Bloke
Bloke is a slang term for a common man in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
[4] The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) says the word is of "Origin unknown" but adds: "Ogilvie compares 'Gypsy and Hindi loke a man.'"
"[2][3] The earliest found usage, according to Quinion, is from 9 April 1829 in the court papers of the Old Bailey in the trial of 17-year-old John Daly who was charged with housebreaking.
[2][3] An accused poacher from Cobham, Surrey however, testifying in a court case reported in The Times in 1839, glosses the meaning merely as "a man".
[2][3] The OED adds a specialist usage in naval slang from 1914 onwards for the commander of a warship, shown as "the Bloke" with a capital "B" in its examples.
[2][3] Sources report that in the US the term was in use by the late 19th century, although it is much less common now,[7] and mainly is used in the sense of "stupid" or "worthless" person.
A good Australian example is the idea of the 'Aussie bloke' and the belief that this type of person is unique to Australia.
[13] Australian historian Russel Ward in The Australian Legend (1958) "famously described"[10] the mythical "Aussie bloke" as: …a practical man, rough and ready in his manners and quick to decry any appearance of affectation in others… Though capable of great exertion in an emergency, he normally feels no impulse to work hard without good cause.
He swears hard and consistently, gambles heavily and often, and drinks deeply on occasion… he is a greater knocker of eminent people unless, as is in the case of his sporting heroes, they are distinguished by physical prowess.
He is fiercely independent… above all he will stick to his mates through thick and thin, even if he thinks they may be wrong… He tends to be a rolling stone, highly suspect if he should chance to gather much moss.
[19] The film portrays Bill going through a transformation becoming a gentrified household breadwinner, yet also retaining his manly characteristics, the bloke who is more than a "careful little housewife".
[25] John Simpson Kirkpatrick (1892–1915) was known as 'the bloke with the donk' (donkey) for his work as a stretcher bearer during the Gallipoli Campaign.
[26] Examples of famous contemporary Australians associated with the bloke image include Bill Hunter,[27] Paul Hogan and his fictitious movie character Crocodile Dundee,[28] and Steve Irwin.
[29] Following the Australian leadership spill which installed Julia Gillard as the first female Prime Minister of Australia on 24 June 2010, media outlets began to focus on her de facto partner, Tim Mathieson, who was called "First Bloke" instead of "First Lady".
[33][34] For example, Australian World War II hero Fred Chilton was eulogised as follows by his fellow servicemen: "He was an excellent man.
Writer Clementine Ford, for instance, has written that "men who beat women keep being given a free pass by the same people who swear up and down that they don't tolerate violence because they're a 'good bloke'".
[40] An Australian charity, the Top Blokes Foundation was established to support young men's mental health.
