BadgeIsBack

Well - it's rife in London...and there is no doubt in my mind that in Australia, it came from London's lower orders..(literally).

Infact, if anything, mate is normally a male thing. I've called girls 'Mate' in Australia and felt afterwards, it was not quite appropriate...exuberant of me at the time. In London, I noticed that girls might call a bloke 'Mate', as he leaves reception after dropping off a parcel, but again not quite so much the other way around..

But it has nothing to do with friendship, in my opinion! If it did, then you'd be right - and only then by someone who did know you well, but weren't really good friends.

Wendy

I get called mate at work...not sure what that says about me Mind you, I do work in a predominately male environment (construction) and I like to class myself as 'one of the boys'. I get invited to all their nights out and everything

I agree with you though, I find a lot of my UK mates that live down London way call me mate too. Don't get it so much from my Yorkshire mates, they call me much worse

Pollyana

There's the difference though - I'm not talking about friends calling you "mate"- that was never an issue when friends back home did it. My objection was to people I have never met befoire and will never meet again calling me "mate"- the smoke alarm guy, the bus driver, the person on the checkout for example. As I said, when in London I don't tend to get called "mate"by complete strangers the way I do here.

BadgeIsBack

Well that very usage was invented in London - in my opinion and it's supposed to be an down to earth recognition of another person you don't know - in this respect Londoners and Australians share that.

Friendship - and mateship is something else again. I can understand the debate on mateship.

Wendy

I'm talking about guys calling me that though. Girls I probably wouldn't find so strange

Maybe I've just got used to it over the years, so much so that it doesn't sound out of place to me anymore.

I really don't believe that it's meant to be a term of endearment, or even mean that they think of you as their best friend. It's used more like the word hello and g'day are used, or even in the same way that I'd say 'hello love', or 'hello hun' - some people might find that annoying, but it's just what I've always said, same as the Aussie's have always said g'day mate

BadgeIsBack

It's hilarous when Americans try the 'Mate' salutation especially in the written form.

They say:

"Hello mates". They don't realise that in this informal usage it's just personalised indirect recognition of a person, not a noun or collective noun. After all in 19th century London, it was very much recognition because it was a classless, or rather, recognition that someone else was the same as you as an alternative to the formal station-derived Mr, Mrs, or Sir. Infact, it is a sign of the measure of equality (even if it's just being polite) - and that has not changed in over a hundred years in either Australia or London.

Which is my point about strangers saying it -and much usage in Australia and London.

When a real friend says "Mate ...." as in "Mate......" that's something else again - that's mateship....Australian criticism of the history of mateship notwithstanding....we'll won't get into that one..spare us

Pollyana

I certainly don't see it as a term of endearment! When I was at school, back in the dark ages, if you were someone's mate you were a friend, not a bosum pal, but a friend of some kind and we only called our mates, mate. Now everyone tom dick and harry calls me "mate"and I don't like it. That's all. not worth dissecting it, I just don't like it, if it happened in london it would be the same as here, I still wouldn't like it. For me personally it has changed the meaning of the word, hence I hardly ever use it now.

BadgeIsBack

You're alright...

But you prove my point - usage amongst friends, not salutation or address..

You used it to mean a 'truer' friend ie. 'Mateship'. (GB version not what happened in the Antipodes...).

In fact, in both countries, a mate is solmetimes also an acquaintance, a peer, perhaps not a friend after all - again, being polite.

Steve2009

It's kind of like the use of the word 'today' by people in the service industry to imply familiarity. As if they recognise you from before an want to make sure that you know they are speaking about today's business and not the last visits or the nexts.

"What would you like today?"
"What can I do for you today?
"You're in 2A today sir"
etc.

I try not to judge people prematurely when they use patronising tricks like this, it's difficult though.

BadgeIsBack

It's amusing but trivial.

But that is a trick. In London and Australia recognising another human person is not really a trick..it's a way of life..

Actually, you've just reminded me. I was listening to some sound recordings from the London bombings this morning, and what appalled me about some of the Londoners was the sort of service-industry accent and diction that I recognised from when I was there.

Little Britain. The woman in front of the class of weight-watchers? (With the Indian women.) That sort of accent.

"Can we do that...Tell the customer he can't have that....he can have this...."

"so it's not a bomb.....yes...."

It annoys me more because it is lazy talk, (lazy diction - not slow - obviously people taking 000, and dealing with calls are not lazy) and not just lazy content.

Steve2009

I'm referring to situations when they actually don't recognise you but are implying they do.

BadgeIsBack

I know, I am in complete agreement. But it's obvious they don't. So it is a hospitality/PR trick, as you say.

(Clarification - when I say recognise - I don't mean physical recognition of identity... I mean recognition in the salutation sense...here is another man..I will address him..)

When someone calls you Mate in London or in Australia they often haven't recognised you either and are not pretending to..That's the whole charm of it. They might have called you Mr or Sir and thereby introduced some sort of master-servant relationship. The usage is completely portable...

Steve2009

Sorry, got you now. It's quaint as long as it's not part of a sales patter. In Dublin they use familiarity to rope people in. In Australia it's not necessarily the case.

BadgeIsBack

Bang on Sir*...

Of course..Irish people do it well. In decent pubs in Irrrreland, and in the UK blah blah people really DO recognise you..as an IDENTITY then say...the usual Sir*....today**....?

Or they might just line it up anyway...

*[mate].
** genuine today

MartinLuther

Being called mate by strangers was very common in London especially the bit I lived in. So much so that it seems almost uncommon here.