mulga wire

English

WOTD – 27 January 2023

Etymology

From mulga (“any of a number of small acacia trees, especially Acacia aneura, forming dense scrub in dry inland areas of Australia; (by extension) the outback”) +‎ wire (“telecommunication wire or cable”), possibly modelled after bush telegraph.^[1]^[2]

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈmʌlɡə ˌwaɪə/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈmʌlɡə ˌwaɪ(ə)ɹ/
(General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈmɐlɡə ˌwaɪə/, [-ˌwɑeə]
Hyphenation: mul‧ga wi‧re

Noun

mulga wire (countable and uncountable, plural mulga wires)

(Australia, New Zealand)
1. An informal gossip network, especially in a rural area such as the outback; also, a component in the network (either a person or an imagined wire).
  Synonyms: bush telegraph, grapevine, jungle telegraph
  - 1899 December 30, “An Australian Pastoral: ‘The Well-Sinkers: An Australian Pastoral.’ By Edith Quin. London: Fisher Unwin. [Over-Seas Library.] 2s. 6d. [book review]”, in The Outlook: In Life, Politics, Finance, Letters, and the Arts, volume IV, number 100, London: Outlook Publishing Co., →OCLC, page 724, column 1:
    There is a really good sketch of Micky, the lonely boundary rider, whose wonderful stock of news comes by "the mulga wires," who is full of scandal about the squatter's rams, and is "follered" by a phantom hut of leopard-wood slabs.
  - 1937, Ion L[lewellyn] Idriess, The Cattle King: The Story of Sir Sidney Kidman, Sydney, N.S.W.: Angus & Robertson, →OCLC, page 82:
    Lumps of silver as big as your head they're picking up. So the mulga wires say.
  - 1938, Arthur Upfield, “A Stranger to Opal Town”, in The Bone is Pointed, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Clio Press, published 1993, →ISBN, page 36:
    "How did he receive word about the sick lubra?" / "I don't know. Mulga wire, I suppose."
  - 1987, Brian Ernest Matthews, Louisa, St. Lucia, Qld.: University of Queensland Press, published 1998, →ISBN, page 72:
    That night, diggers from all over the field, having learnt by ‘mulga wire’ that one of their number had married Harry Albury's girl, gathered round the hut making cacophonous celebration […]
  - 1990, Lennie Wallace, “Christmas on the Road”, in Bow Waves in the Bull Dust […], 3rd edition, Brisbane, Qld.: Boolarong Press, published 2012, →ISBN, page 139:
    In the meantime, I had been receiving worrying reports about Nancy by mulga wire but could not find out for sure what was wrong.
  - 2007, Kerry McGinnis, The Waddi Tree, Camberwell, Vic.: Penguin Group Australia, →ISBN:
    ‘The mulga-wire’s not working too good,’ he said by way of greeting. ‘I had no idea. When did you get back?’
2. A message or story transmitted through such an informal network, especially one containing false information.
  Synonym: mulga
  - 1913, Henry Lawson, “The Little Man with the Smile”, in Triangles of Life and Other Stories, Melbourne, Vic., Sydney, N.S.W.: Lothian Book Publishing Co, published 1984, →OCLC, page 90:
    Tom had been been out early, or had got what we call a bush telegraphy or mulga wire, for when they reached the Four Lanes he said— […]
  - 1938, Arthur Upfield, “Beside a Little Fire”, in The Bone is Pointed, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Clio Press, published 1993, →ISBN, page 72:
    "What else did Nero say?" / "Nothin'. Only to tell you when you came home. Wandin sent him the mulga wire, I suppose."
(Australia, historical) A system for long-distance communication used by Aboriginal Australians, chiefly using smoke signals; also, a message or signal sent using such a system.

Translations

informal gossip network, especially in a rural area such as the outback; a component in the network (either a person or an imagined wire) — see bush telegraph

message or story transmitted through such an informal network, especially one containing false information

Finnish: huhu (fi), kuulopuhe (fi)
Macedonian: гла́сина f (glásina), слух m (sluh)

system for long-distance communication used by Aboriginal Australians, chiefly using smoke signals; a message or signal sent using such a system

Finnish: savumerkit pl

References

^ “mulga wire, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, September 2022.
^ W. S. Ramson, editor (1988), “mulga, n.¹ and attrib.”, in The Australian National Dictionary: A Dictionary of Australianisms on Historical Principles, Melbourne, Vic.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 407, columns 2–3; W. S. Ramson, editor (1988), “mulga wire, n.”, in The Australian National Dictionary: A Dictionary of Australianisms on Historical Principles, Melbourne, Vic.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 408, columns 2–3.