The Wemba Wemba language is an extinct Aboriginal Australian language once spoken along the Murray River and its tributaries in North Western Victoria and South Central New South Wales.
| Wemba-Wemba | |
|---|---|
| Eastern Central Murray | |
| Region | Victoria |
| Ethnicity | Wemba-Wemba, Nari-Nari, Barababaraba, Wergaia, Wotjobaluk, Marditjali, ?Jardwadjali |
| Extinct | (date missing)[1] |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | xww – inclusive codeIndividual codes: rnr – Nari-Narirbp – Barababarabaweg – Wergaiaxwt – Wotjobaluk |
| Glottolog | west2443 incl. Madhi–Ladji–Wadi |
| AIATSIS[2] | D1 |
| ELP | Wemba-Wemba |
| Nari Nari[3] | |
Nari Nari, a dialect of Wemba Wemba, is as of 2020[update] part of a language revival project. Other dialects are Barababaraba and Wergaia.
Jardwadjali (with dialects Jagwadjali, Nundadjali, Mardidjali) may be Wemba-Wemba,[4] or may be closer to the Madhi–Ladji–Wadi varieties.
Phonology
editConsonants
edit| Labial | Velar | Dental | Palatal | Alveolar | Retroflex | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stop | p | k | t̪ | c | t | ʈ |
| Nasal | m | ŋ | ɲ | n | ɳ | |
| Lateral | l | ɭ | ||||
| Rhotic | r | ɽ | ||||
| Approximant | w | j |
Vowels
edit| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | ɪ, i | ʊ, u | |
| Mid | ɛ, e | ə | ɔ, o |
| Open | a |
Voiced consonant sounds only occur within prenasalized stops. Prenasal consonants include: /mb/ /nd/ /ndy/ /ng/ and /rnd/. In phonetic form they are pronounced as [mb] [nd] [ɲɟ] [ŋɡ] and [ɳɖ].[5]
Vocabulary
editBelow is a basic vocabulary list from Blake (1981).[6]
English Wemba-Wemba man beng woman lerg mother guinggurin father mam head murreng eye mir nose ganyug ear wirimbula mouth dyarb tongue dyaling tooth lia hand manye breast gurm stomach bili urine gir faeces guni thigh gareburdug foot dyine bone merderug blood gurg dog wilgar snake gurnwil kangaroo gure (grey), bara (red) possum wile fish yauwirr spider wirimbeliny mosquito liri emu dyurung-wil eaglehawk banggel crow wa sun nyaui star durd stone la water gaden camp lar fire wanab smoke burd meat benggug stand dyerriga sit nyengga see nyaga go yangga get garga hit daga (barrangguna 'kill') I yandang you ngin one gebin two buledya
Influence on English
editAt least four botanical terms in Australian English are thought to have been introduced into local speech from Wemba-Wemba:
- dilanj = nitre bush/dillon
- lerep = lerp/honeydew or lerp manna[7]
- gambang = bulrush/cumbungi[7]
- mali = mallee[7]
- The word yabby, a type of crayfish, comes from Wemba-Wemba.[8]
Language revival
editAs of 2020[update], the Nari Nari dialect[9] is one of 20 languages prioritised as part of the Priority Languages Support Project being undertaken by First Languages Australia and funded by the Department of Communications and the Arts. The project aims to "identify and document critically-endangered languages — those languages for which little or no documentation exists, where no recordings have previously been made, but where there are living speakers".[10]
External links
editReferences
edit- ^ "D1: Wemba Wemba". Austlang. AIATSIS. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
- ^ D1 Wemba-Wemba at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
- ^ Endangered Languages Project data for Nari Nari.
- ^ R. M. W. Dixon, Australian Languages: Their Nature and Development: v. 1 (Cambridge Language Surveys). Cambridge University Press, 2002. ISBN 978-0-521-47378-1
- ^ Hercus, Luise A. (1992). Wembawemba Dictionary.
- ^ Blake, Barry J. (1981). Australian Aboriginal languages: a general introduction. London: Angus & Robertson Publishers. ISBN 0-207-14044-8.
- ^ a b c Clarke, Philip A. (2008). Aboriginal Plant Collectors: Botanists and Australian Aboriginal People in the Nineteenth Century. Rosenberg. p. 52. ISBN 978-1-877058-68-4. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
- ^ Oxford Dictionary of English, p 2,054.
- ^ "D9: Nari Nari". Austlang. AIATSIS. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
- ^ "Priority Languages Support Project". First Languages Australia. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
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