Waltzing Matilda Australia’s unofficial National Anthem Lyrics by A.B. Paterson
Waltzing Matilda is Australia’s unofficial National Anthem and written as a poem by Andrew 'Banjo' (A.B.) Paterson (1864 - 1941) at old Dagworth Homestead, Queensland, Australia in January 1895
Waltzing Matilda the poem and the song is about a swagman, a “swaggie” or tramp, who camps by a creek and steals a sheep. Three policemen arrive, and rather than submit to capture, the “swaggie” commits suicide by drowning himself in the creek.
Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong, Under the shade of a Coolibah tree, And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil, You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda, You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me, And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee, And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda, You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me, And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Up rode the squatter mounted on his thorough-bred Down came the troopers One Two Three Whose that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me Whose that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker-bag You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Up jumped the swagman sprang in to the billabong You'll never catch me alive said he, And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.
Words and Meanings
Waltzing Matilda "To waltz Matilda" is to travel with a swag, that is, with all your belongings on your back wrapped in a blanket or cloth.
Waltzing Derived from the German term “auf der Walz,” which means to travel while working as a craftsman and learn new techniques from other masters before returning home after three years and one day, a custom which is still in use today among some carpenters.
Matilda A romantic term for a swagman's bundle.
Swagman or “Swaggie” A man who travelled the country looking for work. The swagman's "swag" was a bed roll that bundled his belongings.
Billabong An oxbow lake (a cut-off river bend) found alongside a meandering river.
Coolibah Tree A kind of eucalyptus tree which grows near billabongs.
Jumbuck A large, difficult-to-shear sheep, not a tame sheep. Implies that the sheep was not 'owned' by the squatter or regularly shorn, thus not able to be stolen by the swagman.
Billy A can for boiling water in, usually 2–3 pints.
Tucker bag A bag for carrying food ("tucker").
Troopers Policemen.
Squatter Australian squatters started as early farmers who raised livestock on land which they did not legally have the right to use; in many cases they later gained legal use of the land even though they did not have full possession, and became wealthy thanks to these large land holdings.
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