Yolngu Matha - the Language

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Language YOLNGU MATHA - THE LANGUAGE Yolngu Matha means Yolngu Special Characters SOME COMMON YOLNGU TERMS language. It refers to Yolngu languages in general. There B^pi Snake |^nitji or Manha Alcohol \ or | ng as with song are over 40 Yolngu languages. B^ru Crocodile |apaki Non-Yolngu person, Most Yolngu speak multiple [ or { tongue curled back white person. Yolngu languages. The Bathi Dilly bag ^ or % long a, as with father |arali Tobacco, cigarette following explanation may help Bay\u None, I don’t have any you to pronounce the words. ] or } tongue curled back |atha Food Bilma Rhythm sticks (clap sticks) Yolngu languages are written ` or ~ tongue curled back Nh^mirri nhe How are you? Bu\gawa Boss, leader (can be a using special characters. For ’ glottal stop derogatory term) Nhulunbuy The hill around technical reasons we have not which the township is located. used them throughout this Bu\gul Dance not necessarily booklet. At right is a description Traditional ceremony (corroboree) Rrupiya Money (Macassan of the special characters and on introduced word) Bu\gul dj^ma Ceremony the far right the Yolngu words business or work is considered W^wa Brother appear in orange with these important work in Yolngu society special characters. Yaka No Dhuwa, Yirritja Everything in Vowels the world belongs to one of these Yaka manymak I am not good There are three pairs of vowels. two named social moieties or Yalala Later categories. Yolngu marry into their opposite moiety. Yapa Sister (it’s common to refer SHORT VOWELS LONG VOWELS to a female you don’t know as {irramu Man, male a as in about ä as in father yapa) Work, business i as in bin e no equivalent in English – try Dj^ma Yatj Bad lengthening the i in bin Ga’ Give it here! Yi[aki Didgeridoo (The Miwatj u as in put o as in pore Galpu Spear launcher region is recognised as the home of Yidaki. You are on yidaki Gara Spear country) Consonants Gapa] White clay used for Yol\u The peoples of the north- ceremony purposes, dancing and east Arnhem Land region call painting. themselves Yolngu. Different from b, g, k, l, p, m, n, t, w, y — are like the English equivalents other tribes around Australia dh, th, nh — pronounced with the tongue between the teeth Gapu Water Koori, Noongah, and Murri for example d, t, n, l, r — pronounced with the tongue curled back Gurtha Fire, lighter, match, firewood dj — as with jug Yo Yes tj — somewhat similar to the ch in church Ma Okay! Do it! Yo manymak Yes, good, Manymak Good, okay thanks. A positive response/ ny — as with news acknowledgement ng — as in song Miyalk Female Yol\u matha A general term for You are in the many Yolngu languages If you want to learn more about Yolngu language and culture, Miwatj Region Miwatj or sunrise country of north-east Arnhem Land go to www.learnline.cdu.edu.au/yolngustudies .

Copy Link

Recommended publications

HOMELAND STORY Saving Country
ROGUE PRODUCTIONS & DONYDJI HOMELAND presents HOMELAND STORY Saving Country PRESS KIT Running Time: 86 mins ROGUE PRODUCTIONS PTY LTD - Contact David Rapsey - [email protected] Ph: +61 3 9386 2508 Mob: +61 423 487 628 Glenda Hambly - [email protected] Ph: +61 3 93867 2508 Mob: +61 457 078 513461 RONIN FILMS - Sales enquiries PO box 680, Mitchell ACT 2911, Australia Ph: 02 6248 0851 Fax: 02 6249 1640 [email protected] Rogue Productions Pty Ltd 104 Melville Rd, West Brunswick Victoria 3055 Ph: +61 3 9386 2508 Mob: +61 423 487 628 TABLE OF CONTENTS Synopses .............................................................................................. 3 Donydji Homeland History ................................................................. 4-6 About the Production ......................................................................... 7-8 Director’s Statement ............................................................................. 9 Comments: Damien Guyula, Yolngu Producer… ................................ 10 Comments: Robert McGuirk, Rotary Club. ..................................... 11-12 Comments: Dr Neville White, Anthropologist ................................. 13-14 Principal Cast ................................................................................. 15-18 Homeland Story Crew ......................................................................... 19 About the Filmmakers ..................................................................... 20-22 2 SYNOPSES ONE LINE SYNOPSIS An intimate portrait, fifty
[Show full text]
Yolŋu Information Sharing and Clarity of Understanding
Yolŋu Information sharing and clarity of understanding 1. Introduction This project Yolŋu Information sharing and clarity of understanding is stage 1 of a programme proposed by Motivation Australia consisting of 5 stages called Inclusive Community Development in East Arnhem Land. Five community visits to carry out Discovery Education sessions were carried out in Ramingining, Milingimbi, Galiwin'ku, Gapuwiyak1 and Darwin, and a workshop was held in Darwin in the first half of 2013. This project was carried out with the Aboriginal Resource and Development Services Inc. (ARDS) and funded by the FaHCSIA Practical Design Fund. Content This is the final project report with appendices detailing all of the content discussed during the five community visits to carry out Discovery Education sessions. The content is as follows: 2. Executive summary ........................................................................................................................ 3 3. Conclusions .................................................................................................................................... 6 4. Recommendations ......................................................................................................................... 7 5. Report ............................................................................................................................................. 8 6. An introduction to Yolŋu culture; as it relates to disability issues ................................................... 8 7. Issues for
[Show full text]
Contributors
Contributors Jon Altman is an economic anthropologist who has worked on Indigenous devel- opment issues in Australia since 1976. Between 1990 and 2010 he was the Foundation Director of the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research at the Australian National University where he is currently located. Professor Altman has worked with ‘People on Country’ in the Top End for over 30 years, primarily in the west Arnhem Land/Kakadu region. He is currently focusing his research on alternate development possibilities in hybrid Indigenous economies on the Indigenous estate. Professor Altman is currently an Australian Research Council Australian Professorial Fellow and an adjunct professorial fellow at the Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods at Charles Darwin University. He is a Foundation Director and Secretary of Karrkad-Kanjdji Limited. Geoff Buchanan is a doctoral candidate in anthropology at the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research. He began work as a researcher at the Centre in 2004 having an undergraduate background in environmental policy and economics as well as Indigenous Australian studies. Geoff has worked on a number of research projects relating to the environmental, social and economic signifcance of the Indigenous estate, caring for country and customary harvest. Wesley Campion is a senior Rembarrnga man and is currently employed as the Djelk Ranger’s Indigenous Protected Area Liaison Offcer. Wesley has previously held a number of other senior positions within the Maningrida Community and is a highly regarded translator and facilitator. Among Wesley’s recent achievements are the successful conduct and transcription of Djelk’s Indigenous Protected Area consultations with over 100 land-owning groups, and playing an instrumental role in the pioneering of rock art tours in his country.
[Show full text]
A NATIONAL CONVERSATION ABOUT ABORIGINAL and TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER CONSTITUTIONAL RECOGNITION Discussion Paper
A NATIONAL CONVERSATION ABOUT ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER CONSTITUTIONAL RECOGNITION Discussion Paper . May 2011 A NATIONAL CONVERSATION ABOUT ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER CONSTITUTIONAL RECOGNITION Discussion Paper . May 2011 CONTENTS 1. Introduction 5 A Constitution for the people 5 The benefits of constitutional recognition 6 Gathering momentum for change 7 2. BacKground to THE AUSTRALIAN CONSTITUTION 9 How does a referendum work? 9 3. WHY IS recognition IMportant? 10 Reflecting who we are as a nation 10 Eliminating racial discrimination in our Constitution 10 4. WHY CHANGE THE CONSTITUTION? 12 Acknowledging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures 12 Improving health and wellbeing 12 National identity 12 5. THE CHALLENGES OF constitutional REFORM 14 Multi-party support 14 Community education on the need for change 14 Ownership by the people 15 6. PRINCIPLES GUIDING THE PANEL 16 7. SOME IDEAS FOR CHANGE 17 Statements of Recognition/Values 17 Idea 1 Statement of Recognition in a preamble 17 Idea 2 Statement of Recognition in the body of the Constitution 17 Idea 3 Statement of Values in a preamble 17 Idea 4 Statement of Recognition and Statement of Values in the body of the Constitution 17 Equality and non discrimination 18 Idea 5 Repeal or amendment of the ‘race power’ 18 Idea 6 Repeal of Section 25 19 Constitutional agreements 19 Idea 7 Agreement-making power 19 Questions for consideration 20 8. THE PANEL 21 9. How YOU CAN GET involved 22 10. FurtHER READING AND relevant LINKS 23 Books 23 Book chapters 23 Articles 23 Lectures and speeches 24 Reports 24 Other reading 11.
[Show full text]
Appropriate Terminology, Indigenous Australian Peoples
General Information Folio 5: Appropriate Terminology, Indigenous Australian Peoples Information adapted from ‘Using the right words: appropriate as ‘peoples’, ‘nations’ or ‘language groups’. The nations of terminology for Indigenous Australian studies’ 1996 in Teaching Indigenous Australia were, and are, as separate as the nations the Teachers: Indigenous Australian Studies for Primary Pre-Service of Europe or Africa. Teacher Education. School of Teacher Education, University of New South Wales. The Aboriginal English words ‘blackfella’ and ‘whitefella’ are used by Indigenous Australian people all over the country — All staff and students of the University rely heavily on language some communities also use ‘yellafella’ and ‘coloured’. Although to exchange information and to communicate ideas. However, less appropriate, people should respect the acceptance and use language is also a vehicle for the expression of discrimination of these terms, and consult the local Indigenous community or and prejudice as our cultural values and attitudes are reflected Yunggorendi for further advice. in the structures and meanings of the language we use. This means that language cannot be regarded as a neutral or unproblematic medium, and can cause or reflect discrimination due to its intricate links with society and culture. This guide clarifies appropriate language use for the history, society, naming, culture and classifications of Indigenous Australian and Torres Strait Islander people/s. Indigenous Australian peoples are people of Aboriginal and Torres
[Show full text]
Indigenous Leadership and Customer Governance by Kado Muir
Draft Only, Not for comment or citation without authors permission A reflection on Indigenous Leadership and Customary Governance Kado Muir; Director of Walkatjurra Cultural Centre, Leonora and PhD student, Curtin University, WA. Abstract It is widely accepted that pre-contact Indigenous societies in Australia did not have instituted leadership. There were no kings, queens, chiefs or other formal leadership titles. Yet pre-contact societies did exist, these societies were fully functional in every respect and indeed developed a level of social sophistication and resource management unrivalled by today’s standards. It appears that Indigenous Australians developed a system of governance that did not require institutional leaders. It is also widely accepted that the years since contact has seen a massive decline in the ability of Indigenous Australian societies to articulate a system of governance to counteract the intrusive effects of colonisation. This is immediately apparent when one measures Indigenous Australia against indicators used for “Developed” Australia. In this discussion I would like to reflect on remnant pre-contact governance structures and offer a suggestion to Indigenous leaders to think and act beyond the confines of our colonial experience. I want Indigenous leaders to seek inspiration in their pre-contact past and to map out a future for their communities in a Globalised world not a parochial localised world. 1 Draft Only, Not for comment or citation without authors permission Wutayi. Mamanpa pini ngaatu, mamanpa Larakianya ngayulu pukulpa pana nyuntuku nyinarra. Nyuntu kutjupalu ngawunu kuwarringka nyinarra, kulintjaku ngayunya. Ngawunu tjumaku kulintjaku. Ngayulu nyakula pukularringu nyuntuku. Ngayuku yini Kadonya. nyamirri ngayuku Tjarurru.
[Show full text]
“The Colonisation of Australia Prior to European Settlement” Thesis
“The Colonisation of Australia prior to European Settlement” Thesis submitted for the Degree of Master of Science University of Adelaide Phyllis Turner October 2006 The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, The solemn temples, the great globe itself, Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, Leave not a rack behind. Shakespeare: The Tempest IV, i, 148. P. Turner ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I thank my primary supervisor Professor Maciej Henneberg of the University of Adelaide and my external supervisor Professor Colin Groves of ANU for their persistent and unsparing encouragement, support, advice, knowledge, expertise and guidance throughout my candidature. If I have done one small thing it is because I have sat at the feet of Colossi - Diogenes I am indebted to staff of the following institutions for their collaborative support: The British Museum, The London Museum, The Berndt Museum, The Kroeber Museum of the University of California (Berkeley) and to Professor Dr Joseph Glinka of Airlangga University in Surabaya. I thank members of staff of the University of Adelaide in particular the Department of Anatomical Science, staff of Student Support, staff of the Barr-Smith Library, especially Dr Michael Draper my research Librarian, and my typist Mary Jones. I dedicate this thesis to the memory of my daughter the late Dr Elizabeth Imrie-Dines, and offer my thanks to my daughter Anne who was my proficient proof reader and to all my children, all of whom supported and assisted me in my study endeavours. PM Turner Jan 2006 Thesis p. 2 P. Turner CONTENTS Abstract Introduction Over time, Australia was populated by a succession of arrivals.
[Show full text]
Technology and Bilingual Education: Helping Yolŋu Students Crack the Alphabetic Code
Technology and Bilingual Education: Helping Yolŋu Students Crack the Alphabetic Code Gemma Alejandra Morales https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1123-0330 Ph.D. Arts Candidate October, 2018 School of Languages and Linguistics This thesis is being submitted in total fulfilment of the degree. ABSTRACT Phonological awareness and letter knowledge have a significant and causal relationship with early reading for readers of alphabetic languages. While the existing research regarding the emergent reading skills of mainstream Western populations is vast, little is known about the development of literacy skills among children coming from cultures transmitted primarily through oral tradition. This study examined the emergent literacy skills of students attending a remote bilingual Indigenous school in the Northern Territory, Australia. The study included all Transition (kindergarten) to Grade 4 students enrolled at the participating school. This thesis proposes that phonological awareness, letter knowledge, and early word reading are closely related for children learning to read in Dhuwaya and that phonological awareness training can facilitate the acquisition of early reading ability in Dhuwaya. A Dhuwaya language game-like iPad application software was used as a phonological awareness intervention tool. This Intervention App was specifically designed and created for this thesis project. The Intervention App includes 24 levels that progressively increase in difficulty. Each level consists of a sound segmentation activity, a letter knowledge activity, and a sound blending activity. Letter knowledge, phonological awareness (at both the syllable and phoneme level), and word recognition skills were measured at three separate testing times: immediately before the start of the intervention, immediately after the intervention ended, and six months after the intervention ended.
[Show full text]
Asymmetrical Distinctions in Waanyi Kinship Terminology1 Mary Laughren
12 Asymmetrical Distinctions in Waanyi Kinship Terminology1 Mary Laughren Introduction Background Waanyi2 kinship terms map onto an ‘Arandic’ system with distinct encoding of the four logical combinations of maternal and paternal relations in the ascending harmonic (‘grandparent’) generation: 1 Without the generous collaboration of the late Mr Roy Seccin Kamarrangi, who valiantly attempted to teach me Waanyi between 2000 and 2005, this study would not have begun. I also acknowledge the assistance received from the late Mr Eric King Balyarrinyi and his companions at the Doomadgee nursing home. I am indebted to Gavan Breen, who shared his Waanyi field notes and insights with me, and to John Dymock, who gave me copies of his vast corpus of Waanyi vocabulary. Thank you to the two anonymous reviewers, whose input to the development of this chapter was substantial, and to Barry Alpher, who provided invaluable feedback on an earlier draft. Errors of fact or interpretation remain my responsibility. The research on Waanyi was supported by a number of small ARC grants through the University of Queensland and the Waanyi Nation Aboriginal Corporation. 2 Waanyi was traditionally spoken in land watered by the upper branches of the Nicholson River and its tributaries, which straddles the Queensland–Northern Territory border to the south of the Gulf of Carpentaria (see Tindale 1974; Trigger 1982). The most closely related language is Garrwa (Breen 2003; Mushin 2012), spoken to the immediate north of Waanyi. The Garrwa-Waanyi language block lies between the northern and southern branches of the Warluwarric language group (Blake 1988, 1990) and is bordered on the east by the Tangkic language Yukulta, also called Ganggalida, (Keen 1983; Nancarrow et al.
[Show full text]
The Land Rights Movement
25 YEARS OF NATIVE TITLE RECOGNITION Contents Settlement and 1 disposession Yirrkala Bark Petitions 1963 2 The Freedom Ride 1965 2 Wave Hill Station walk off 3 1966–1975 Gove Land Rights case 4 1968–1971 Aboriginal Tent Embassy 4 1972 Yolgnu claimants in the Land Rights case over the Gove Peninsula discuss aspects of Racial Discrimination Act 5 the hearing outside the courtroom in Canberra, September 1970. Source: National Archives of Australia. 1975 Reproduced with permission from Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Aboriginal Land Rights (NT) 6 © Commonwealth of Australia. Act 1976 Noonkanbah 6 THE ROAD TO NATIVE TITLE: 1978–1980 THE LAND RIGHTS MOVEMENT Mabo No 2 6 1982–1992 Settlement and dispossession Paul Keating Redfern 7 From the time of first European settlement, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Speech 1992 Australians have fought to maintain, and have recognised, their traditional rights to ownership of land. In 1788 the colony of New South Wales was established and the founding of Australia as a British colony had begun. The colony was settled on the basis of the doctrine of international law whereby the continent was deemed to be terra nullius—land belonging to no-one. Despite the obvious presence of Indigenous people, in the eyes of the British the land was considered to be practically unoccupied, without settled inhabitants and without settled law. The Colony was claimed for the British Sovereign on 26 January 1788. There is ongoing debate about the legal status of the ‘settlement’ as the land was clearly occupied and; there was no treaty and no (declared) war.
[Show full text]
Natasha Fijn Sugarbag Dreaming: the Significance of Bees to Yolngu in Arnhem Land, Australia
H U M a N I M A L I A 6:1 Natasha Fijn Sugarbag Dreaming: the significance of bees to Yolngu in Arnhem Land, Australia Introduction. We pile out of the dusty four-wheel drive troop carrier and begin walking in separate groups of two or three, bare feet crunching through the dry grass. The only other sounds are occasional resonant taps from an axe testing whether a trunk is hollow; or when the women periodically call to each other to keep within earshot amongst the scattered stands of stringybark trees. It is easy, open walking through country. The extended family group I came with care for the land by setting fire to the grass during the drier months, particularly at this time of year, sugarbag season. I observe while the women in their brightly coloured skirts with their young children or grandchildren look closely at the trunks of the trees and up into the canopy at the blue sky beyond, scanning for signs of the tiny black stingless bees. Today offers good conditions for finding honey. If the conditions are too cool or windy the bees tend to stay in their nest, not venturing out to forage. We hear a yell in the distance indicating that a nest has been found and walk to the small, scraggly-looking tree. The teenager, who located the bees, begins to chop down the tree to get at the nest inside. Children hold onto their jars and containers in keen anticipation of the rich, sticky honey within the tree. Once the women have opened up the nest, they do not only consume the liquid honey but collect everything with the beaten end of a stick: the wax, larvae, pollen and the odd entrapped stingless bee.
[Show full text]
Yolngu Life in the Northern Territory of Australia: the Significance of Community and Social Capital
On-Line Papers Copyright This online paper may be cited or briefly quoted in line with the usual academic conventions. You may also download them for your own personal use. This paper must not be published elsewhere (e.g. to mailing lists, bulletin boards etc.) without the author’s explicit permission. Please note that if you copy this paper you must: • include this copyright note • not use the paper for commercial purposes or gain in any way • you should observe the conventions of academic citation in a version of the following form: www.cdu.edu.au/centres/inc/pdf/Yolngulife.pdf Publication Details: This web page was last revised on 12/12/2006 Yolngu Life in the Northern Territory of Australia: The Significance of Community and Social Capital Michael Christie and John Greatorex. School Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Aus- tralia http://www.cdu.edu.au/centres/inc [email protected] [email protected] Yolngu Life in the Northern Territory of Australia: The Significance of Community and Social Capital Michael Christie and John Greatorex The notion of social capital has had wide currency in mainstream social policy debate in recent years, with commonly used definitions emphasising three factors: norms, networks and trust. Yolngu Aboriginal people have their own perspectives on norms, networks and trust relationships. This article uses concepts from Yolngu philosophy to explore these perspectives in three contexts: at the former mission settlements, at homeland centres, and among "long-grassers" in Darwin. The persistence of the components of social capital at different levels in particular contexts should be seen by government policy makers as an opportunity to engage in a social development dialogue with Yolngu, aimed at identifying the specific contexts in which Yolngu social capital can be maximised.
[Show full text]