Where "Feral" Comes From
"Feral" in Australian slang refers to a person living outside mainstream society β typically associated with radical environmentalism, communal living, dreadlocks, bare feet, and an aversion to conventional employment. The word comes from Medieval Latin ferΔlis and Latin fera (wild beast), and its English use to describe domesticated animals that have returned to the wild dates from the 17th century. The application to a human subculture is specifically Australian, emerging in the latter part of the 20th century.
The feral subculture reached its peak in Australia in the mid-1990s, associated with anti-logging protests in Tasmania and Queensland, alternative communities in northern New South Wales, and the broader counter-cultural wave of the period. Ferals are often described as an amalgam of punk and hippie sensibilities β the punk's anti-consumerism fused with the hippie's environmental politics. In mainstream use, "feral" can also simply mean uncontrolled or wild β a feral child, a feral cat, feral behaviour at a footy match.
"The crowd went completely feral when the band came out for the encore."
How Aussies Actually Use It
"Going feral" means cutting loose, abandoning restraint, or acting without inhibitions.
Can be used admiringly (a lively party) or disapprovingly (messy, antisocial behaviour) depending on tone.
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