you may.
A Punjabi community gathering in Sydney, Australia. Source: SBS Punjabi
Melbourne-based teacher Natasha, who migrated to Australia from Canada, said that it is the “language code switching” which is developing new forms of expression among the bilingual or multilingual young generation.
“The use of English words in Punjabi songs is a prime example of how Generation-X is adapting and accepting this new, casual way of communication,” she says.
Just like the Punjabi diaspora across the world, Aussie Punjabis have also made quite a dent in the English language and coined their own words that look like a happy marriage between the two languages – a marriage that is successful and productive.
Mobile becomes ‘mobail in Pinglish while a trailer is ‘tralaa’. Within the community, Canada is known as ‘Kneda’, current flows as ‘krunt’, a tractor runs as ‘traittar’. The colour yellow has assumed a Punjabi glow and is known as ‘jellow’, just as unit is ‘joo’nt’.
Care to ask a Punjabi what the time is? Just say ‘taim’, and you shall know! Dollar, perhaps the most favourite sound for the community is ‘dalla’, and they visit a ‘daatar,’ not doctor if they feel unwell while hard at work earning them. Similarly, station becomes ‘teshan’, and its manager is a ‘mnejarr’, who supervises ‘aatomtatick,’ not automatic trains.
NRI Punjabis are known to often follow a unique pattern while saying words that they frequently use in English-speaking countries like Australia, the UK, the US and Canada.
They can be commonly heard appending ‘aan’ to English words to coin their plural form, such as ‘weekan’ for weeks, ‘bookaan’ for books, ‘shelvaan’ for shelves, ‘beachaan’ for beaches etc.
A new episode of Australia Explained will be available every Monday from 15 March on your favourite podcast platform, including , and .
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