[Ads-l] another, earlier Cowabunga

Jonathan Lighter wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM
Sat Jan 25 19:25:32 UTC 2020


>  the town of Karumba

Bart Simpson also says "Caramba!"

FWIW.

Remarkable finds, guys.

JL

On Sat, Jan 25, 2020 at 1:27 PM Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com>
wrote:

> I hit the send button too soon. I didn’t do a search for other possible
> candidates in the area. The spelling of “Cowabunga” in SG’s citations is
> clear, and a map, particularly an older one, might well turn up a more
> likely location than Karumba. BB
>
> > On 25 Jan 2020, at 10:21, Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Here’s an interview with Kean on the origin of the word:
> https://www.buzzfeed.com/leonoraepstein/what-the-hell-does-cowabunga-mean-anyhow
> <
> https://www.buzzfeed.com/leonoraepstein/what-the-hell-does-cowabunga-mean-anyhow
> >
> >
> > He says that he coined “kawagoopa” as a greeting word and that it was
> sweet, soft, charming and lovely.
> >
> > He says that he “somehow" coined “cowabunga,” which was good for
> frustration/anger because of the hard syllables [starting with] “g” and “b.”
> >
> > As for the Australian place name, the river looks to be Yappar River (
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yappar_River <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yappar_River>). Wikipedia says that it
> flows into the Norman River. The area can be seen on Google Maps:
> https://tinyurl.com/yx5ra9ga <https://tinyurl.com/yx5ra9ga>
> >
> > According to Wikipedia (
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karumba,_Queensland <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karumba,_Queensland>), the town of Karumba
> is 71 km from Normantown and is located at the mouth of the Norman, the
> name originating by the 1880s from “Kurumba,” a Kareldi name. FWIW,
> although Karumba is on the coast, the Gulf of Carpentaria is evidently not
> good for surfing (https://tinyurl.com/rqbqmvv <https://tinyurl.com/rqbqmvv
> >).
> >
> > Although Kean may have picked up the place name at some point, he says
> he coined it after kawagoopa, so that seems unlikely as a source.
> >
> > Benjamin Barrett (he/his/him)
> > Formerly of Seattle, WA
> >
> >> On 25 Jan 2020, at 06:11, Stephen Goranson <goranson at DUKE.EDU <mailto:
> goranson at DUKE.EDU>> wrote:
> >>
> >> Some of us recall cowabunga from the Howdy Doody Show on TV in the
> 1950s. And later among surfers and others (e.g., Bart Simpson and, I read,
> Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles).
> >>
> >> According to Historical Dictionary of American Slang:
> >> "1975 John Alego (priv. communication) (Sept. 19): "Buffalo Bob" Smith
> tells me that he believes the word was invented by a Howdy Doody writer,
> Eddie Kean [1924-2010], for Chief Thunderthud. Buffalo Bill spells it
> kawabonga, and says it indicated bad things. There was a companion, joyous
> term kawagoopa. The fact that the distressful word has survived and the
> joyful one not, I suppose is paradigmatic."
> >> [Or, one might say, the surviving word meliorated.]
> >>
> >> It may be merely quite coincidental, but Cowabunga was a place name in
> Queensland, Australia.
> >> From Trove Newspapers:
> >>
> >> 1926, March 18
> >> Land for Lease and Selection
> >> Cowabunga--An area of 190 square miles, comprising Crown Lands,
> situated on the left back of the Yappan [OCR has Tappan, I guess
> incorrectly] River, adjoining Headwater and Harlem holdings. [....][1]
> >>
> >> 1944, May  19
> >> Crown Land for Pastoral Lease
> >> Cowabunga Block will be open on...at the land office Normanton [....][2]
> >>
> >> This may well have been unknown to Edward Keane. Wikipedia: "....Kean
> served in the United States Navy<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Navy <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Navy>> during World War II<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II>>. He was based at Cornell
> University<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornell_University <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornell_University>> through the V-12 Navy
> College Training Program<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-12_Navy_College_Training_Program <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-12_Navy_College_Training_Program>> and
> earned a degree from Columbia University<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_University <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_University>>.[2]<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Kean#cite_note-LATObit-2 <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Kean#cite_note-LATObit-2>>" Note 2:
> LA Times obituary, credits him for coining kowabonga/cowabunga.
> >>
> >> The Queensland location is inland, so not a surfing spot. The
> name--indigenous Australian?
> >>
> >> Stephen Goranson
> >> http://people.duke.edu/~goranson/ <http://people.duke.edu/~goranson/>
> >>
> >> PS. We had a 45 record with songs, "Howdy Doody means Hello" and "Save
> your pennies, and soon you'll have a nickel..."
> >>
> >> [1]
> https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/60929602?searchTerm=cowabunga&searchLimits=sortby=dateAsc
> >> [http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page4991629-t]<
> https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/60929602?searchTerm=cowabunga&searchLimits=sortby=dateAsc
> >
> >> LAND FOR LEASE AND SELECTION. - Townsville Daily Bulletin (Qld. : 1907
> - 1954) - 18 Mar 1926<
> https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/60929602?searchTerm=cowabunga&searchLimits=sortby=dateAsc
> >
> >> The Government is offering a considerable quantity of Crown land for
> lease. As some is in territory blessed with rain, it may aford drought
> relief. ...
> >> trove.nla.gov.au
> >>
> >>
> >> [2]
> https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/170399048?searchTerm=cowabunga&searchLimits=sortby=dateAsc
> >> [http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page20048313-t]<
> https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/170399048?searchTerm=cowabunga&searchLimits=sortby=dateAsc
> >
> >> Advertising - Cloncurry Advocate (Qld. : 1931 - 1953) - 19 May 1944<
> https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/170399048?searchTerm=cowabunga&searchLimits=sortby=dateAsc
> >
> >> trove.nla.gov.au
> >
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
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>


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