Mateship is an
Australian cultural idiom that embodies
equality,
loyalty and
friendship. There are two types of mateship, the inclusive and the exclusive; the inclusive is in relation to a shared situation (e.g., employment, sports, or hardship), whereas the exclusive type is toward a third party (e.g., a person that you have just met).
Russel Ward, in
The Australian Legend (1958), saw the concept as a central one to the Australian people.
Mateship derives from
mate, meaning
friend, commonly used in Australia as an amicable
form of address. Mateship can also be expressed in such qualities as loyalty to one's mates in preference to society at large.