PHONOLOGICAL AND LEXICAL FEATURES OF AUSTRALIAN ENGLISH: A LINGUISTIC OVERVIEW

Abstract

This article examines the phonological and lexical features of Australian English (AusE), drawing on the author’s undergraduate qualification paper. The study identifies the most distinctive characteristics of AusE phonology — including the vowel shift, non-rhoticity, and the High Rising Terminal — and analyses its lexical layer, namely Australianisms, Aboriginal loanwords, and slang. The research relies on a descriptive-analytical method and synthesises existing scholarship by Mitchell and Delbridge (1965), Wells (1982), Cox and Palethorpe (2007), Collins (2012), Moore (2008), and others. The article argues that Australian English is not a peripheral variety of British English but a fully independent national standard with its own phonological norms and a rich, culturally grounded lexicon. The findings may be useful for students and teachers of English, comparative linguists, and anyone interested in World Englishes.