jak-(jacket), Outlaw Ned Kelly wore a trenchcoat over his armour.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

-dom-(province),  '-dom' is a noun-suffix that means "province" or "things pertaining to".  "Hutt River Province" in Western Australia declared independence from Australia in 1970.

          The neuter classes include children before puberty, countries, cities, languages, cardinal directions, elements and metals , sports and games, gerunds (nouns made from '-ing' verbs), and nouns made from adjectives, such as colors.

hert-(stag),  Although there are lots of deer in Australia, none of them are native.  Most are raised on deer farms, so fences are designed to keep them in, instead of out!

juk-(yoke), Team of oxen used to transport wool.

Øbrood-(bread), Fairy Bread-white bread covered with candy sprinkles.

Olek-(leak), Hydroelectic station below one of the Snowy Mountain dams.

Øbloed-(blood), An Australian "Mozzi"

krot, (shack). Temporary, low-cost, dwellings in Australia are called "Humpies", and were frequently used by prospectors, bush rangers, and aboriginals.

Okoor-(chorus) and Osnoer-(string), Aboriginal Bull Roarers make noise when they are swung in a circle- an

Osnoer-koor.

Øal-(universe) and Økruis- ('Southern'- cross)

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

klif-(cliff), Kings Canyon National Park

zófort-(fort), Historic Fort Denison at the entrance to Sydney Harbor

           Single-syllable nouns that are made from verbs, such as the word ‘trek' (trek), and rivers (usually female), are virtually all common-gender nouns.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

zódorp-(town), Alice Springs is the town at the heart of Australia.

Øblind-(blind), Sydney Airport.

duin-(dune), The 'Big Red' sand dune at the edge of the Simpson desert.

Olint-(knotted ribbon) and loof-(foliage), the bottom part of the Coat of Arms

Ødak-(roof), "Outback" style tin roof at Tipperary Station.  (Tin is Oblik, which is a "freebie" O-word because it is a metal.)

gras-(grass) & vuur-(fire), the two are always linked in Australia.  Rural firefighters in Australia spend more time tending preventive fires than putting wildfires out! 

korps-(corps), Australian Troops in WWI. The 'Gallipoli' campaign was the most renowned fight in modern Australian history. 

lijf-(body), yoga practice on Bondi(ey) Beach.

krat-(crate), the cheapest way to get to Australia. Folk hero Reg Spiers sent himself from London to Perth via Air Freight in a crate! for free!!

eind-(end) The remote Zuytdorp (South Village) cliffs are the site of the 1712 wreck of the Dutch 'Zuytdorp' ship filled with silver. (Note:Oeind is a 'give-away' neuter word because it is an adjective.)

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

kruid-(herb), Mullaways Medical Marijuana logo.  Minor marijuana possesion was legalized in exclusively the Capital Territory of Canberra in 2019.

maal-(meal), Afternoon tea is a meal in Australia.

Olot-(fate). In Australia, casinos are in the hearts of major cities, such as the Crown Casino in Melbourne!

Okamp-(camp), Aboriginal Corroboree festivity. The Aboriginal name and event may well have inspired Sir Baden Powell's creation of the Boy Schout Jamboree.

Øbord-(board)

-gram-(something written-used as a noun-suffix), an Aboriginal 'message stick'.

​          Third,and last, the 'German A-Z' web page lists the rare exceptions to the suffix and prefix rules.  Please note that the "Au̇-Pictionary" currently omits some nouns, and it does contain errors which will be corrected.  Feedback is always welcome.  Please write to: zeelands@sbcglobal.net

Ogat-(hole), the pit in the Kalgoorlie mine.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Øbeest-(animal), Tasmanian tiger. The ring-striped marsupial supposedly went extinct in 1936, but there have been several possible sightings since 2017!

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

gros-(large quantity), a wool transport

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Øbot-(bone),  In Aboriginal culture, an avenging assassin would "point the bone" at his victim, who would then wither away and die.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

feest-(party or festival), 'Australia Day' on Jan. 26th marks the arrival of the 'First Fleet' of convicts- a 252 day journey!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

front-(front), Heroic ANZAC (Australian and New Zeland Army Corps) soldiers helped defend the 'Western Front' in Flanders in WWI

    leed-(suffering),  "Man in the Mud" WWI diorama by Peter Corlett at the Australia War Museum.

zóei-(egg), Emu egg

Øbed-(bed), Økamp-(camp), and Øgas-(gas)- Road Sign

Ohol-(cave or hole that can be lived in), one of the houses in Coober Peedy (opal mine) that is underground to avoid heat.

         The genders of almost all other multi-syllable nouns, whose final syllables aren't nouns, are determined by their suffixes. Amazingly, a student can quickly learn the genders of many of these nouns "better" than many native Dutch speakers! 

Øboek-(book), Aboriginal paintings at Carnarvon. The modern interpretation of the images is that they may have been chronicle(s) of a hunting expedition(s).

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ohoofd-(head). The reigning Monarch in England is technically also the King or Queen of Australia, and is featured on coins, plus until recently,  on currencies like this bill.  (Fun fact- until 1954, no English monarch had ever visited Australia!)

Alice Springs

nest-(nest), Termite Nest.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Australia was called 'New Holland' for 200 years!  ('New Olanda' in Italian.)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Oland-(land), A German map of "New Holland"

         Second, almost all suffixes and prefixes of multisyllable nouns have a high correlation to one of the Dutch genders.  Although there are some exceptions, a student who applies the rules will get an average of more than 90% of the genders correct!.

erts-(ore)  Western Australia is a world leader in mining.  The Gold Rushes in the late 1800s were similar to the '49er Gold Rush of California. (Ogoud-(gold) is another "give-away" because it is a metal.)

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

kroost-(offspring, litter), Wolf Spider with children on her back.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Øbier-(beer)​

Olak-(laquer), Surfboard wax

zódoel-(goal), Focal point of Darling Harbor in Sydney  Prior to air travel Darling Harbor was the main arrival point in Australia.

hemd-(shirt), Convicts were required to wear white shirts and pants.

merg-(marrow), Witchetty grubs eat out the interior of the roots of trees and have an almond-like taste.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Okleed-(kilt-like clothing)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

hek-(fence), the great Australian fence is over a thousand miles long and keeps the wild dingos (dogs) that live in cattle country out of sheep country.

Øbod-(offer)- The 'Batman Treaty' rental agreement for the land in and around Melbourne.  It was the only treaty ever between colonists and aboriginals!

nut-(usefulness),  Vegimite, made from the "worthless" dredges of brewed beer, is full of vitamine B and is surprisingly healthy.

Ogrind/Ogrint-(gravel) & moes-(pulp or mush),  The Platypus doesn't have teeth.  It "chews" by scooping up gravel together with food, and then flaps its jaws until the food is ground to pulp.

Ohuis-(house), The Sydney Opera House

meel-(flour or meal), Seeds ground with Aboriginal grinding stones

Oheil-(holyness or exaltedness), St. Mary's Cathedral in Sydney

.au

dier-(animal) Koala

Øblad-(leaf) Eucalyptus leaves, held against the lips, were one of the three musical instruments of Aboriginal Australia-'o-blad-ie, o-blad-ai'

Ograan-(grain), plus kaf-(chaff), Australia is one of the world's biggest grain exporters.

graf-(grave) The Australian War Memorial. It contains the grave of the "Unknown Soldier" and honors ANZAC and other troops who sacrificed their lives.

Ogram-(unit of weight) The cap on the nut of a blue-gum, and other types of Eucalyptus tree, weighs approx. 1 Gram.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Øblijk-(token), Parking meters with coins or tokens and the accompanying "Meter Maids" were icons of the Gold Coast.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

geld-(money), In Australia the bills are made of plastic! (But don't try to "launder" money in Australia.  Australia ranks among the most  law-abiding countries in the world based on the 'World Corruptibility Index').

Øambt-(post/office), In early Australiamost public servants were convict guards.

óodoek-(cloth), waist-sash of the Outlaw Ned Kelley, which he was given for saving a drowning boy. He wore it under his armour.

​          First, the genders of nouns that belong to several classes of things have predetermined genders, regardless of how many syllables the nouns have.   Any monosyllable noun that isn't one of the 200 neuter nouns, and doesn't belong to one of the neuter classes, is destined to end up as a common gender noun.

gif-(poison), Austraila is home to the #1, and #2, most venemous snakes in the world.  At snake farms, snakes are bred, and milked, to create anti-venom medicine.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 ​​          Once you've learned the 200 mono-syllable neuter nouns on the two Dutch web pages, determining the genders of almost all other nouns, approximately 10,000 of them, as easy as 1,2,3.  You can learn them on your own, but having a teacher explain how the rules work is recommended.​

kreng-(carrion), Some specialties of the Roadkill Cafe in Darwin 'Bring it in mate, we'll cook it!'

niews-(news), The surprise Japanese attack on Darwin was similar to Pearl Harbour.

Øbeen-(leg or bone), One of the unique things about  a kangaroo's legs is that the kangaroo can only go forward!

hout-(wood), The best cricket batsman of all time is considered to be Don Bradman. 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Oglas-(glass) For Fosters beer.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Olicht-(light), the center of the circle is where the "South Star" would be, if there was one. (The picture is actually from the Afrikaans language monument in South Africa.)

Øbad-(bath) and Ødek- (deck).  The handrail is just above Perth. 

Øblok-(block), Cell Block of Fremantle prison for convicts from England.  One of the common offenses was stealing clothes! (to keep from freezing)

Oijs-(ice), snowmaking cannon on Mt. Hotham

lied-(song), 'Waltzing Mathilda', by 'Banjo' Paterson, is the unofficial National Anthem of Australia.  The lyrics are below.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

leer-(leather), 'Ugg' Boots.  (The name most likely came from "ugly", but the boots are now a fashion success, even in Paris.)

"Like nothing else on earth!"

loon-(wages), after several years of forced labor convicts were given their freedom in return.

zófonds-(funds/stock), Australia Stock Exchange

lid-(member), Big Ned (Kelly) is the most famous Gang Member in Australia- statue in Glenrowan.

Øbrein-(brain), Captain James Cook was the first European to explore the East Coast of Australia. (by Nathaniel Dance)

luik-(hatch/shutter), A hatch similar to one on a convict ship.  Convicts spent most of their time in cages or in chains below deck.  The first convict trip to Australia in 1787 took 251 days!

deel- (portion or piece), The centerpiece of Australia's Coat of Arms shows the country's six main regions.  (The Northern Territory got left out- oops.) 

         Generic humans are treated as male things and as such belong to the common gender.  Nouns referring to generic animals, trees, plants, and complex-mechanical-things (like autos) are also almost all male, except for a handful of female exceptions and a couple neuter items, which are included included in the 200-words list.

Øbuis-(tube or jacket), Armour designed for outlaw Ned Kelly- the most famous criminal in Australia's history!

gips-(plaster or gypsum), This 'gips' (lime-stone) kiln is in Gippsland below Sydney.  (Note:  Like Ogoud-(gold),Ogips is optional because gypsum (CASO4) belongs to the 'Elements' class.)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

dok-(dock), Darling Harbor is still a cultural "docking station" of Australia to the world.

jaar-(year), in which the seasons are the inverse of those in the Northern Hemisphere.

Ødeeg-(dough)- the secret of the Australian-favorite ANZAC biscuits is in the dough, which contains no eggs! A hundred years ago, families of ANZAC (Australian and New Zeeland Army Corps) soldiers baked the cookies and sent them to soldiers fighting in WWI

Ødal-(dale or valley), Barossa Wine Valley. Barossa Valley has become the "quintessential" wine region of Australia due to its distinctive wines.

zódraad-(wire), Telegraph station in Alice Springs with post for telegraph wires. The telegraph helped unite Australia.

kruit-(gunpowder).  Ancient eucalyptus trees were often so hard the only way to split them, or to remove their roots, was with gunpowder.

Øaas-(bait)- Live Bait Vending Machines!

Øbeeld-(picture), Possibly 20,000 year old artwork. "Tassled Dancers" painting at Bradshaw Rock.

(but only in the case of gerunds).   The neuter suffixes can be called the 'diminutive' plus  'triple-o,u,t' or ('down and out') suffixes.

gaas-(gauze), dons-(down), & bloed-(blood), Kurdaitcha Bone Pointer's (assissan's) shoes were constructed with gauze made from human hair, emu down, and blood to hold things together. They "left no trace".

zóding-(dingo or wild dog)

Omerk-(mark), Internet symbol for Australia

kind-(child), 'Feral Kid' from the Mad Max movies. Note: 'Kid' is a freebie becasue it is part of the ' children before puberty' class. Courtesy the NFSA-National Film and Sound Archives.

Ofruit-(fruit), Kiwi fruit (Native to New Zealand but thrives in Australia.) Oooft-(also fruit) is an  old-fashinioned synonym.

​           In the middle of the last century Standard Dutch speakers from North, Central, and West Holland morphed almost all female and male nouns into the common gender, whereas Dutch speakers from Flanders and Southeast Holland kept them separate.  The suffixes not only indicate if a noun belongs to the common gender, but also if a noun is male or female! But remember: Classes trump suffixes!​

Oheft or Ohecht-(handle or grip). on an aboriginal knife, or zwaard (sword) -because this is a lengthy blade by Aboriginal standards.

 How to use the ØPictionary to learn 9,000 Genders!

feit-(fact), On Jan. 26th, 1788 Australia became a reality. Captain Arthur Phillip had just discovered Sydney Harbour and knew it would make an ideal base for the new colony.

         For starters, nouns that begin with the prefixes  ver-, ont-, ge-,  be-, (and au̇-), and which are followed by just one syllable, are always neuter.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

lijk-(corpse), WWI dead in France.  Nearly 1 in 8 Australian men were killed or wounded in WWI!

Øbos-(forest),  Mountain bking has revolutionized how outdoor enthusiasts can enjoy Australia's eucalyptus forests.

goed-(product)  'Uggs' is one of the oddest products, and trademarks, in the world.  'Uggs' was derived from the word 'ugly'! It cannot be used in Australia as an exclusive trademark because it is a generic word for boots there!

kant-(lace), 'Lace Lizard'- The scales often resemble handmade lace, (which was very important in the history of Flanders.)

Onet-(net), When camping in Queensland, mozzi nets are a vital accessory.

hok-(pen for animals), a Kelpie sheep dog with sheep in a paddock.

         Fruits, nuts, flowers, and heavenly bodies like the sun are almost all female and therefore belong to the common gender.

Øbont-(fur) Kangaroo fur

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

eelt-(callous), Calloused feet of an Emu (whose scientific name is 'New Holland' bird).

O-houd-(something held or contained, a noun-suffix) 

Ohooi-(hay), Australia is the #2 hay-producing country in the world after the United States.

          The neuter noun suffixes include: -je, -tje, -isme, -asme, -as, -as, -af, -es, -sel, -men, -ment, -ant, -ent, -et, -est, -ect, -ekt, -inct, -it, -ijt, -uit, -ijn, -eau, -o, ​(except in two syllable words), -ol, -ion, -om, -ord, -os, -u, -ui, -um, -ium, and -en

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

hart-(heart), Part of the Great Barrier Reef

Omeer-(lake), Lake Hume- a relatively lush spot in the interior of Australia

gas-(gas), Mustard gas mask in WWI.  The Australian efforts in WWI in Gallipoli and Flanders gave birth to a distinctive 'Australian' identity.

Ohaar-(hair)

          There is an additional group of neuter suffixes with long/strong vowels that shift the emphasis to the final syllable, and which usually include a slight rise in pitch.  These endings include: -aal, -aat, -aas, -aaf, -aam, -aan, -aarn, -air, -ain, -ail, -aus, -eel, -eem, -eet, -ein, -eau, -iet, -ier, -ies, -ief, -iem, -iel, -oom, -oor, -ood, -ool, -ooi, -oen, -oir,  -uit, -uul,-uus, -uut, and the accented endings -el, and -er in French loan words like 'diner' (pronounced die-né).

Ohof-(court), The High Court of Australia, as well as the Central Government of Australia is in Canberra.

krijt-(chalk)

mes-(knife), Crocodile Dundee's "That's not a knife, THAT'S a knife."

        The "Gender-Enders" for  male nouns  include just: the diminutive '-el' (except in neuter words which end in '-sel' and in foreign loan words where the final syllable is accented, such as 'hotèl'), -er, including variants -aar  and -or, -on(but not -ion),-em, and -us (which is in just a handful of loan words from Latin).   (Note: Any noun with a male suffix that also begins with ver-, ge-, be-, or ont- is neuter.)

mos-(moss)  Pappilaria Cloud Forest at the top of a mountain.

         "Tell-tail" suffixes for female nouns include: -heid, -teit, -a, -ee,-eld, -ei, -ie, -i, -in, -ing, -is, -nis, -ice, -ij, -ijk, -iek, -eik, -eek, -x, -eur, -uur, -ue, -uw, -y, and-e, including the '-*e' endings: -ge, -de, -re, and-te  (except in three or more syllable words that begin with 'ge-' and whose sandwiched-syllables are stand-alone nouns, in which case the words are neuter).  The feminine suffixes can be called "A,E,I", or "A,E,I-k", suffixes .