Having discussed Australian regional differences in language before, I thought this article from The Guardian, might interest some of you, to show just a few variations. I’ve heard of American regional differences, does it happen in other countries too? I’m sure you’ll all have experienced this somewhere. My first awareness of differences was cantaloupe that we eat in Tasmania is called rockmelon in many other States.
Barbara Pyett
Sharing thoughts via writing
Barbara Pyett 
I seem to remember bathers for us girls and trunks for the boys when we wern’t calling them togs. I grew up in the vincinity of the Victorian and South Australian border. Potato cakes (but pineapple fritters), going to the pictures, short a, rockmelon, rubbish bin, both fritz and German sausage, case. Thanks for link, Barbara. 🙂
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Christine, the only one I didn’t understand, ‘short a’, what is that? The others were all things I’m familiar with. 🙂
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Thanks for that Barbara as I had missed the Guardian article. It was a shock to hear the word ‘bathers’ while I was in Adelaide recently. I recall having to school myself not to use it when I moved from Hobart to Sydney in the 1970s.
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I too had to change when I moved from Hobart to Cairns!! Bathers was very Tasmanian, I didn’t realise it was South Australian as well!
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Barbara, bubbler vs. water fountain? This caused such confusion to my American Midwest family when we moved to New England: they called a water fountain a “bubbler.” The only place in the US to do so. Now we live down South which has its unique dialects and terms as well. So many of them, in fact, that it is worthy of a post!
I studied Mandarin for a year and was constantly being told by my instructor that this is what we say In Taiwan but in Beijing they say this. Egad, like the language isn’t hard enough as it is. And growing up in Germany, my grandfather would tease my grandmother over her schwabian accent….not proper High German.
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Barbara, great to hear your experiences in America and in Mandarin! Bravo for broaching that difficult language! I experienced the Swiss didn’t like High German, and would answer me in English when I attempted to speak German. Swiss German is an unwritten language, so is picked up by listening…
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costume for me. I grew up going to the pictures which caused my Sydney friends to die laughing. They called it cinema or movies. Port is definitely part of my vocabulary but I have never heard of a bubbler being called a fountain anywhere.
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Irene, where did you grow up? We called it ‘going to the pictures’ too, in Tasmania. I have heard of a water fountain, but i’ve forgotten which State, having lived in a few.
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I grew up on the far north coast of NSW but my mother was a Queenslander so I think it possibly originated there. It was a shortened form of picture theatre. I’ve heard the term drinking fountain but in American contexts.
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Thanks Irene, that puts things in context! You are probably right about drinking fountain.
We have an American and a Canadian in our family now!
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Irene, I read port and it set me thinking…. of course in Queensland a port is the word for suitcase!! Finally it clicked!
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Yes from portmanteau. In Qld we use a lot of old English – a lot of our thinking is that way as well. 🙂
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😀 😀
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What H said, Ba ! – even though my growing-up was done in Perth !!! 😀
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Maybe it’s Queensland where they call them togs or cossies?
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I believe they use both terms here in Sidder-Knee; but I can’t say for sure, seein as how I don’t hold conversations with Sydneysiders who go swimming ! 😀
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They have nude beaches there too! No need!
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Bathers for me too! I giggled when I read your response to the photo, not one I would have chosen H!! 🙂
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You can always trust the Queenslanders to do things their own way. And whoever it was in Geelong who called them ‘togs’ is an impostor. It’s ‘bathers’, thank you very much.
PS Really didn’t need that image in my face when I first clicked through. *shudder*
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