'Wonga' Definitions
At NetLingo we love an unusual definition, and ‘Wonga’ is a word that has a truly shocking number of different definitions that span across both hemispheres from London to Canberra. So today we’re going to explore some of the more interesting meanings the term has across the world, hold on tight, here we go!
Hi, the name’s Wonga
We’re starting with one of the more obscure definitions of the Word, Wonga is actually a relatively common name found across the country of South Africa. It’s often interpreted as meaning ‘honour’ or ‘wealthy’. Interestingly we can find the name Wonga on the other side of the world too only this time it’s derived from a Cherokee word that was originally defined as ‘messenger of fleet’ i.e. a fast messenger. The American actor Wonga Philip Harris is probably the most famous example in the Northern hemisphere.
Want to make some Wonga?
Arguably the best known definition – Wonga is a term used for cold hard cash across most of the UK. Another origin story for the term Wonga as used in the UK slang can be traced back to the Romany word 'wangar,' meaning 'coal.' The logical flow being that, in English, coal was often used as a slang term for money (most likely due to its high, universally understood value). As a result, ‘wonga’ became a popular synonym for money. During the 17th to 18th centuries, possessing a significant amount of coal meant you were ‘really wealthy’.
Wonga short term loans
Building on from the last definition you might have a clearer understanding on why ‘Wonga’ was chosen as the brand name for an online loan company. Wonga was a huge phenomenon in England when it launched back in 2006. At its peak the brand name could be found trading across Europe and even broke ground over in Canada. While the UK version is no longer available Wonga Online (Pty) Ltd as it’s now known (although slightly less catchy if you ask us), is still the leading short term loan provider for millions of South Africa customers.
An Australian Wonga pigeon… and a beach?
Staying in the Southern hemisphere but moving a mere ten thousand kilometres east to Australia now for our next definitions. The Wonga pigeon is a large ground based bird known for having a long tail and small head. It’s locally referred to as the ‘wonga wonga’ and is common along the east coast of Australia, which also happens to be the same area as Australia’s ‘Wonga beach’. The beach is a beautiful (see the pic below!) area which houses a caravan park. And if the scenery wasn’t enough to make you happy you might be lucky enough to enjoy the giddy thrill of watching a ‘wonga wonga walk along the wonga beach’.
Stay away from that Wonga stuff
We end our round the world definitions journey on a more sombre note I’m afraid. Our final destination is South Africa once more only this time instead of cash loans we find that ‘wonga’ or sometimes spelt ‘whoonga’ has a darker slang definition on the streets. This time we find it used as another name used for a type of very dangerous and destructive drug concoction which is also known as Nyaope. So dangerous in fact that it makes the independent’s list of top 10 most dangerous street drugs world-wide.
