What is "swanee"

in Stephen Foster's "Old Folks at Home," river in Georgia and Florida, usually Suwanee, sometimes said to be a corruption of Spanish San Juan [Room]; Bright says the river name is from the Cherokee village of Sawani, for which no etymology is offered.

Swanee may refer to:

• Suwannee River, re-spelled "Swanee" by Stephen Foster to fit the melody in " Old Folks at Home", influencing subsequent uses of the word, such as:
  • "Swanee" (song), a song by George Gershwin and Irving Caesar, made popular by Al Jolson
  • Slide whistle, also called a swanee whistle
  • Swanee, a soft drink made by the defunct Bob's-Cola company
• Swanee (singer), the stage name of John Swan, an Australian rock singer

John Swan (born 1952 in Glasgow, Scotland), better known as Swanee, is a Scottish-born Australian rock singer.

He was born John Archibold Dixon Swan in Glasgow, Scotland in 1952. He is the older brother of rock legend Jimmy Barnes, and musician and singer Alan Barnes, and the uncle of singer and stage performer David Campbell, Matthew Schlammel (who has a band called Schlam), and of singers Mahalia Barnes, Eliza-Jane Barnes, Elly-may Barnes and Jackie Barnes (who performed together as Tin Lids).

Swan was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1952. He migrated to Australia with his family in 1961. When his mother remarried in the mid-1960s, he was the only child to keep the surname of his biological father, who was an adept boxer. While Swan's music career has never reached the heights of that of his more famous younger brother, he is well known and respected in his own right. His celebrity status has afforded him the ability to rally aid and help others, as his charitable and generous nature very often dictates.