Waltzing Matilda

"Waltzing Matilda" is Australia's most widely known folk song and one that has been popularly suggested as a potential national anthem many times. The song is well-known and strongly associated with Australia outside the country as well.

Lyrics

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Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong,

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Under the shade of a coolibah tree,

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And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled

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"Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me?"

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Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda

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Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me

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And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled,

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"Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me?"

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Along came a jumbuck to drink at the billabong,

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Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee,

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And he sang as he stowed that jumbuck in his tucker bag,

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"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

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Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda

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Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me

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And he sang as he stowed that jumbuck in his tucker bag,

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"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me?".

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Up rode the squatter, mounted on his thoroughbred,

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Down came the troopers, one, two, three,

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"Whose is that jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag?"

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"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

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Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda

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Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me

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"Whose is that jumbuck you've got in your tucker bag?",

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"You'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me?".

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Up jumped the swagman, leapt into the billabong,

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"You'll never catch me alive," said he,

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And his ghost may be heard as you pass by the billabong,

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"Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me".

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Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda

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Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me

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And his ghost may be heard as you pass by the billabong,

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"Who'll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me?"

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The words unfamiliar to non-Australians are:

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; swagman : is the Australian equivalent of a hobo, but a romanticised figure who travelled the country looking for work, usually sporting a hat hung with cork to ward off flies. The swagman's "swag" was his bundle of belongings.

Related Topics:
Swagman - Hobo - Cork - Swag

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; waltzing : is derived from the German term auf der Walz, which meant to travel while working as a craftsman.

Related Topics:
Auf der Walz - Craftsman

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; Matilda : A romantic term for a swagman's bundle. See below, "Waltzing Matilda."

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; Waltzing Matilda : From the above terms, "to waltz Matilda" is to travel with a swag, that is, with all one's belongings on one's back wrapped in a blanket or cloth. The exact origins of the term "Matilda" are disputed; one fanciful derivation states that when swagmen met each other at their gatherings, there were rarely women to dance with. Nonetheless, they enjoyed a dance, and so they danced with their swags, which was given a woman's name. However, this appears to be influenced by the word "waltz", hence the introduction of dancing. It seems more likely that, as a swagman's only companion, the swag came to be personified as a woman.

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; billabong : a stagnant pool found along the side of a river where eddies and directional changes of the water keep it from moving.

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; coolibah tree : a kind of eucalyptus which grows near billabongs.

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; jumbuck : a sheep. A "jombok" is a large, fluffy cloud that drifts across inland Australia. The aboriginals, when they saw sheep for the first time, were reminded of jomboks and called them a similar word. An alternative explanation is that it is an Aboriginally pronounced "jump up."

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; billy : a can for boiling water in, usu. 2-3 pints.

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; tucker bag : a bag for carrying food ("tucker") in.

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; troopers : policemen.

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Variations

Other current variations include the third line of the chorus constantly saying "And he sang as he sat and waited by the billabong" or "And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled".

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Banjo Paterson's original version has slightly different lyrics to the ones generally known today.

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The first verse originally ran like this:

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Oh, there once was a swagman camped in the billabong,

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Under the shade of a coolibah tree,

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And he sang as he looked at the old billy boiling,

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Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me?

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Chorus

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Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda my darling,

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Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me?

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Waltzing Matilda and leading a waterbag,

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Who'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me?

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An even earlier version used the term "A-roving Australia" rather than "waltzing matilda". However, he was talked out of using this.

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