atw: Re: O.T. Pommy (was Re: O.T. "Melbourne ranked world's top city")
- From: "Naomi Kramer" <nkr@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 6 Feb 2004 13:26:45 +1000
Weren't English immigrants called tommies in Australia at one stage?
-----Original Message-----
You might well be right due to the word's uncertain origins, Stuart =
(lecky),
From the Collins English Dictionary, Australian (big, chunky, =
hardcover)=20
edition:
pommy n., pl. -mies. (sometimes cap.) Slang. a mildly offensive word =
used=20
by Australians and New Zealanders for an English person. Sometimes=20
shortened to pom. [C20: of uncertain origin. Among a number of =
explanations=20
are: (1) based on a blend of IMMIGRANT and POMEGRANATE (alluding to the =
red=20
cheeks of the English immigrants) (2) from the abbreviation POME, =
Prisoner=20
of Mother England (referring to convicts)]"
Cheers,
Michael Granat
Write Ideas
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