What was ‘flash’ language?

Convicts transported to NSW brought a lot of different things with them. In some cases this included their own slang language, called ‘flash’.

In 1812 a convict named James Hardy Vaux recorded a long list of ‘flash’ words that were being used in NSW around that time.

Most of the words he included had been created by criminals in London, who used them to evade and confuse the authorities.

Flash [is] the language of the thieves,
or the low Londoners…

Sydney Gazette, 29 January, 1831

In the colony, too, using ‘flash’ words was a way for convicts to resist authority and conceal their intentions from those in charge – such as their assigned masters or the overseers of work gangs.

However, not all transported convicts were ‘career criminals’ familiar with this language.

Most had committed a 'petty' crime (like pickpocketing or stealing clothes) because they were poor and were trying to survive. To these convicts ‘flash’ would have probably been confusing.

Because 'flash' language was meant to be secret, if the meaning of a word was discovered by the authorities a new word might have to be used instead.

Hear some ‘flash’ language

Can you de-code what the convicts are saying?

Use the select list of ‘flash’ words below to help you.

Why did Vaux write the list?

Vaux first wrote the list in 1812 for a local Newcastle magistrate called Thomas Skottowe, to help him understand what criminals might be saying.

In 1819 Vaux published it, under the title: A new and comprehensive vocabulary of the flash language.

Most documents about convicts were written by the government and did not use slang or 'flash' words. This makes Vaux's list a valuable historical source because it documents the convict perspective

The Hyde Park Barracks opened the same year that Vaux published his list.

So it is possible that some of the convicts who stayed there would have known, and used, these words.

Botany Bay slang

Convicts came from all over the British Empire, but mostly from the United Kingdom (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.)

They also came from rural towns and industrial cities, from different social classes and would have had different levels of education.

This mix meant that over time lots of other slang words and sayings would have found their way to the NSW colony, creating a rich mix of language that changed and adapted over time.

By the 1820s the term ‘Botany Bay slang’ was being used in newspapers, to describe a certain style of language being used around the town of Sydney. Unfortunately, unlike Vaux’s list of flash words, no record of this language exists.

Flash language