Bogan’s beef with labelling

The Oxford English Dictionary’s less-than complimentary definition of the word ‘‘bogan’’ has been met with outrage by many people who self-identify as bogans, says Bogan and Proud founder Mark Stoner.

Last week the OED added bogan to its latest edition, defining the term as a ‘‘depreciative term for unfashionable, uncouth, or unsophisticated person, especially of low social status’’.

Mr Stoner, a self-confessed bogan, said he could not understand what all the fuss was about.

‘‘It’s just a five letter word going into the dictionary,’’ he said.

‘‘It’s the definition I think you’ll find bogans have an issue with.

‘‘You’ve got so many different types of bogans out there and to class them all as unsophisticated or uncultured is really the wrong image of bogans.’’

Mr Stoner said he classified himself as a bogan in certain areas.

‘‘The bogan, typically is into cars — I’m not a car man,’’ he said.

He said the typical bogan was a blue-collar worker, into cars and barbecues.

Bogan and Proud was created in 2009 in response to Rockingham being named the number one bogan suburb in WA and sells a variety of products.

‘‘I’m an easy going guy that says there are worst joints around in WA than what there is Rockingham,’’ he said.

‘‘If that’s what they want to call us, then we’ll be bogan and proud.’’

Mr Stoner rejected claims the use of the word bogan to classify people in Rockingham had a negative impact on the city.

‘‘Some people in the area say the bogan tag decreases value in the area or it’s a blight on the area,’’ he said.