On The Origin Of The Australian Term, "Pom" or "Pommie"
I've heard many origins of the word Pom / Pommie as given in affection and insult to someone from the UK, especially to the English* You may have heard of Prisoner Of [his] Majesty. I'm reading The Word Detective: Searching for the Meaning of It All at the Oxford English Dictionary by former OED editor John Simpson and he states the following convoluted path:
* I suspect it was anyone from the UK originally as they were, and still are, called "English" or "from England" by many in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. This has changed since I've been in the southern hemisphere as it much more now connected with English as highlighted by how people apologise when I'm actually from Wales.
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