Talk:Outback

Bush v outback
There has obviously been some disagreement over the meaning of "bush" compared to "outback". I grew up outside the capital cities (specifically Morisset), and to me the two words have a distinct meaning. The bush was the stuff outside my front door, and similar environments (mainly eucalyptus forest). The outback, to me, is the remote, arid interior -- especially the desert but perhaps also the dry plains. -- Tim Starling 03:06, 22 Aug 2003 (UTC)


 * Okay... So should both be described in the same article, or would it be better to have separate articles for each? At the moment, everything just redirects here, which gives the impression that they are the same thing. -- Oliver P. 03:09, 22 Aug 2003 (UTC)


 * IMHO "bush" is wiktionary material. It's an ill-defined, colloquial word, with no special significance (at least not to me). "Outback" is poorly defined as well, but it has a great deal of cultural significance. Perhaps "bush" is significant to some Australians, but to me it doesn't deserve an article. -- Tim Starling 13:49, 25 Aug 2003 (UTC)

I agree with Mr Starling. This 'outback' page redirects from 'bush'. In 50 years in Australia I've never heard these two words used interchangeably. PW


 * From what I've grown up with Bush is used in preferrance to Outback Gnangarra 16:44, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

Back of where?
Back o'Burke, or Back o'Bourke? I always thought it was the latter, referring to Bourke, New South Wales. The article induicates otherwise... ???? Graham 04:01, 7 September 2005 (UTC)


 * Perhaps it refers to Robert O'Hara Burke of Burke and Wills fame? I'd say you're right though: it would seem to make sense if it were Bourke, the article for which does lay claim to the phrase. I'm not sure, but.--Cyberjunkie | Talk 04:41, 7 September 2005 (UTC)

Having been born in Bourke & living 'back of Bourke' for the first 20 years of my life (still have family there) I can confirm that the correct saying is 'Back o' Bourke'. The general consensus of most 'rural' Australians is that the outback is some where to the west of wherever they are now (unless you are in Western Australia - in which case it is somewhere to the east). To most city dwellers it is somewhere out there (with a general wave of the hand inland). It should be noticed that the majority of Australians live in an arc from Adelaide (South-East South Australia) to Brisbane (South-East Queensland), basically along the coast & a little way inland (including most of the state of Victoria). The Darling River divides NSW into two parts (actually offically the Barwon-Darling Rivers althought on a map they appear to be the same same river) with 1/3 of the state to the west & 2/3 to the east (the Barwon River defines part of the Queensland - NSW state border & the Darling flows into the Murray River which defines most to the NSW - Victorian state borders). Bourke is on the Darling River where it starts to head south. The sign on the Eastern approaches to Bourke says 'gateway to the real outback'. There is no real difference to being just to the east of the Darling or to the west of the Darling, but the Darling River is just such an obvoius dividing line for 'West of the Darling' & 'Back o'Bourke' to become 'sayings'. Bourke was also the end of a railway line, adding to 'this is where civilisation stops'. The 'bush' is anywhere with native vegitation. To 'go bush' is to go somewhere away from the main population centres which is anywhere in rural Australia (although rural Australians idea of 'bush' is a lot more isolated then that of city dwellers). Australia is heavily urbanised with half of its population living in or near its two major cities (Sydney & Melbourne). Only 20% of its population is considered 'rural' (ie not in one of the state capitals or a couple of close by cities such as Geelong, Newcastle, Woolongong & Gold Coast, or the national capital). — Preceding unsigned comment added by 1.144.97.100 (talk) 13:21, 28 May 2016 (UTC)

Help!
Can anybody help? Just moved the top line to a new Outback (disambiguation) article, but have forgotten how to work the articles/etc to get outback disambig as the first ref, with outback article as part of it. I once tried something with an obscure Tasmanian mountain, and found I was doing no-no things! SatuSuro 13:19, 17 January 2006 (UTC)
 * I think I've fixed what you were trying to do. Disambiguation should help you out next time. --cj | talk 13:31, 17 January 2006 (UTC)

Deaths Focus
I made a small adjustment to the wording on the tourism section. There appears to be potential for this be expanded into a more detailed section. With statistics I think can think of a couple of deaths in WA inside the last 12months, also one recent amazing rescue of an English gentleman near Broome. Gnangarra 00:47, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

RFDS
Also shouldn't the Royal Flying Doctor Service get at least a mention within this article Gnangarra 00:46, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

Outback
Perhaps there's no real answer, but I wonder where the word "outback" comes from, when it dates from. I've always thought that it was a deadpan joke reference to a person's back yard, or garden, the humour coming from the fact that the real outback is incomparably vaster than anyone's back garden. In the kind of terraced houses my parents grew up in, it's common to talk about the small garden area around the back - with just enough space for a washing line and a shed - as being "out back". Lupine Proletariat 15:12, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

The American English idiom "out back" refering to the back yard or the back room of a shop or workshop is not generally used in Australia. It would be more usual to say "round the back" or "in the back" for a reference of that kind.Eregli bob 01:36, 16 November 2007 (UTC)

I believe the original saying was 'out back of beyond' which got shortened to 'outback'. This is why there is no clear definition since everyones definition of 'beyond' is different. It's beyond beyond (ie go as far as you know & the outback is beyond that (further again)), which is why to most Australians its to the north &/or west, & to Western Australians (who mostly live in the south west of the state) it is to the north &/or east. The 'outback' itself does not actually exist. If you start in the east (say Sydney or Brisbane) everyone will tell you its further west. Travel west untill you eventually meet someone who tells you its further east. Then you will know you have crossed it. Australia is the worlds 6th largest country by area but most of the population is in a large arc in the south east & a smaller area in the south west. There is a mountain range that runs down Australia's east & south east coasts with the vast majority of its population living on the coastal side of this range (which tends to shorten their perspective of 'beyond'). To many who live on the costal side of the range the 'outback' is just on the other side of the range. To those who live on the inland side of the range its a lot further away. 1.144.97.100 (talk) 14:23, 28 May 2016 (UTC)

Population
I took this para out of the Population section. Firstly, it is very vague, it doesn't mention the name or dates of these supposed programs. Secondly, it seems to be reinforcing the myth that most aboriginal australians traditionally lived in the outback. They didn't, 90% lived in coastal regions.
 * There have been various attempts at creating settlements for Australian Aboriginals to live traditionally, with varied success. Often after becoming used to European influences and generational changes it is difficult for Aboriginals to live this kind of lifestyle.

Ashmoo 06:57, 29 May 2006 (UTC)

Tourism
I added:
 * Various towns claim to be home to the Black Stump, traditionally you aren't in The Outback until you've travelled beyond the Black Stump.

AFAIK there is one in Blackall (according to the article), and one in/near both Bourke and Broken Hill. --Garrie 02:59, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

Population seems to be more about culture
I don't know if the section needs to be split into Population (which would be 1 line) and Culture, or just renamed? As it is, there's not much about population in the section at all.--Garrie 03:05, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

No cropping in Northern Australia
WTF? The article states that there is no cropping in northern Australia. Is this some sort of joke? Unless someone can provide arefernce for this claim it gets delted. I'm sure I didn't imaging all that land under crops in the Qld. Central highlands or the Ord and VRD catchments. I really have no idea hwt the author menat by this comment. They say that the region recieves good rinfall so they can't be refrring to "the outback" strictly.

I have no idea about this. It is similar to the claim that there is no grazing land outside of the Lake Eyre basin, which makes me wonder what all those sheep and cattle are at Blackall or Cunnamulla. Baisally the article seems full of errors on the extent of agriculture in outback Australia. I suspect someone ha smisread a reference.Ethel Aardvark 07:57, 29 August 2007 (UTC)

Broome, Kakadu and Monkey Mia
As outback locations? How does a coastal location qualify as outback? I have never yet heard anyone use the term to refer to a coastal location. By defintion the outback is inland. Granted in the north the line often drifts closer to the coast, so parts of the Kimberly and even Charters Towers are occasionally referred to as outback, but never coastal towns. And Kakadu is Top End. Definitely not outback.
 * Eastcoast it refers to inland areas, but for west coast the term get loosely applied to all areas outside the wheatbelt (Geraldton --> Wubin --> Southern Cross --> Esperance). Gnangarra 23:44, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

Changed the opening
... because i didn't think 'Interior and north' was particularly clear in the first sentence. best, Petesmiles 05:16, 3 March 2007 (UTC)

What states?
Nowhere did I see any mention of what states of Australia that are part of the Outback region. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.218.161.17 (talk) 18:48, 28 March 2008 (UTC)


 * There are outback regions in all states except Tasmania and possibly Victoria. Agemegos (talk) 10:47, 21 February 2010 (UTC)

This article
Has nothing to do with aboriginal concepts of land - but the european understanding of the land - any attempts to re-write this article misses the point made in the second paragraph of the article - SatuSuro 10:05, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Leashold pastoral land
"on cattle station which are leased from the Federal Government. "   I think this is correct only in the Northern Territory. In other states, pastoral leasehold land is held from the State governments,  not the Federal government.Eregli bob (talk) 13:03, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Plains?
The outback is a nebulous spatial term which denote those parts of australia away from the coastline or cities - as a geographical term it is close to meaningless (it is a cognitive nisnomer for geographically challenged observors who either have not experienced the thing or who are limited in their range of vocabulary to explain a wide variety of inland australian features) - as a consequence to name it in terms of one type of feature against a widely varying area with a whole range geographical features - I would be reluctant to allow 'plain' to connote this annoyingly problematic term - sectionbs of it yes - but they need to be separated out and separately written about - not ''all the outback' it does not fit SatuSuro 03:19, 2 November 2008 (UTC)
 * Its more cultural term rather than a physical location, it encompass more than just plains many of the notable features of the "Outback" are Ranges, Mountains and Rocks. Gnangarra 07:34, 2 November 2008 (UTC)

Dingoes
The statement "dingos were introduced to Australia years ago but have turned feral and now roam the outback, occasionally killing livestock" is inadequate. Dingoes were introduced to Australia by humans, but the event occurred thousands of years ago: "millennia" would be better than "years". The word "feral" may be technically correct, but I feel that it is misleading.

Agemegos (talk) 10:58, 21 February 2010 (UTC)

No map showing the extent?
Could soneone add at least one map? Will (Talk - contribs) 00:25, 22 June 2017 (UTC)
 * The problem is that it's not a well-defined concept. It's the big dry bit in the middle of Australia. From an east coast perspective, it traditionally starts "beyond the Black Stump" of which there are many! It's something of a relative term, too, something more remote than where I am right now. I have added in an aerial photo that shows the arid areas (which are generally thought to be "outback" since the lack of water generally prevents any significant population or any agriculture. Kerry (talk) 08:29, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

Food in the History section
This edit of June 2023 introduced a paragraph about food in the Outback. It reads like something lifted from a tourist brochure, and it clearly doesn't belong in the History section, but might it fit somewhere else? Tourism? Jean-de-Nivelle (talk) 12:29, 6 November 2023 (UTC)


 * I've removed it for now, as it clearly didn't belong where it was. Jean-de-Nivelle (talk) 22:17, 7 November 2023 (UTC)