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Bogan

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 Bogan (pronounced /ˈbəʉ.gn̩/, to rhyme with slogan) is an Australian and New Zealand English generally derogatory slang term for a person who is, or is perceived to be, unsophisticated or of a lower class background. The stereotype includes having speech and mannerisms that are considered to denote poor education and uncultured upbringing. Mostly applied to white, working-class people.

Like the British term chav and the American term white trash, the term is supposedly based on behaviour rather than class alone.

Further, the stereotype assumes a correlation between cultural practices of particular working-class people (i.e. style of dress, accent, and musical tastes), and anti-social behaviour. It should thus be considered a slur.

History

The use of the word "bogan" as an insult originated in Melbourne, to describe people of the working class. The character Kylie Mole on the famed Australian television program The Comedy Company popularised the term as an insult for any friend she didn't like, and by 1991, the word was in the national dictionary project. The term has been commonly used in Western Australia since the 1970s.

There are actually places in Western New South Wales that have "Bogan" in their name, including Bogan Shire, the Bogan River and the rural village of Bogan Gate. Despite the fact that their remote location fits some of the aspects of the stereotype, these places are not regarded as the source of the term. It is more likely that the sound of the word fits the humorous aspects of the stereotype rather than the people of this area being the epitome of bogans. Bogan is also a family name, albeit an uncommon one, in Australia. There is no known evidence that the meaning of the adjective is derived from the characteristics of any person named Bogan.

Elements of the Stereotype

The bogan stereotype is essentially the same as the British stereotype of a chav or the American white trash, with some specific Australian cultural features. Note the term bogan is also commonly used to describe a similar stereotype exhibited by some New Zealanders. Most particularly Australian aspects of the bogan stereotype are not seen in the New Zealand equivalent; aging Australian cars the chief exception to this rule.

The stereotype may be summarised as follows:

  • white
  • poor, particularly on the dole and/or living in public housing.
  • often having an unattractive and brutish voice, manner, and appearance.
  • violent, anti-social, regularly criminal.
  • driving an old, Australian car such as a Holden Commodore (particulary the highly prized VK or VL model) or the Ford Falcon. Otherwise a clapped out Japanese Import (New Zealand)
  • interested in sport, particularly Australian Rules or Rugby League football, depending on which sporting code is dominant in their area.
  • diet consists primarily of fast food, such as McDonalds. Four and Twenty meat pies (and other regional brands, such as Balfour's in Adelaide) are particularly prized, due mainly to nationalistic associations.
  • unintelligent, uneducated, anti-intellectual - more specifically, racist and homophobic.
  • culturally blue-collar
  • uses traditionally working class dialect and pronunciation. For example, using 'youse' (plural form of 'you'), 'nuthin' ('nothing') , sumthin ('something'), and anythink ('anything').
  • sexually immoral. This stereotype is particularly applied to women and girls, and is particularly associated with being a single mother.
  • a heavy drinker of pre-mixed bourbon and cola cans such as Woodstock & Cougar. A typical drink at a public bar would be a bourbon and coke, or 'Bundy' and coke (disparaged as "bogan juice"). 'Bundy' is a diminutive of Bundaberg Rum, a popular brand amongst bogans. Victoria Bitter beer is also highly prized, both because of its price and nationalistic associations.
  • often (although not necessarily) prone to the use of marijuana.
  • tasteless. The basic idea of this aspect of the stereotype is that the bogan attempts to imitate desirable characteristics of 'normal', wealthier people and fails due to their own ignorance. For example: giving their children supposedly 'classy' but actually ridiculous non-standard names such as Dakota or Mercedes; wearing designer labels yet still appearing ludicrous; having a comically fake tan in an effort to resemble a member of the jet-set.
  • Although not particular just to Bogans, living week to week on from their paychecks is definitely a pronounced habit amongst some. Wasting money on poker machines and items in large shopping malls, and not having a long term financial plan are factors common to most bogans.
  • There is a detailed stereotype of what bogans wear, which includes Moccasin-style slippers, ugg boots 'uggies', tight black jeans, singlets, flannelette shirts (or black jerseys and jeans in Waitakere/West Auckland) and prominent tattoos, "stubbies" (tight 'footy shorts'), blue singlets and thongs/jandals (the footwear Americans call 'flip-flops', not the underwear) and sunnies. This can also include tracksuit pants in the case of younger male bogans, primarily due to their cheap price. Inappropriate/unseasonal nudity can at times also be observed, primarily among males, for example walking bare chested around shopping malls. Holden racing car jackets and other related clothing are also favourites.
  • Wearing a "mullet" hairstyle, or bleached hair with regrowth showing.
  • Smoking. The brand of cigarette particularly associated with bogans is Winfield Blue 'Winnie blues' or Longbeach. Another factor of this stereotype is the storage of the cigarette packet inside the t-shirt sleeve at shoulder height.
  • there is a similarly detailed stereotype related to music, based around metal and Australian 'pub rock' - primarily Jimmy Barnes and his band Cold Chisel, particularly their song Khe Sanh, and AC/DC. Barnes is valued not only due to nationalistic associations, but also because, with such songs as Working Class Man, adherents of the stereotype presumably feel that he empathises with their typical reality and mindset. The drunk young man who loudly demands that a band 'play some Barnesy', or 'play Khe Sanh', regardless of the band's style, is a recognisable element of the stereotype. Other musical artists prized by bogans might include Metallica, Rose Tattoo and The Angels (mainly among older adherents of the stereotype), the Choirboys, Noiseworks, the Screaming Jets, and possibly James Reyne. As "Techno" (as they call anything from trance to house music) has faded in popularity among people who were nightclubbing ten years ago, it has become very popular with Bogans also.

Location

The bogan stereotype is closely associated with location as the perception is that bogans live in the outer suburbs of metropolitan areas or in rural areas. As far as Melbourne is concerned, the outer suburbs of the northwestern rail corridor are the primary areas, including such suburbs as Broadmeadows, Sunshine, Diggers' Rest, and Sunbury. These are mostly semi-rural areas with a local economy revolving at least partially around the automotive and construction industries, and thus provide opportunities for unskilled employment. These areas are also almost entirely devoid of ethnic minorities. Given the abovementioned racism and excessive nationalism, adherents of the stereotype much prefer areas with this characteristic also.

The 2005 Macquarie Fields riots are commonly thought of to be conducted by Bogans, and the white participants in the 2005 Sydney race riots in Cronulla may also be classified as such. However a term that is sometimes used for those from Cronulla or Sutherland Shire is "Bogans with a Beach" or "Beach Bogans", perhaps to differentiate them from the common (housing commission) bogan as having a fairly nice area where they live, while still displaying most of the other characteristics of bogans.

In Perth, Western Australia, bogans are associated with areas east of the city, in suburbs such as Cloverdale, Kewdale, Welshpool, Queens Park and Belmont. Suburbs south of the city such as Rockingham, Warnbro, Armadale and Thornlie also have a high number of bogans. On weekends, the general area of Fremantle becomes infested with bogans as they drive up and down Market Street many times during the course of a day.

There is a feeling in the community that the true essence of the bogan has deteriorated. There is the '80's bogan look and characteristics that are indelable and romantic. There has since then been a substantial evolution of the bogan. There are undoubtedly some 1980s true blue bogans still strutting the streets, but there is a new generation of nouveau bogans that are often termed pseudo bogans and there are difficulties in the classification. Do these new lifestyles truly deserve the term of bogan? The answer is surely yes, there are striking similarities between these new forms and the original bogans. The differences are due to the different environments we live in today and the impact bogan lifestyle has had on our psyche as a whole. We can now see roaming our streets various forms of creature that still have their ancestral bogan roots in the same way the human coccyx is the remants of a tail. From this evlutionary perspective and current observatoin, there should be added several sub species to the bogan line, namely;

Cro-bogan (originating from the pure '80's bogan stock, but harder, meaner and more phyically and mentally scarred) Metrobogan [mogan] (the softer, understanding bogan who is in touch with current issues but is still a bogan at heart/slightly scary) Cashed up bogan (as previously mentioned, this is a real phenomenon - it derives from the realisation that bogan isn't forced upon you - it is a choice and a priviledge) Agribogan (formed from the mixing of outer suburbs with agricultural areas where elements of each culture mix

The evolution continues in all areas of the globe (globogan?/Balibogan?) and the wonderful journey into one of the world's most beautiful species continyous....

Cultural references

  • Song "Nobody Likes a Bogan", by alternative/ska band Area 7.[1]
  • The televison show, Fat Pizza, adopted a stereotypical bogan character named Davo. Davo is often depicted wearing a flanelet, thongs and a wife beater. He also undertakes stereo typical bogan activities including drinking VB, smoking cannabis, talking bogan slang and is often referred to as a bogan by other characters.

Use in Marketing

"Cub" or "Cashed Up Bogan" has been used by one marketing researcher to describe people of a blue-collar background now earning a high salary, spending those earnings on such items as show-piece utility vehicles, jewellery and home appliances. [2]

Equivalent Terms in Australia and New Zealand

Equivalent terms are:

See also

References

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