What is "down under"

a. (context idiomatic English) In Australia. adv. (context idiomatic English) Into Australia, to Australia.

The term Down Under is a colloquialism which is variously construed to refer to Australia, and other countries in Australasia. The term comes from the fact that nearly all of these countries are in the Southern Hemisphere, 'below' many other countries on the globe.

The persistence of the media use of the term has led to its wide embrace and usage. The Men at Work song " Down Under" became a patriotic rallying song for Australians. The Russian-born Australian boxing champion Kostya Tszyu was nicknamed "The Thunder from Down Under", as is Australian snooker player Neil Robertson. When the then Miss Australia Jennifer Hawkins was crowned as Miss Universe 2004 in Quito, Ecuador, she was called by the same nickname by host Billy Bush.

According to Roger Ebert's tongue-in-cheek Glossary of Movie Terms, the Down Under Rule "No film set in Australia is allowed to use the word Australia in its title where "Down Under" is an acceptable alternative. For example, we don't get The Rescuers in Australia or Quigley in Australia."

The Tour Down Under is a cycling race in and around Adelaide, South Australia, and since 2009 has been the inaugural event of the UCI World Tour Ranking calendar, which culminates in the Tour de France.

"Down Under" (also known as "Land Down Under") is a song recorded by Australian rock band Men at Work. It was originally released in 1980 as the B-side to their first local single titled "Keypunch Operator", released before the band signed with Columbia Records. Both early songs were written by the group's co-founders, Colin Hay and Ron Strykert. The early version of "Down Under" has a slightly different tempo and arrangement from the later Columbia release. The most well known version was then released on Columbia in October 1981 as the third single from their debut album Business as Usual (1981).

The song went to number one in their home country of Australia in December 1981, and then topped the New Zealand charts in February 1982. Released in North America in mid-1982, the song topped the Canadian charts in October. In the United States, the song debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 on 6 November 1982 at No. 79, and reached No. 1 in January 1983 where it spent four non-consecutive weeks. It eventually sold over two million copies in the US alone. Billboard ranked it at No. 4 for 1983.

In the UK, the song topped the charts in January and February 1983, and is the only Men at Work song to make the UK top 20. The song also went No. 1 in Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Switzerland, and was a top 10 hit in many other countries. It remains a popular and patriotic song in Australia.

Down Under is a colloquialism referring to Australia.

Down Under may also refer to:

• "Down Under" (song), by Australian rock band Men at Work
• Down Under (album), an album by Bill Cosby
• Down Under (book), a 2000 travelogue about Australia by Bill Bryson
• Down Under (1927 film), a film directed by Harry Southwell
• "Down under", a euphemism for genitalia

Down Under is the British title of a 2000 travelogue book about Australia written by best-selling travel writer Bill Bryson. In the United States and Canada it was published titled In a Sunburned Country, a title taken from the famous Australian poem, " My Country". It was also published as part of Walk About, which included Down Under and another of Bryson's books, A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail, in one volume.

Down Under (1975) is the 21st album by Bill Cosby.

It is his third compilation album containing favorites from his tenure with Warner Bros. Records.

Down Under is an Australian feature-length film directed by Harry Southwell. It was the first full-length feature film made in Western Australia. It featured the outback, as well as Perth and Kings Park.