Where "Wallaby" Comes From
Photo by Charles J. Sharp, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
"Wallaby" comes from the Dharug language of the Sydney region, originally recorded as walabi or waliba by early British colonists in the 1790s. The word comes from Dharug and was applied to smaller members of the kangaroo family.
English had no native word for hopping bipedal marsupials, so colonial settlers quickly adopted the local Dharug word. Today, dozens of species across Australia and neighbouring islands are classified as wallabies.
“At dusk, a couple of wallabies came out to graze on the grassy clearing.”
How Aussies Actually Use It
Aussies encounter wallabies everywhere from national parks to coastal reserves and suburban bushland fringes. They are generally smaller, more agile in rough terrain, and shyer than their larger kangaroo cousins.
Famously, "The Wallabies" is the proud nickname of the Australian men's national rugby union team, chosen in 1908 during their tour of the British Isles.
ð Sources & Further Reading
- Australian National Dictionary Centre, ANU
- List of English words of Australian Aboriginal origin — Wikipedia
- Wallaby - Wikipedia
- Wallaby - Etymonline
- Australia national rugby union team - Wikipedia
Part of our Aboriginal Loanwords collection →
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