Latest news with #SchoolofLanguagesandCultures
Epoch Times
23-05-2025
- General
- Epoch Times
Study Finds Aussies Swear Less Online Than Americans and Brits
Despite their reputation for colourful language, Australians are more restrained than their American and British counterparts when it comes to swearing online, according to new research led by the University of Queensland. The study analysed over 1.7 billion words of digital content across 20 English-speaking countries. Researchers sifted through blogs, forums, and social media to examine how often vulgar words appeared in written online communication. Using a comprehensive list of 597 offensive terms, including misspellings and variations, the research team combined computational tools with linguistic analysis to explore how culture influences the use of profanities in digital spaces. More Conservative Behind the Keyboard Martin Schweinberger from UQ's School of Languages and Cultures suggested one possible reason is that Australians moderate their tone more in written settings. 'Australians are more conservative when they write online but not so much when they are face-to-face,' he said. Schweinberger added that while swearing, slang, and informal expressions are embedded in Australian culture, the way people choose to express themselves often depends on context. 'Australians really see vulgarity, swearing, and slang as part of our culture—we're very invested in it,' he said. 'It's not just about speaking correctly—it's about speaking appropriately.' Related Stories 12/10/2024 1/14/2024 Monash University's Kate Burridge co-led the study using data from the Language Data Commons of Australia, a project backed by federal research funding. Public Language, Private Filters While Australians may tone it down online, they maintain a global reputation for creative use of profanity in public settings, Burridge said. 'Our study suggests Australians might still live up to our popular image of having unusually rich and inventive 'bad' language, especially thanks to our very public and colourful airing of swear words—this is something that's often remarked upon by overseas visitors to the country,' she said. Examples include the famous 'So where the bloody hell are you?' tourism campaign in 2006, which was banned in Canada, censored in Singapore, and pulled from UK media. Another is the long-running government road safety campaign slogan: 'If You Drink, Then Drive, You're a Bloody Idiot.' A History of Swearing This latest research builds on earlier work by Amanda Laugesen, Director of the Australian National Dictionary Centre, who has traced profanity in Australian English from convict slang to modern vernacular. In her book Rooted, she argues that Australia's penal colony origins helped shape a more casual relationship with coarse language, noting that such words often signified class, status, and race in early settler society.
The Age
23-05-2025
- General
- The Age
WTF! Australians don't swear as much as others do online, study shows
Australians are surprisingly swearing less online than people in other countries but researchers suspect the nation is saving it for face-to-face interactions. The University of Queensland study examined more than 1.7 billion words of online content across 20 English-speaking countries, specifically looking for 597 vulgar words. Using computational methods with linguistics, researchers narrowed down which country was swearing the most online. Even though Australia holds a reputation for swearing regularly, the US came out on top followed by the UK. 'Some may find it disappointing,' said Dr Martin Schweinberger, lead researcher from the university's School of Languages and Cultures. 'Australians really see vulgarity, swearing and slang as part of our culture – we're very invested in it.' Loading Swear words are normalised in Australia's everyday language, with even tourism campaigns featuring them, including the famed slogan 'So where the bloody hell are you' asked by model Lara Bingle. The ad was banned in Canada, from TV and billboards in Britain and censored in Singapore.
Sydney Morning Herald
23-05-2025
- General
- Sydney Morning Herald
WTF! Australians don't swear as much as others do online, study shows
Australians are surprisingly swearing less online than people in other countries but researchers suspect the nation is saving it for face-to-face interactions. The University of Queensland study examined more than 1.7 billion words of online content across 20 English-speaking countries, specifically looking for 597 vulgar words. Using computational methods with linguistics, researchers narrowed down which country was swearing the most online. Even though Australia holds a reputation for swearing regularly, the US came out on top followed by the UK. 'Some may find it disappointing,' said Dr Martin Schweinberger, lead researcher from the university's School of Languages and Cultures. 'Australians really see vulgarity, swearing and slang as part of our culture – we're very invested in it.' Loading Swear words are normalised in Australia's everyday language, with even tourism campaigns featuring them, including the famed slogan 'So where the bloody hell are you' asked by model Lara Bingle. The ad was banned in Canada, from TV and billboards in Britain and censored in Singapore.
The Advertiser
22-05-2025
- Science
- The Advertiser
Surprise as Australians found swearing less than others
Australians are surprisingly swearing less online than other countries but researchers suspect the nation is saving it for face-to-face interactions. The University of Queensland study examined more than 1.7 billion words of online content across 20 English-speaking countries, specifically looking for 597 vulgar words. Using computational methods with linguistics, researchers narrowed down which country was swearing the most online. Even though Australia holds a reputation for swearing regularly, the US came out on top followed by the UK. "Some may find it disappointing," said Martin Schweinberger, lead researcher from the university's School of Languages and Cultures. "Australians really see vulgarity, swearing and slang as part of our culture - we're very invested in it." Swear words are normalised in Australia's everyday language with even tourism campaigns featuring them, including the famed slogan "so where the bloody hell are you" asked by model Lara Bingle. The ad was banned in Canada, from TV and billboards in the UK and censored in Singapore. Australia also used a road safety campaign with the phrase, "If you drink, then drive, you're a bloody idiot", that has been running since the 1980s. Australia may have failed to win the top gong for online profanities due to being more conservative when writing online and instead preferring to swear face-to-face, Dr Schweinberger suggested. "Our study suggests Australians might still live up to our popular image of having unusually rich and inventive 'bad' language," he said. "Especially thanks to our very public and colourful airing of swear words - this is something that's often remarked upon by overseas visitors to the country." Dr Schweinberger said this is the first large-scale analysis of its kind to determine how offensive language was used in English-speaking countries. The research was published in science journal Lingua. Australians are surprisingly swearing less online than other countries but researchers suspect the nation is saving it for face-to-face interactions. The University of Queensland study examined more than 1.7 billion words of online content across 20 English-speaking countries, specifically looking for 597 vulgar words. Using computational methods with linguistics, researchers narrowed down which country was swearing the most online. Even though Australia holds a reputation for swearing regularly, the US came out on top followed by the UK. "Some may find it disappointing," said Martin Schweinberger, lead researcher from the university's School of Languages and Cultures. "Australians really see vulgarity, swearing and slang as part of our culture - we're very invested in it." Swear words are normalised in Australia's everyday language with even tourism campaigns featuring them, including the famed slogan "so where the bloody hell are you" asked by model Lara Bingle. The ad was banned in Canada, from TV and billboards in the UK and censored in Singapore. Australia also used a road safety campaign with the phrase, "If you drink, then drive, you're a bloody idiot", that has been running since the 1980s. Australia may have failed to win the top gong for online profanities due to being more conservative when writing online and instead preferring to swear face-to-face, Dr Schweinberger suggested. "Our study suggests Australians might still live up to our popular image of having unusually rich and inventive 'bad' language," he said. "Especially thanks to our very public and colourful airing of swear words - this is something that's often remarked upon by overseas visitors to the country." Dr Schweinberger said this is the first large-scale analysis of its kind to determine how offensive language was used in English-speaking countries. The research was published in science journal Lingua. Australians are surprisingly swearing less online than other countries but researchers suspect the nation is saving it for face-to-face interactions. The University of Queensland study examined more than 1.7 billion words of online content across 20 English-speaking countries, specifically looking for 597 vulgar words. Using computational methods with linguistics, researchers narrowed down which country was swearing the most online. Even though Australia holds a reputation for swearing regularly, the US came out on top followed by the UK. "Some may find it disappointing," said Martin Schweinberger, lead researcher from the university's School of Languages and Cultures. "Australians really see vulgarity, swearing and slang as part of our culture - we're very invested in it." Swear words are normalised in Australia's everyday language with even tourism campaigns featuring them, including the famed slogan "so where the bloody hell are you" asked by model Lara Bingle. The ad was banned in Canada, from TV and billboards in the UK and censored in Singapore. Australia also used a road safety campaign with the phrase, "If you drink, then drive, you're a bloody idiot", that has been running since the 1980s. Australia may have failed to win the top gong for online profanities due to being more conservative when writing online and instead preferring to swear face-to-face, Dr Schweinberger suggested. "Our study suggests Australians might still live up to our popular image of having unusually rich and inventive 'bad' language," he said. "Especially thanks to our very public and colourful airing of swear words - this is something that's often remarked upon by overseas visitors to the country." Dr Schweinberger said this is the first large-scale analysis of its kind to determine how offensive language was used in English-speaking countries. The research was published in science journal Lingua. Australians are surprisingly swearing less online than other countries but researchers suspect the nation is saving it for face-to-face interactions. The University of Queensland study examined more than 1.7 billion words of online content across 20 English-speaking countries, specifically looking for 597 vulgar words. Using computational methods with linguistics, researchers narrowed down which country was swearing the most online. Even though Australia holds a reputation for swearing regularly, the US came out on top followed by the UK. "Some may find it disappointing," said Martin Schweinberger, lead researcher from the university's School of Languages and Cultures. "Australians really see vulgarity, swearing and slang as part of our culture - we're very invested in it." Swear words are normalised in Australia's everyday language with even tourism campaigns featuring them, including the famed slogan "so where the bloody hell are you" asked by model Lara Bingle. The ad was banned in Canada, from TV and billboards in the UK and censored in Singapore. Australia also used a road safety campaign with the phrase, "If you drink, then drive, you're a bloody idiot", that has been running since the 1980s. Australia may have failed to win the top gong for online profanities due to being more conservative when writing online and instead preferring to swear face-to-face, Dr Schweinberger suggested. "Our study suggests Australians might still live up to our popular image of having unusually rich and inventive 'bad' language," he said. "Especially thanks to our very public and colourful airing of swear words - this is something that's often remarked upon by overseas visitors to the country." Dr Schweinberger said this is the first large-scale analysis of its kind to determine how offensive language was used in English-speaking countries. The research was published in science journal Lingua.
West Australian
22-05-2025
- Science
- West Australian
Surprise as Australians found swearing less than others
Australians are surprisingly swearing less online than other countries but researchers suspect the nation is saving it for face-to-face interactions. The University of Queensland study examined more than 1.7 billion words of online content across 20 English-speaking countries, specifically looking for 597 vulgar words. Using computational methods with linguistics, researchers narrowed down which country was swearing the most online. Even though Australia holds a reputation for swearing regularly, the US came out on top followed by the UK. "Some may find it disappointing," said Martin Schweinberger, lead researcher from the university's School of Languages and Cultures. "Australians really see vulgarity, swearing and slang as part of our culture - we're very invested in it." Swear words are normalised in Australia's everyday language with even tourism campaigns featuring them, including the famed slogan "so where the bloody hell are you" asked by model Lara Bingle. The ad was banned in Canada, from TV and billboards in the UK and censored in Singapore. Australia also used a road safety campaign with the phrase, "If you drink, then drive, you're a bloody idiot", that has been running since the 1980s. Australia may have failed to win the top gong for online profanities due to being more conservative when writing online and instead preferring to swear face-to-face, Dr Schweinberger suggested. "Our study suggests Australians might still live up to our popular image of having unusually rich and inventive 'bad' language," he said. "Especially thanks to our very public and colourful airing of swear words - this is something that's often remarked upon by overseas visitors to the country." Dr Schweinberger said this is the first large-scale analysis of its kind to determine how offensive language was used in English-speaking countries. The research was published in science journal Lingua.
