Where "Mia-mia" Comes From
"Mia-mia" (also written mya-mya) is an Aboriginal word for a bush shelter or hut. Dictionary.com dates its first record in English to 1835–45. Sources disagree about which language it comes from: some point to Kurnai in Gippsland, others to Wathawurrung, and the origin is still debated.
The town of Mia Mia in central Victoria takes its name from a Taungurung word meaning "camp" or "dwelling", according to Wikipedia.
Sources: mia-mia (Dictionary.com) · Mia-mia (Wikipedia) · Mia Mia, Victoria (Wikipedia)
“They threw together a rough mia-mia by the riverbank to keep out of the winter drizzle.”
How Aussies Actually Use It
Gave its name to the town of Mia Mia in central Victoria. Compare gunyah and humpy, other words for bush shelters.
A regional counterpart to New South Wales' gunyah and Queensland's humpy.
📚 Sources & Further Reading
- Borrowings from Aboriginal Languages — Australian National Dictionary Centre, ANU
- List of English words of Australian Aboriginal origin — Wikipedia
Part of our Aboriginal Loanwords collection →
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