- Matilda[Matilda 词源字典]
- fem. proper name, from French Mathilde, of Germanic origin, literally "mighty in battle;" compare Old High German Mahthilda, from mahti "might, power" + hildi "battle," from Proto-Germanic *hildiz "battle," from PIE *kel- (1) "to strike, cut." The name also was late 19c. Australian slang for "a traveler's bundle or swag," hence the expression waltzing Matilda "to travel on foot" (by 1889).
In my electorate nearly every man you meet who is not "waltzing Matilda" rides a bicycle. ["Parliamentary Debates," Australia, 1907]
The lyrics of the song of that name, sometimes called the unofficial Australian national anthem, are said to date to 1893.[Matilda etymology, Matilda origin, 英语词源] - national (adj.)
- 1590s, from Middle French national (from Old French nation), and also from nation + -al (1). As a noun, "citizen of a (particular) nation," from 1887. National anthem first recorded 1819, in Shelley. Related: Nationally.