Aboriginal languages

When I speak language, it makes me feel [at] home.—Roger Hart, Aboriginal elder [5]

Language and Aboriginal people

Aboriginal people are experts when it comes to language. Before the invasion many were able to speak at least two or three and up to five languages or dialects fluently. Because they had an oral culture they were masters in remembering, contrary to the dominant western culture today who relies on the written word.

"[Aboriginal] language is an important embodiment of cultural heritage, knowledge, tradition and identity unique to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples," says Russell Taylor, Principal of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) [18].

Even if language is acquired later in life it can instill a sense of wellbeing and belonging for many Indigenous people who have lost ties to their culture [23].

Aboriginal people "often don't even know that [their mother] language is still strong and people speak it. When we show that to them it just blows their mind," says Ken Walker, NSW North Coast Gumbaynggirr Aboriginal language teacher [23].

Yolngu [north-Australian] language is our power, our foundation, our root and everything that holds us together. [It] gives us strength; language is our identity, who we are. Yolngu language gives us pride. Language is our law and justice.—Yalmay Yunupingu, Aboriginal teacher [10]

In the language are our ideas and we need them, the world needs them.—Bruce Pascoe, Aboriginal teacher [15]

Many Aboriginal languages are lost. Early attempts to document Indigenous languages usually focused on simple word lists for novel items such as weapons and animals.

First Fleet officer William Dawes is a notable exception. He recorded conversational snippets of the Darug language spoken around Sydney that tell of the social and cultural contexts, personalities, actions and feelings of the Aboriginal people he interacted with [25]. Dawes was taught by a 15-year-old Aboriginal girl named Patyegarang. See www.williamdawes.org for more details.

Teaching Indigenous languages at school

At schools in Western Australia, for example, the school curriculum includes up to three Asian languages, but there is no formal inclusion of any Indigenous language. If an Aboriginal language is taught it is by agreement between individual schools and Indigenous language teachers or speakers [28].

But student numbers are encouraging with 6,400 WA students studying an INdigenous language compared to 4,000 students learning Mandarin [28].

They were just so hungry for the Nyoongar language we taught in school. We taught them the whole program and they just loved it. —Janet Hayden, Nyoongar Elder and language teacher [28]

Ms Hayden continues: "They wanted more and more, and when we left the teachers all said 'please come back, don't forget us', and that was in a white community. One very distinguished gentleman came up to me and he had tears in his eyes and said I had opened his eyes to Aboriginal culture and what Aboriginal people were all about." [28]

We see the teaching of languages in schools as being critical to the maintenance of Indigenous languages and to the maintenance of our overall cultural identity as Australians. —Andrew Thompson, spokesman Western Australian Education Department [28]

Have you ever listened to Aboriginal language?

Many people, even many Australians, have never listened to Aboriginal language.

View the following video Language Stories - Mijil Mil Mia and listen to the Aboriginal elder's story from the Kimberleys (subtitles provided).

Aboriginal language preservation projects

Read more about Aboriginal education.

Aboriginal language: When yes means no

Sometimes women say 'no' but mean 'yes'. But it might surprise that many Aboriginal people say 'yes' and mean 'no'.

Research uncovered that Aboriginal people often answer 'yes' to advances by salespeople to appease the salesperson and politely end the conversation [29]. Salespeople however took their 'yes' as agreement and sealed the contract with dire consequences.

Hundreds of Indigenous people entered unintentionally into exploitative, unfair contracts to buy, lease or lay-by products and services they can't afford and don't understand. The North Queensland-based Indigenous Consumer Assistance Network (ICAN) cancelled more than 800 contracts, preventing an estimated $2 million of financial detriment [29], which they consider the 'tip of the iceberg'.

Similarly, Aboriginal people 'agree' in everyday conversations with non-Indigenous people. They try to politely tell the person that they do not want or can't answer their questions or request because they haven't built enough trust yet or it is not their call to reveal the answers.

Aboriginal words in Australia's language

What would you associate with the heading above? Shouldn't the faces of the people pictured be concerned rather than happy because of the 'deadly' vibe that's impacting the town?

This is an example for how Aboriginal words can be mistaken by speakers of the English language. 'Deadly' is an Aboriginal slang word for 'fantastic', 'great' or 'awesome'. The article reports about the fun and joy people had at the two-day Aboriginal youth weekend Vibe 3on3.

While an increasing number of parents are using Aboriginal words for their children's names [23] many Australians don't know how to say 'yes' in any of the many Aboriginal languages.

We all know how to say yes in Spanish don't we? We all know how to say yes in German don't we? We all know how to say yes in French don't we? Do we know how to say yes in any of the 360 Aboriginal dialects in this country?—Ernie Dingo, Aboriginal actor and Yamatji man [27]

Some of the many words you find in Aboriginal English spoken in New South Wales shows the following table [19].

Aboriginal words common in NSW

Aboriginal English	Standard English
country	land, home
deadly	fantastic, great, awesome
mob	family, kin, group of people
lingo	Aboriginal language
Sorry Business	ceremony and rituals associated with the death of a loved one
gammon	pretending, kidding, joking
shame	embarrass, humiliate
tidda	girl female friend, best friend, peer
sista/sister girl	female friend, cousin, peer
brotha/brother boy	male friend, cousin, peer
dubbay, dub	girlfriend, female partner
gubba	non-Aboriginal person
duri (doori)	sex
charge-up, charge	drink alcohol
shame, shamejob	that's embarrassing
gunjies	police
mish	mission

Australia's language is interspersed with words that come from Aboriginal languages. Today around 400 words are in common usage which come from 80 different Indigenous languages [14]. Most of these words are used to describe flora and fauna or other 'things'.

A survey of newspapers in July 2007 found that the most common Aboriginal word is 'kangaroo', followed by 'wallaby' (which might be influenced by the rugby team of the same name), 'waratah' (also a rugby team), 'koala', 'billabong', 'kookaburra', 'dingo' and 'wombat'.

Not surprisingly, all of these words come from a language spoken in the area of Sydney and surrounds where they were adopted early on in Australia's history. The uniform spelling was established in the 1830s.

'Karrikins' - a new word from an Aboriginal language

Aboriginal words are still added to the Australian and international vocabulary.

In 2008 the word 'karrikins' was added [17]. It is derived from the Western Australian Noongar word karrik, one of the first recorded Aboriginal words for smoke from the Perth area in the 1830s. Karrikins describes a substance in plants that stimulates seed germination and seedling growth after bushfires.

Second only to the original language of Sydney Cove, Noongar has given more words to the English language than any other Indigenous Australian language.—Alan Dench, Professor of Linguistics, University of Western Australia [17]

Aboriginal place names

Aboriginal place names are very, very old. Place names were an important part of Aboriginal culture. If you knew the place names and how they connected you could walk the country and orientate yourself. Song lines were a chain of place names.

After invasion many Aboriginal place names have been replaced by European names and many have been lost or are in danger of being forgotten.

Some place names have been reclaimed, the most prominent example of which is Uluru. Previously known as Ayers Rock its Indigenous name Uluru was re-introduced on 15 December 1993 with the dual name 'Ayers Rock/Uluru', reversed to 'Uluru/Ayers Rock' on 6 November 2002. The first name of dual names is the official or "dominant" name and should be preferred [31].

In Sydney, about 100 place names around Port Jackson and Botany Bay were learned from Aboriginal people, but only a few came to be used officially, such as Parramatta, Kirribilli, Bondi, Wooloomooloo, Coogee, Maroubra etc.

But some of these Aboriginal place names might not even denote that place because after federation the interest to add a "distinctive national flavour" to the landscape led to many names being introduced with little regard for whether or not they derived from the locality in which they were bestowed [32].

For example, the Aboriginal name Katoomba was moved some 15 kilometres to replace the uninviting name 'The Crushers' whilst the true Aboriginal meaning of Katoomba was lost.

Fortunately there seems to be a tendency to use more Aboriginal place names for new sites, such as the development of the western harbour area in Sydney, known as Barangaroo, which won against the suggested 'Hungry Mile'. State place-naming policies now favour to re-instate authentic Indigenous place names. "The use of Aboriginal names is encouraged and the collection and compilation of recorded Aboriginal place names is supported," read the Northern Territory Rules of Nomenclature for example [31].

Fact: Canberra is the only capital in Australia with its name rooted in Aboriginal language and supposedly derived from the word for meeting place (although there is some disagreement about this).

Why Aboriginal languages lose out

Many Aboriginal people speak English as their third or even fourth language. They grew up learning Indigenous languages as their mother tongue.

These students struggle in English-only schools because they have difficulties understanding what the teachers explain. Consequently they fall behind those students whose first language is English.

Bilingual education

Former Prime Minister Gough Witlam introduced bilingual education in schools in Australia in the early 1970s []. Until 2009 only 9 out of 60 remote Aboriginal schools offered bilingual classes [10] which were successful in allowing children to attain good academic results on the basis of their own language and culture [13], but also helping them grow a strong Aboriginal identity.

But in January 2009 the NT government ruled that the first four hours of education in all NT schools should be delivered in English, putting and end to 34 years of bilingual education in the Northern Territory and to the 9 remaining bilingual programs.

One consequence of the scrapped bilingual programmes was that school attendance dropped to an average of just 30% in the NT [35].

The use of Aboriginal language in schools brings Aboriginal parents and grandparents into the school and so brings the community and the school together. —Prof Michael Christie, School of Education, Charles Darwin University [35]

"It is widely regarded that the most effective education for Aboriginal students was the mission days when the teachers learnt the local language and used it to teach English," said Syd Stirling, Northern Territory Education Minister in 2005 [12].

Fewer and fewer Aboriginal languages are taught due to the omnipresence of English, pressure on schools to 'teach to the test' and the lack of teaching resources. Some Indigenous dialects die out when the last speaker passes on. Worldwide a language gets lost every two weeks [5], and Australia's Indigenous languages are in grave danger of becoming extinct too.

For most Indigenous children, standard Australian English is an additional language, which presents a real challenge in the everyday classroom.—Thelma Gertz, Catholic Education Office, Townsville [22]

Aboriginal languages lost in Australia

Question: How many Aboriginal languages existed in Australia before European invasion?

Tell me!

Linguists say that Australia is the top 'hot spot' for vanishing languages [2].

Australia's Indigenous north with its 153 languages is leading a list of five global areas, along with a region of central South America.

Every two weeks one of the world's 7,000 recognised distinct languages vanishes, often because its last elderly speaker has died.

In 2006 only 804 Aboriginal people out of a population of 148,200 in New South Wales were speaking and Aboriginal language [8].

You can't have a culture without a language.—Aboriginal elder [8]

Question: Why does the Warlpiri Aboriginal language have no words for saltwater things?

Tell me!

I visit the communities with my Elders who speak four or five languages.—Maryanne Winton, Gurindji woman [7]

Lack of Aboriginal language interpreters

A lack of Aboriginal language interpreters literally costs lives.

As English for many Aboriginal people is a second, third, sometimes even fifth, language, many struggle to understand medical advice, court orders and other vital information. In the Kimberley region in northern Australia there are 26 language groups alone.

A report released in June 2010 by the Equal Opportunity Commission on Indigenous interpreting services found a lack of qualified interpreters severely affected the ability of Aboriginal people to access crucial government services such as justice and health. It found 20% of remote Aboriginal people had difficulty understanding or being understood by service providers [36].

Court jargon and medical terminology can be difficult, and we need to explain it to people. It's very, very complicated. —Annette Kogolo, Walmajarri woman and co-chair of the Kimberley Interpreting Service [36]

When misunderstandings cost lives

Baby dies

An Aboriginal baby died because the mother did not understand the doctor's instructions to apply a medicine only on the body. Instead the mother made the baby take it orally [36].

Perpetual parole breaker

An Aboriginal person constantly broke parole until an interpreter was engaged to explain the reporting conditions properly [36].

Court decision voided

A South Australian Supreme Court judge upheld an appeal of an Aboriginal man because he was not given a fair hearing due to the lack of qualified translators [3].

Eight times the trial required a language interpreter but only once did one arrive. The lawyer had to ask a sentenced prisoner with little knowledge of the English language to step in, while another prisoner assisted the psychiatrist during his assessment of the man.

The judge ruled that the accused man was 'deprived of his rights'.

Read what happens to Aboriginal people who don't understand the white law system: "I plead guilty!"

Aboriginal language preservation projects

Traditionally, young children who could pick up languages easily were to become caretakers of many languages.

However, many Aboriginal languages and dialects became extinct because their speakers were forbidden to use native language over many years under white Australian assimilation policies.

Today local radio broadcasters take on a role as Aboriginal language preservers when they communicate information in the first language of their listeners. 42% of people in the Northern Territory listen to community radio each week [9] showing how valuable a first language service is to them.

Besides radio there are other dedicated services to preserve Aboriginal languages.

Without intervention, Indigenous language knowledge will cease to exist in Australia in the next 10 to 30 years. —Tom Calma, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner in 2010 [26]

It's a terrible tragedy that most of the [Aboriginal] Australian languages are dead and will never be spoken again and yet we don't seem to be terribly worried about how we ensure the vitality and the ongoing viability of the languages we still do have. —Prof Michael Christie, School of Education, Charles Darwin University [35]

Picture dictionaries

Working closely with communities and linguists, Alice Springs-based Aboriginal publisher IAD Press created a Picture Dictionary series. The books include English translations of the Aboriginal words, accompanied by culturally appropriate illustrations and a pronunciation guide.

In being relevant to Aboriginal people's own needs and interests the dictionaries encourage them to read and learn.

Fact The Kriol Bible ('Kriol Baibul') is the first complete bible in an Aboriginal language [38].

Yuwaalaraaly and Gamilaraay language project

Thankfully some initiatives are under way to try to revive or conserve some languages. One of them is the Yuwaalaraaly and Gamilaraay language project which tries to teach these northern NSW Aboriginal languages to children. The project's website (www.yuwaalaraay.org) offers stories spoken in these languages, the English translation and some background information on their history.

Many Rivers Aboriginal Language Centre

Another resource is the Many Rivers Aboriginal Language Centre (www.muurrbay.org.au) which aims to support Indigenous languages on a coastal strip from Brisbane to Sydney.

Ngapartji Ngapartji

This language preservation project (speak: 'napatji napatji') is both a stage performance and an online interactive experience.

You can journey into Pitjantjatjara (speak: 'pidjnjara') culture and language by watching short films or songs that have been produced by Indigenous community members and artists. Each clip or song is accompanied by a list of Pitjantjatjara words with their English meanings, pronunciation guides and even guided worksheets.

On signing up you can work at your own pace, continue lessons you've started and check out new content.

Try it—and you can experience yourself how hard it would have been for Aboriginal people when they first had to learn English, specifically as adults. ninti.ngapartji.org

Numerous private language preservation initiatives rarely make it to the headlines. If you are interested it's a good idea to search for Aboriginal language forums.

[This] is a call to tongues, to learn our languages, find its secrets and remember them.—Bruce Pascoe, Aboriginal teacher [15]

Graduate course about Yolŋu language

There are about 8,000 speakers of Yolŋu languages in east Arnhemland. After English, Yolŋu Matha is the by far most commonly spoken language in the Northern Territory.

At Charles Darwin University people from around Australia and overseas learn about Yolŋu language and culture by enrolling in the Graduate Certificate in Yolŋu Studies.

This graduate course is designed to provide an introduction to the life and languages of the Yolŋu nations who live in north east Arnhemland. The Yolŋu Studies program at CDU is taught by a Yolŋu lecturer, from an Indigenous perspective and has been approved by Yolŋu educators and elders. The course covers: pronunciation, spelling, Yolŋu names, basic conversation, grammar, maths, kinship, creation and history, land and ceremony, general principles for communicating with Yolŋu, politeness, respect, rights and responsibility in decision making and negotiation, Aboriginal philosophy of knowledge, education and science. The program is available for study both internally and externally.

Indigenous language resources

If you are interested in researching Aboriginal languages check out the following websites.

Dharug Dalang

Dharug Dalang is a site launched in October 2010. It features hundreds of words, some of which are read out to you so you can learn their pronunciation.

The site has also background information and video interviews about language of Aboriginal people.

Check it out: www.dharug.dalang.com.au.

Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (IATSIS)

IATSIS' Australian Indigenous languages database AUSTLANG allows you to search for Indigenous languages by name, place name or by navigating Australia through Google Maps.

Indigenous communities are as diverse as Indigenous languages. —Jimmy Pascoe, traditional owner, Maningrida, West Arnhemland, Northern Territory [21]

Out of respect for Aboriginal culture I use Indigenous sources as much as possible.
[1] Koori Mail 390 p.68 [2] MX Newspaper 19/9/2007 [3] National Indigenous Times 135 p.15 [4] National Indigenous Times 135 p.22 [5] Flyer from Ngapartji Ngapartji performance for Indigenous language support [6] 'A single national language', Koori Mail 429 p.25 [7] 'Toad busters hopping to it', Koori Mail 437 p.12 [8] 'Focus on language', Koori Mail 437 p.31 [9] 'NT community tuned in', Koori Mail 437 p.33 [10] 'NT Govt accused of endangering culture', Koori Mail 439 p.8 [11] 'Volumes offer new hope for languages', Koori Mail 439 p.30 [12] 'Territory re-engages in a decade old bilingual debate', NIT 27/11/2008 p.3 [13] 'Lessons in language', NIT 27/11/2008 p.26 [14] 'Author looks at swimmers, accents and black words', NIT 16/10/2008 p.13 [15] ''Do more' challenge for us all', Koori Mail 441 p.40 [16] 'Aboriginal Languages', NSW Department of Aboriginal Affairs, www.daa.nsw.gov.au/landandculture/language.html [17] 'Noongar name for substance', Koori Mail 444 p.33 [18] 'Prestigious award win for AIATSIS', Koori Mail 452 p.42 [19] 'Working with Aboriginal people and communities', guide by NSW Department of Community Services, 2/2009 p.22 [20] Koori Mail 448 p.44 [21] 'Why homelands are better for our people', Koori Mail 453 p.21 [22] 'Paper highlights the value of culturally inclusive teaching', Koori Mail 458 p.22 [23] 'New language courses reclaim the mother tongue', NIT 25/1/2007 p.13 [24] 'Gains, but the gap is still wide, study finds', Koori Mail 463 p.9 [25] 'Website helps to keep Darug language alive', Koori Mail 463 p.14 [26] 'Calma's final report points to brighter future', Koori Mail 468 p.7 [27] 'Our finalists do us proud', Koori Mail 469 p.11 [28] 'WA support to teach our languages', Koori Mail 472 p.32 [29] 'When 'Yeah Yeah Yeah' means no', Koori Mail 476 p.3 [30] Koori Mail 476 p.32 [31] Northern Territory Rules of Nomenclature, 2001, www.nt.gov.au/placenames/policy/nomenclature.shtml, visited 7/7/2010 [32] 'Place names at risk: Authors', Koori Mail 477 p.34 [33] 'Practical reconciliation', readers letter, Koori Mail 482 p.23 [34] Ad by the Geographical Names Board, Bathurst, Koori Mail 483 p.42 [35] 'Learn an ancient tongue, says expert linguist', Koori Mail 493 p.47 [36] 'Census shows more identify as Indigenous', Koori Mail 404 p.7 [37] 'Mixed reaction to English plan', Koori Mail 402 p.12 [38] 'Kriol Bible is a first', Koori Mail 402 p.13