I'm American, but it seems to me that when I’ve encountered Australian speech or writing, I didn’t have much trouble understanding it. The words are mostly familiar to me. So what’s going on in Waltzing Matilda?

An excerpt:

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?"

Chorus snippet

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong.
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag:
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me."

I think that a typical American reader or listener will understand almost nothing of the story without discussion. For example, did the average British speaker know the Australian meanings of waltzing (an itinerant worker on foot) and Matilda (an affectionate term for a swag) back in 1895? Does the use of a lot of Australianisms reflect something about social class, the way Cockney English would?

EDIT

The question is really whether that manner of speaking is artificial or natural. It is often said of Mark Twain, for example, that the dialect in his books is not correct; it was not his own, but an affectation intended to suggest the class of the speakers.

• My question is whether anyone ever naturally phrases his thoughts the way the singer does.

I'm American, but it seems to me that when I’ve encountered Australian speech or writing, I didn’t have much trouble understanding it. The words are mostly familiar to me. So what’s going on in the song Waltzing Matilda?

An excerpt:

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?"

Chorus snippet

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong.
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag:
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me."

I think that a typical American reader or listener will understand almost nothing of the story without discussion due to the strange vocabulary. For example, did the average British speaker know the Australian meanings of waltzing (an itinerant worker on foot) and Matilda (an affectionate term for a swag) back in 1895?

For that matter, do modern Australians understand this vocabulary easily and is the wording natural?

In addition, does the use of a lot of Australianisms reflect something about social class, the way Cockney English would?

My question is whether anyone ever naturally phrases his thoughts the way the singer does.

I'm American, but it seems to me that when I’ve encountered Australian speech or writing, I didn’t have much trouble understanding it. The words are mostly familiar to me. So what’s going on in Waltzing Matilda?

An excerpt:

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?"

Chorus snippet

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong.
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag:
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me."

I think that a typical American reader or listener will understand almost nothing of the story without discussion.

Was it deliberately written with a lot of Australianisms? Or does the use of a lot of Australianisms reflect something about social class, the way Cockney English would? Do Australians think it's funny because of this quality?

EDIT

The question is really whether that manner of speaking is artificial or natural. It is often said of Mark Twain, for example, that the dialect in his books is not correct; it was not his own, but an affectation intended to suggest the class of the speakers.

• My question is whether anyone ever naturally phrases his thoughts the way the singer does.

I'm American, but it seems to me that when I’ve encountered Australian speech or writing, I didn’t have much trouble understanding it. The words are mostly familiar to me. So what’s going on in Waltzing Matilda?

An excerpt:

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?"

Chorus snippet

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong.
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag:
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me."

I think that a typical American reader or listener will understand almost nothing of the story without discussion. For example, did the average British speaker know the Australian meanings of waltzing (an itinerant worker on foot) and Matilda (an affectionate term for a swag) back in 1895? Does the use of a lot of Australianisms reflect something about social class, the way Cockney English would?

EDIT

The question is really whether that manner of speaking is artificial or natural. It is often said of Mark Twain, for example, that the dialect in his books is not correct; it was not his own, but an affectation intended to suggest the class of the speakers.

• My question is whether anyone ever naturally phrases his thoughts the way the singer does.

I'm American, but it seems to me that when I’ve encountered Australian speech or writing, I didn’t have much trouble understanding it. The words are mostly familiar to me. So what’s going on in Waltzing Matilda?

An excerpt:

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?"

Chorus snippet

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong.
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag:
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me."

I think that a typical American reader or listener will understand almost nothing of the story without discussion.

Was it deliberately written with a lot of Australianisms? Or does the use of a lot of Australianisms reflect something about social class, the way Cockney English would? Do Australians think it's funny because of this quality?

I'm American, but it seems to me that when I’ve encountered Australian speech or writing, I didn’t have much trouble understanding it. The words are mostly familiar to me. So what’s going on in Waltzing Matilda?

An excerpt:

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong
Under the shade of a coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boiled:
"Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me?"

Chorus snippet

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong.
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee.
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag:
"You'll come a-waltzing Matilda, with me."

I think that a typical American reader or listener will understand almost nothing of the story without discussion.

Was it deliberately written with a lot of Australianisms? Or does the use of a lot of Australianisms reflect something about social class, the way Cockney English would? Do Australians think it's funny because of this quality?

EDIT

The question is really whether that manner of speaking is artificial or natural. It is often said of Mark Twain, for example, that the dialect in his books is not correct; it was not his own, but an affectation intended to suggest the class of the speakers.

• My question is whether anyone ever naturally phrases his thoughts the way the singer does.