meaning of a phrase

[Kerryt]

Where does the saying having a barny come from

[BigMac]

Not sure, but maybe its a diminution of rhyming slang? Barney Rubble = trouble.

[jno]

I'm pretty sure it goes back before the Flintstones.

[dotjhawkes]

apparently it dates from the late 1800s and is a slang word for a fight or argument, I wonder if it referres to a foreign campaign maybe. Possibly Irish?

[jno]

yes, have now looked it up in my slang dictionary and it says from the Irish name Barney, presumably because the Irish are supposed to get drunk and fight; first use seems to have been in Australia, however, where there were a lot of Irish immigrants. Gives the spelling as barney.