What am I saying? ***ANSWER POSTED***

[Kerry]

Australia's mother tongue is English.

However, the peculiar version of English spoken by the inhabitants of the Great Southern Land is often convoluted and sometimes downright weird!

Here's a quote written in Aussie-speak. Every Australian would know exactly what it means, Heath included.

"G'Doy, moyt! You true-blue-dinky-doy? Yeah? Beaudy-bottlah, cobb-ah!"

What do you think it means?

Hint - Say it out loud to get that true Aussie sound. Be sure to place a pronounced upward inflection on the final word of each sentence. And try to make your voice sound as nasal as possible. 

I'll post the translation in a couple of days, at which time a magnificent prize will be awarded to the nearest correct entry!

Have fun! 

Please no entries from Aussies, 'cause you'll give away the answer!   

[southendmd]

OK, I'll try:

"Greetings, dear friend.  Are you feeling well today?  I swear I haven't been drinking, officer."

[Shakesthecoffecan]

"Hey dude, you been partying? Well give me some!"

I think that Aussie English has a lot of Galic in it.

[mvansand76]

Eh? 

[jstephens9]

Good day mate! You try to drink today? Yeah! Beauty parlor, did you?

And that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever 

[CellarDweller]

G'day mate!  You're a true blue friend.  Wanna drink?

[ifyoucantfixit]

              Hey buddy. You terrific Aussie guy...  !!     Want some lager beer. ??

[jstephens9]

  It is amazing how many different things people are coming up with. I was at work today trying to say that in an out loud kind of way that nobody could hear. Now, if they would have heard, some people are thinking I am crazy at this point.

[Kerry]

            

I am wailing with laughter here in Sydney, Australia! 

Tears are literally running down my face! 

Some of you are very close (I ain't tellin' who!), but no-one's cracked it as yet!

I have deliberately written in "Aussie-speak"; that is, as it is pronounced, rather than how it is correctly spelt; just to make it that little bit more difficult. That's why it's so important for you to have a go at pronouncing it out loud! 

I purposely made the first sentence easy and most of you got it correct in some form or another. "G'Doy, moyt!" is how Australians pronounce, "Good day, mate!" the traditional greeting Down Under. It can be translated as, "Hello, friend!", "Hey, bud!", "Yo, dude!" or any variation thereof! 

Now the challenge is for you to translate the rest!

Make as many attempts as you like! There's no limit! 

I'm still laughing!         

[Shasta542]

"Hi buddy! You doin' okay today? Really? Cute butler, good-bye!"   

[Kerry]

"Hi buddy! You doin' okay today? Really? Cute butler, good-bye!"   

Alas, Shasta, not even close! I can only give you a mark of 33% for getting the first sentence correct. Have another try. I won't be posting the answer for a couple of days yet. 

[Shasta542]

  -- well, I knew that was wrong!

Hmmm. Some of the others were close, you've said, so.....

"Good day, mate. Are you having a good day? Yes? Let's go have a drink, pal!"

Is that any closer??  

[Kerry]

Like many English-speaking countries, there are different ways of speaking English in Australia.

We don't have anything as radical as dialects here, but there are 3 distinct forms of English pronunciation here in Australia.

Low-Aussie: Very low, base, coarse pronunciation. Once very widespread throughout Australia. The type of accent that most people think of when one considers an Aussie accent. It's not so common these days. My quote is written in this form.

Mid-Aussie: This type of Aussie-English pronunciation is that which is used by the majority of the population these days. It is delivered with a noticeable Aussie accent, but not as broad or coarse as in the common type as expressed in my quote. Think of Heath's true speaking voice. Mine too!

High-Aussie: The way English is spoken by those who consider themselves better than the rest of us. It's a nasty, pseudo-intellectual hybrid of Etonian English and Aussie-speak. Spoken by would-be intellectuals and socialites. The snobs' accent!

[Kerry]

  -- well, I knew that was wrong!

Hmmm. Some of the others were close, you've said, so.....

"Good day, mate. Are you having a good day? Yes? Let's go have a drink, pal!"

Is that any closer??  

Try again!!! 

[David In Indy]

"G'Doy, moyt! You true-blue-dinky-doy? Yeah? Beaudy-bottlah, cobb-ah!"

What do you think it means?

That doesn't look like English one damn bit! Are you sure you didn't make this up Kerry! 

Well.... 

Good Boy (something or another. Maybe their name name is Moit.) Are you a true blue dinky toy?    Yeah? Beautiful butler, cobb on.

It STILL doesn't look like English! It doesn't make a damn bit of sense!   

I think Kerry is picking on us!   

[Kerry]

Good Boy (something or another. Maybe their name name is Moit.) Are you a true blue dinky toy?    Yeah? Beautiful butler, cobb on.

           

Hilarious! 

An admirable attempt, David, but not even close!        

I've written it the way it would be spoken by a broad-accented Australian, not necessarily how it is spelt.

Hint - Even though Aussies are not allowed to enter (because they'd give it away!), maybe a BetterMostian who shares a close cultural background with Australia would know the answer??? And she may have already submitted a response!        

[David In Indy]

Hint - Even though Aussies are not allowed to enter (because they'd give it away!), maybe a BetterMostian who shares a close cultural background with Australia would know the answer??? And she may have already submitted a response!       

WHO??

Who is it? Maybe I could convince her to PM me with the correct answer!

No. I won't do it, because that would be cheating.

[ifyoucantfixit]

          Another try,,,
 
          Good day friend...hows my favorite Aussie guy?   Would you have a bottle of lager, ale, beer whatever...?

[David In Indy]

          Another try,,,
 
          Good day friend...hows my favorite Aussie guy?   Would you have a bottle of lager, ale, beer whatever...?

That sounds pretty good to me, Janice!

I'd buy it.

[ifyoucantfixit]

      Heh, thanks David...I love these language games...

[David In Indy]

      Heh, thanks David...I love these language games...

By the way Janice, are you the person with ties to Australia in which Kerry spoke of earlier?

I'm still trying to figure out who that person is!

[Kerry]

          Another try,,,
 
          Good day friend...hows my favorite Aussie guy?   Would you have a bottle of lager, ale, beer whatever...?

                           

Good try, Janice! 

Alas, not correct! 

The word "bottlah" is presenting as a major difficulty for some, who are interpreting it as something to do with drinking (incorrect, though close), while others are translating it as "butler," which is incorrect. 

I will post the correct translation later this evening! 

[David In Indy]

                           

Good try, Janice! 

Alas, not correct! 

The word "bottlah" is presenting as a major difficulty for some, who are interpreting it as something to do with drinking (incorrect, though close), while others are translating it as "butler," which is incorrect. 

I will post the correct translation later this evening! 

It was a good try Janice, and I applaud you for it.

Kerry, the more you try to explain this to the rest of us, the more puzzling it becomes!

Or maybe this was your plan the whole time.... hmmmm? To confuse us poor Yanks?   

Well, if it was, you're doing a damn good job of it!!   

  

I can't wait to see the answer to this! 

[dot-matrix]

"G'Doy, moyt! You true-blue-dinky-doy? Yeah? Beaudy-bottlah, cobb-ah!"

Good day buddy! You having a good day? Yes?  Excellent, friend!

(I cheated Kerry I asked my brother, he was in Oz for a while working on a join military training mission. He thinks he got it right, he hopes he did.. LOL  )

[ifyoucantfixit]

By the way Janice, are you the person with ties to Australia in which Kerry spoke of earlier?

I'm still trying to figure out who that person is!

      Nope, the only tie I have to Australia is Heath and the Olympics that i watched from there...not me.

[ifyoucantfixit]

        Ok my last try, i am already putting myself out there looking foolish enough...


   Good day mate(buddy)  you feeling good(true blue) today?  Dinky doy,,,(ok) ?

   Yeah ,, Beautiful brother, how are you.?

[David In Indy]

Good day buddy! You having a good day? Yes?  Excellent, friend!

(I cheated Kerry I asked my brother, he was in Oz for a while working on a join military training mission. He thinks he got it right, he hopes he did.. LOL  )

Dottie??

HEY GIRL!!! Wassup? 

How do you get "You having a good day? Yes?  Excellent, friend!" from  "G'Doy, moyt! You true-blue-dinky-doy? Yeah? Beaudy-bottlah, cobb-ah!"

I think somebody over there in California is pulling your leg, girl friend. I really do.

[Dagi]

Hey, buddy.  Are you an actual dwarf?  Really?  Guess the beautician puts cobblestones under your butt when she's cutting your hair. 

 

Obviously, I haven't a clue.  But I'm hoping for extra credit for creativity.   

 

[Dagi]

 

[Dagi]

 

[Kerry]

           

I am wailing with laughter again! 

I haven't laughed so much in a long time! 

Thank you so very much to everyone who entered into the spirit of my funny little quiz and had a go at speaking Aussie! 

"G'Doy, moyt! You true-blue-dinky-doy? Yeah? Beaudy-bottlah, cobb-ah!" can be divided into three sections:

"G'Doy, moyt!" is how an Australian pronounces "Good day, mate!" Everybody got this right in some form or another.

"You true-blue-dinky-doy? Yeah?" is a little more convoluted. Doing away with the pronunciation, it asks "You true-blue-dinky-di (pronounced as one word)? Yeah? "True-blue" means "patriotic" and "dinky-di" means "the real thing, genuine." However, when used in this context, any Australian would immediately recognise, "You true-blue-dinky-doy? Yeah?" to mean, "You Australian? Yeah?" To an Australian, someone who is "true-blue-dinky-di" is Australian! It means one and the same thing! An Australian can also be simply referred to as "true-blue" alone, or "dinky-di" alone, without having to resort to the tautology of "true-blue-dinky-di." Only Susie got this correct with, "Are you Australian? Really?"

"Beaudy-bottlah, cobb-ah!" Again doing away with the pronunciation, it says, "Beauty-bottler, cobber!" Both "beauty" and "bottler" mean "good" or "excellent" in the Australian vernacular. This tautological double-whammy means the speaker is really very excited! "Cobber" is a word for "mate" or "friend." Susie and Dottie got this correct with "That's great, buddy," and ""Excellent, friend," respectively.

So here's what it means:

"Good day, mate! You Australian? Yeah? That's fabulous, cobber!"

Or in American-English:

"Yo, dude! Are you an Aussie? Yeah? Excellent, bud!"

Congratulations to Susie for getting a perfect score (over 3 attempts). Your First Prize is a cute lil cuddly koala!  What are you going to name him, Susie? How about "Ennis"?!  Yep, Ennis the koala! Sounds good to me! 

Dottie gets an honourable mention with 66% 

Everyone else  got the first sentence right, with a resultant score of 33% each.

Thank you again to everyone for entering! 

[Mikaela]

This was a fun challenge.

Being an impatient sort of person, I googled for Australian slang dictionaries some little while ago and found this:

http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html

So I more or less figured out what the sentence meant before you posted the answer. But that is cheating so I stayed away from responding!

Nevertheless I post that link here, because because maybe others'll find it useful too. I've already bookmarked it along with my English slang and my English-to-American online dictionary. Such stuff is very helpful in a pinch, especially for all of us not-at-all-true-blue-dinky-doys who haven't got any kind of English as our first language.

[Kerry]

YAY!! I got there in the end   ..... and now I've got my very own little Koala  ... I've always wanted one of those!!  "Ennis" sounds perfect ... unless it's a little girl koala, in which case I'll have to call her "Sheila"!  Thanks Kerry!  That was fun!

Thanks again for entering, Susie! I'm glad you enjoyed it! 

[Kerry]

This was a fun challenge.

Being an impatient sort of person, I googled for Australian slang dictionaries some little while ago and found this:

http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html

So I more or less figured out what the sentence meant before you posted the answer. But that is cheating so I stayed away from responding!

Nevertheless I post that link here, because because maybe others'll find it useful too. I've already bookmarked it along with my English slang and my English-to-American online dictionary. Such stuff is very helpful in a pinch, especially for all of us not-at-all-true-blue-dinky-doys who haven't got any kind of English as our first language.

I figured entrants would probably do what you did, Mikaela (I would have done the same myself  ). I would have been OK with that. But I didn't want to make it too easy, so made my quote in pronounced Aussie slang, rather than as it is correctly spelt, just to make it that little bit more difficult to google!  I mean, no true-blue-dinky-di Aussie would be caught dead saying, "Good-day, mate." "G'Doy moyt" is much closer to the way it is actually said in this part of the world. 

P.S., I consulted http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html myself, just to make sure of my facts. It's a bottler site, cobber! 

[Dagi]

YAY!! I got there in the end   ..... and now I've got my very own little Koala  ... I've always wanted one of those!!  "Ennis" sounds perfect ... unless it's a little girl koala, in which case I'll have to call her "Sheila"! 

Thanks Kerry!  That was fun!

Susie and Ennis

Congrats, Miss Susie!!  I didn´t have a clue, but I laughed my ... off. I´m still chuckling, guess I will be chuckling for the rest of the day.

[jstephens9]

Hey, buddy.  Are you an actual dwarf?  Really?  Guess the beautician puts cobblestones under your butt when she's cutting your hair. 

 

Obviously, I haven't a clue.  But I'm hoping to get extra credit for creativity.   

Now, that's a hilarious answer. I give you an A+ for creativity Gary. It's also funny that you said beautician and I said beauty parlor, but I didn't fine the cobblestones under the butt part 

[jstephens9]

So Kerry now you are going to have to think of something else fun for us to do 

[Kelda]

STONE THE FLAMIN' CROWS!!! I only saw this after the answer was posted, so couldnt join in the fun!

But to all those that got it wrong.. in a true alf stewart style.... all I'll say is....

You flamin galahs!!!

[youtube=425,350]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=YZhcdwoFynk[/youtube]

[youtube=425,350]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=5TWAzGp4w2Q&feature=related[/youtube]

(and in finding a alf you tube clip I found out kate Richie is leaving Home and Away! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! I love Sally! Thats like Alf leaving... and that can NEVER happen!!)

[injest]

STONE THE FLAMIN' CROWS!!!

dang, Kelda...just seems a little harsh coming from you..I mean..they are already on FIRE..why you gotta be throwing ROCKS at them??

[Kerry]

           

I loooove the flamin' video clips, Kelda & Susie! 

Thank you for posting them! 

[Kerry]

So Kerry now you are going to have to think of something else fun for us to do 

I've got my thinking-cap on! 

[Kelda]

dang, Kelda...just seems a little harsh coming from you..I mean..they are already on FIRE..why you gotta be throwing ROCKS at them??

 

[Kerry]

Strewth, cheers cobbers!

Susie 

That's a very good Aussie accent you've got there, Susie! Not bad for a Lincolnshire lass! Not bad at all!      

[Dagi]

[youtube=425,350]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=gL4vRiKYU48[/youtube]

 

Susie