29:
277:
mercantile establishment. The jackaroo's employment may have been made by agreement between his father and the wealthy squatter through some connection, with the son working for a year in a variety of roles for his board and lodging. This was often seen as a great advantage to the squatter, who gained an intelligent and subservient worker at minimal expense.
85:, has been used in Australia since at least the middle of the 19th century and passed from there into common usage in New Zealand. Its use in both countries continues into the 21st century. The origin of the word is obscure and probably unknowable, but its first documented use was in Queensland. Several possibilities have been put forward:
276:
is a term, commonly used in the 19th- and early 20th-centuries for the acquisition of skills and experience in
Australia by young English gentlemen, in the expectation of preferential treatment back in England when applying for a position with possibility of advancement, such as a clerk in a large
418:– "Jackaroos are, or were, sweated labour. The legend is that they are social equals with the station owners, and are virtually treated as belonging to the family. Because of this, they receive only about half the pay of a station hand, and are liable for duty at any time."
293:
per week for the first twelve months, he would not compensate them for the damage he does (just through want of experience), no matter how willing he may be. It just happens that way, and all the
Arbitration Courts, the curse of Australia, won't alter it."
194:
with editorial expertise for their
Australian dictionaries. They have explained their reasons for making no final judgment, and raise another possibility, that 'jackeroo' is derived from an aboriginal word for 'stranger' rather than for a 'pied crow
254:, published between 1800 and 1899. This book begins by describing itself as: "Containing the latest hits on Busy in town, Australia's carsman, The Chinese and federation, Squatters' defeat, Australia's happy land, The Jackaroo, &c., &c.,"
359:
sheep and cattle, fencing , and generally any work there may be about the place, so that he not only needs a fair education, but intelligence and adaptability". Vigars continues, "A jackeroo is a title signifying a youth under training for the
164:
A jackaroo (sometimes spelt jackeroo) Is a young man learning experience on a pastoral property. (2) In the
English language 'Jack' is compounded with a lot of words, and in the early pastoral days it was compounded with the "roo" in
206:
were both used from about 1880 to at least 1981. In 2010, the more commonly used spelling was 'jackaroo'. However, between the years 1970 and 1981, a sample of
Australian newspapers referred to 'jackeroo' 18 times and 'jackaroo' 29
178:
stated in 1968 that it is "most probably a coined
Australian-sounding word based on a 'Jacky Raw'" Jackaroos (Jacky + Raw) were often young men from Britain or from city backgrounds in Australia, which would explain the
447:(TAFE) centres provide a certificate course of practical experiences for people who want to work as jackaroos or jillaroos on rural properties. The course covers practical aspects of farm work at an introductory level.
328:
This was most clearly evident in the segregated eating arrangements, "The boss and the jackaroos ate meals in the 'big' or 'government' house. The men – that is, the stockmen, teamsters, blacksmiths, etc. – ate their
224:
and persisted into the 21st century. During the war it was necessary for women to take on all the occupations followed traditionally only by men. Jillaroos were the female equivalent of jackeroos.
429:
thinking, a new source of jillaroos began to appear. Susan Cottam, an
English woman, described her experiences in Western Queensland from 3 March 1966 to 3 March 1968, in the form of a journal.
263:
magazine featured an essay, "Reminiscences of Bush Life in
Queensland," in which the anonymous author calls himself a "Jackaroo" due to his inexperience (the story takes place in 1863).
325:
of station life, reading from top to bottom, was bosses, jackaroos, men and blacks. This was a carry-over from the early days, when a rigid caste system ruled the land."
302:
and landowner (at Hidden Vale), who had left home at 14 to become a seaman. Later he became a member of the
Queensland Club and included a thank you letter from the
787:
52:, Australia, in the 19th century and is still in use in Australia and New Zealand in the 21st century. Its origins are unclear, although it is firmly rooted in
97:
through frequent occupational usage; derived from the practice of roasting a kangaroo on a spit. A "jack" being a person who turned meat on a spit or
126:, a garrulous bird, which the strange-sounding language of the white settlers reminded them of. Meston explained his position in a newspaper in 1919.
186:
Arguably the most authoritative voice in 2010 was that of the
Australian National Dictionary Centre of the Research School of the Humanities at the
101:. To "jack a 'roo" was to turn a kangaroo on a spit, a very common practice among rural workers in remote parts of Australia since colonial times.
412:– Michael Thornton wrote a small book hoping to contribute "to the memories of what might well become a dying avenue of Australian tradition".
1018:
286:
348:
for the blacks on the wood-heaps." ... "In keeping with this system, the bush towns maintained a social tradition of coffee rooms for the
28:
307:
136:
355:
By 1936 Vigars said "A jackeroo may be called upon to do all manner of work on a station, such as clerical work, boundary riding,
318:
317:
states that there was no division of rank in the outlying camps, "all ate around the same fire and slept in the open. But at the
45:
976:
404:, and this began to be replaced by programs of formal schooling. The jackaroo, as a form of apprenticeship, followed the trend.
1013:
814:
444:
116:
344:
had caste bells which called us to our meals – a tinkling bell for government house, a horse bell for the kitchen men, and a
187:
441:
345:
266:
In 1878, 'Ironbark' stated "Young gentlemen getting their 'colonial experience' in the bush are called 'jackeroos' by the
225:
557:
1919 'Our Jackeroo Magpies.', The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864–1933), 12 November, p. 6, viewed 17 November 2010,
132:
By 1925, it was said that the term jackeroo originated from the fact that "one of the earliest was named 'Jack Carew'."
1008:
48:
to gain practical experience in the skills needed to become an owner, overseer, manager, etc. The word originated in
722:
20:
571:
617:
1968, Encyclopaedia of Australia, A.T.A. and A.M. Learmonth, Frederick Warne & Co. Ltd, London and New York
708:
191:
569:(1906 Bulletin (Sydney) 28 June 14/2) retrieved from The Australian National Dictionary, 17 November 2010
303:
949:
334:
314:
290:
259:
605:
1929 'ANSWERS.', The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864–1933), 5 July, p. 16, viewed 13 November 2010,
696:
476:
61:
627:
356:
57:
53:
488:
289:) says that a jackeroo must be paid 25/- per week. If an ordinary jackeroo paid the station 25
129:
By 1906, immigrants into Australia were often called Johnny Raws. From that it became Jacky Raw.
513:
748:
647:
TROVE database of digitised publications, Australian National Library, Retrieved 12 June 2011
897:
896:; Michael Thornton Publications; South Yarra, Melbourne (a former employee of an Australian
422:
361:
221:
149:
962:
381:
377:
914:
901:
596:(1925 Aussie (Sydney) April. 52/3) The Australian National Dictionary, 17 November 2010
401:
385:
123:
686:, Popular Australian songs and poems, 28 pages, Sydney: Batty & Chalcraft Printers
1002:
791:. Vol. XVI, no. 684. New South Wales, Australia. 9 August 1873. p. 171
400:
The traditional method for training young men for practical occupations had been the
322:
299:
231:
104:
An Australian variation on the term for American cowboys, who were sometimes called '
90:
267:
169:
to indicate, perhaps, the aimless rushing about of the inexperienced station cadet.
157:, on 5 July 1929, page 16, stated in answer to a question from a reader 'POMMY' of
337:
were given a hand-out from the door of the kitchen and ate it on the woodheap ."
270:. The term is seldom heard except in the remote 'back-blocks' of the interior."
489:"Jackaroo Jillaroo Australia | Jackaroo & Jillaroo School Australia Program"
140:
94:
32:
A cattle station in northern New South Wales, where a jackaroo could be working
782:
373:
365:
180:
154:
98:
49:
606:
558:
810:
389:
105:
749:"Year13 - What It's Really Like To Live And Work As A Jackaroo / Jillaroo"
122:
Another suggestion (1895) was for an origin from an Aboriginal word for a
426:
166:
144:
369:
158:
109:
575:
537:
456:
349:
234:
at that time, and suggests the derivation of Jillaroo from Jackaroo.
415:
Dissatisfaction with the existing practices began to be expressed:
437:
341:
811:
Commonwealth Court of Conciliation & Arbitration (1904–1956)
330:
977:"Jillaroos, jackaroos and their pups undergo sheepdog training"
242:
Usage, practice, and social conditions have changed over time.
115:
Originating from a term meaning 'a wandering white man' in an
628:"Australian National Dictionary Centre, Australian Words H-R"
657:
285:
In 1933, A. J. Cotton stated "Today the Arbitration Court (
108:'. The term 'buckaroo' was derived from the Spanish word '
723:"What is a Jackaroo or a Jillaroo? Backpacker Job Board"
711:. Ward and Lock. 29 July 1867 – via Google Books.
16:
Young trainee on an Australian cattle or sheep station
944:"Outback Magazine" (75). February–March 2011: 157.
872:Jackeroos: their duties and prospects in Australia
287:Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration
548:A. Meston, Geographic History of Queensland, 1895
830:; Watson, Ferguson & Co. Ltd.; Brisbane; p67
425:ended. But during the '70s, as a consequence of
421:Most jillaroos returned to the cities after the
333:in the kitchen and slept in the huts, while the
250:An early reference to jackaroos can be found in
162:
850:Bill Harney, A Bushmans Life, an Autobiography
788:The Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser
310:, in the introduction to his own autobiography
183:use of 'raw' in the sense of 'inexperienced'.
874:; William Brook & Co. Limited; Sydney; p5
8:
674:1968, Encyclopaedia of Australia, Learmonth
799:– via National Library of Australia.
607:http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21423644
559:http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20392717
408:Changes in Australian agricultural society
220:for a female landworker was coined in the
848:1990; Lockwood, Douglas and Ruth (Eds.);
340:"And strangely enough, this division of
27:
468:
958:
947:
921:, Australian National University Press
772:1878, 'Ironbark', Southerly Busters, 9
364:profession, and corresponding to the
7:
809:Elford, Ross G. (12 December 2002) "
40:is a young man (feminine equivalent
352:and dining rooms for the workers."
14:
321:a change came over all this. The
147:), has much popular support. The
572:"Australian National Dictionary"
828:With the Big Herds in Australia
815:Australian Trade Union Archives
445:Technical and further education
870:Vigars, Francis Ernest; 1936;
188:Australian National University
1:
60:and in the traditions of the
1019:Animal husbandry occupations
1035:
934:; Viking O'Neil, Melbourne
852:; Viking O'Neil; Melbourne
538:cowboy#Etymology and usage
176:Encyclopaedia of Australia
18:
727:Backpacker Job Board Blog
378:Mercantile Marine Service
21:Jackaroo (disambiguation)
892:Michael Thornton; 1975;
817:. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
684:Tibb's popular song book
518:dictionary.cambridge.org
252:Tibb's popular song book
81:, also formerly spelled
192:Oxford University Press
46:sheep or cattle station
1014:Livestock in Australia
957:Cite journal requires
894:It's a Jackaroo's Life
861:1990, Bill Harney, p22
304:Governor of Queensland
171:
33:
930:Cottam, Susan; 1990;
783:"Colonial Experience"
31:
900:and Prime Minister,
839:Cotton, 1933, page x
826:1933; Cotton, A.J.;
697:State Library of NSW
477:Macquarie Dictionary
392:office, and so on."
19:For other uses, see
274:Colonial experience
230:was a widely known
117:Aboriginal language
62:Australian stockmen
1009:Australian English
983:. 22 February 2021
281:Early 20th century
137:Jack of all Trades
58:Australian culture
54:Australian English
34:
919:Strive to be Fair
396:Late 20th century
190:, which provides
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883:Vigars, 1936, p5
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729:. 8 January 2017
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574:. Archived from
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382:commercial house
222:Second World War
150:Brisbane Courier
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578:on 6 April 2011
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139:in Australia' (
93:which became a
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323:social strata
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300:self-made man
298:Cotton was a
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268:station-hands
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232:nursery rhyme
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227:Jack and Jill
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91:deverbal noun
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985:. Retrieved
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793:. Retrieved
786:
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756:. Retrieved
752:
743:
731:. Retrieved
726:
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709:"Temple Bar"
703:
695:held at the
691:
683:
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631:. Retrieved
622:
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580:. Retrieved
576:the original
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521:. Retrieved
517:
508:
496:. Retrieved
492:
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436:
433:21st century
420:
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339:
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319:head-station
313:
308:John Goodwin
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246:19th century
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82:
78:
76:
41:
37:
35:
25:
633:15 November
423:1939–45 War
390:solicitor's
315:Bill Harney
95:common noun
1003:Categories
582:28 January
514:"jackaroo"
463:References
380:– or in a
374:apprentice
366:midshipman
335:Aborigines
260:Temple Bar
181:pejorative
155:Queensland
99:rotisserie
50:Queensland
442:Kimberley
357:mustering
291:shillings
257:In 1867,
216:The word
106:buckaroos
77:The word
68:Etymology
932:Jillaroo
795:20 April
451:See also
427:feminist
362:pastoral
346:triangle
218:jillaroo
212:Jillaroo
204:jackeroo
200:jackaroo
195:shrike'.
167:kangaroo
145:kangaroo
83:jackeroo
79:jackaroo
73:Jackaroo
42:jillaroo
38:jackaroo
898:grazier
658:"Trove"
376:in the
370:warship
238:History
159:Toowong
110:vaquero
987:3 June
913:1978,
758:3 June
733:3 June
523:3 June
498:3 June
457:Cowboy
350:gentry
331:tucker
207:times.
438:Dubbo
388:in a
384:– an
372:– an
368:on a
342:caste
989:2021
963:help
797:2022
760:2021
735:2021
635:2010
584:2011
525:2021
500:2021
440:and
202:and
174:The
141:Jack
813:".
135:A '
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