Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site ut-sally.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxl!houxm!houxz!vax135!floyd!cmcl2!seismo!ut-sally!jsq From: jsq@ut-sally.UUCP (John Quarterman) Newsgroups: net.nlang Subject: Re: british Message-ID: <1@ut-sally.UUCP> Date: Sun, 3-Jun-84 19:06:22 EDT Article-I.D.: ut-sally.1 Posted: Sun Jun 3 19:06:22 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 5-Jun-84 20:00:16 EDT References: <134@mhuxj.UUCP> <482@asgb.UUCP> Organization: U. Texas CS Dept., Austin, Texas Lines: 22 According to the Australians I originally heard the term from, pommie is derived from P.O.M.E, which was written on the shirts of new prisoners from Britain, and meant Prisoner of Mother England. The new arrivals were both prisoners and British. The people already there were mostly not prisoners and didn't want to be known as English or British. It's no wonder that Australians use pome as a derogatory term for the British. Actually, the way I most often heard it used was "pommie bastard." There is also "plastic pome," which refers to New Zealanders, who are supposed (by some Australians) to be more British than the British, or at least to want to be. Pome is pronounced like half of pompom or the French word pomme. It appears to be the same sort of word as kraut, frog, yank, canuck, etc., i.e., kind of a familiar and (usually) friendly insult that is intended to show the nationality referred to is no better than the speaker's. Of course the specific intent (as well as the effect) depends on the circumstances and the people involved. -- John Quarterman, CS Dept., University of Texas, Austin, Texas 78712 USA jsq@ut-sally.ARPA, jsq@ut-sally.UUCP, {ihnp4,seismo,ctvax}!ut-sally!jsq