Discontent brews following abrupt withdrawal of financing for a project defining unique Australian colloquialisms

The Australian National Dictionary Centre, a joint venture between the Australian National University (ANU) and Oxford University Press, is facing potential closure due to proposed cuts at the ANU. This move is part of a larger plan to reduce funding in various areas of the humanities at the university.

The Australian National Dictionary, a living record of the English language in Australia, grounds our words and their meanings in their historical and cultural contexts. It has helped with the publication of two hard-copy editions by Oxford University Press, in 1988 and 2016, and tells us where words have come from, when they were first used, and how their meanings have changed over time.

Genevieve Bell, the director of the Australian National University, has been criticized by students during protests against these planned budget cuts. The dictionary centre conducts research into Australian English and provides Oxford University Press with editorial expertise for their Australian dictionaries.

The proposed cuts have sparked a strong response from Tom Griffiths and Mark McKenna, both on the Editorial Board of the Australian Dictionary of Biography (ADB). They argue that these cuts are part of a sustained attack on the humanities in Australia.

The Australian National Dictionary contains many words borrowed from First Nations peoples, such as "galah" and "dingo". Its 2016 edition contains 1,864 pages with 16,000 headwords, phrases, compounds, idioms, and derivatives, illustrated by 123,000 citations.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation conducted an audio interview with the director of the Australian National Dictionary Centre regarding the proposed funding cuts. The Australian National Dictionary's "word of the year" draws public interest both in Australia and internationally, and the centre maintains a website with a selection of Australianisms and other related resources.

The proposed cuts have also raised concerns among academics outside the ANU. Dominic Kelly, a Melbourne academic, posted concerns about the cuts on BlueSky, while Monash University academics Howard Manns and Kate Burridge put forward a case for why the Australian National Dictionary matters. They argue that dictionaries help define and reflect a nation's identity.

The controversy surrounding the proposed cuts extends to the governance of the ANU itself. Chancellor Julie Bishop, who has served in that role since 2013, has faced allegations of bullying and harassment, which were aired at a Senate inquiry into the quality of governance at higher education providers. Former Chancellor of the ANU, Gareth Evans, was "gobsmacked" with the planned cost-saving measures.

In addition, ANU demographer Liz Allen resigned from the ANU Council earlier this year due to concerns about governance practices within the council. Another council member, Francis Markham, also resigned over similar concerns. The Federal government's Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) has launched an investigation into ANU's governance and financial management.

The use of "disestablish" to refer to the cuts has been criticized and added to the list of "weasel words" by Aussie author Don Watson. A thread on Reddit brought a swift condemnation by user MindlessOptimist against the cuts, with calls for Vice-Chancellor Genevieve Bell and Julie Bishop's sacking.

As the future of the Australian National Dictionary Centre hangs in the balance, the debate continues over the importance of preserving and promoting Australia's linguistic heritage.

Discontent brews following abrupt withdrawal of financing for a project defining unique Australian colloquialisms