Ngunnawal/Ngunawal and Gundungurra are Australian Aboriginal languages, and the traditional languages of the Ngunnawal and Gandangara. Ngunnawal and Gundungurra are very closely related and the two were most likely highly mutually intelligible. As such they can be considered dialects of a single unnamed language, but this is the technical linguistic usage of these terms and Ngunnawal and Gundungurra peoples prefer to describe their individual varieties as separate languages in their own right.
Classification Gundungurra/Ngunawal is generally classified to fall within the tentative (and perhaps geographic) Yuin–Kuric group of the Pama–Nyungan family.
Geographical distribution The traditional country of the Ngunnawal people is generally thought to have extended east near Goulburn, north to Boorowa, south through Canberra, perhaps even to Queanbeyan, and extending west to around the Goodradigbee River.
Current status The language was extinct by 1994. Some recordings of the last native speakers exist, but they did not bring their children up to speak the language. The Ngunnawal community has for some years been engaged in work to revive the language, aiming to bring it back into daily use within the community. They have been working with AIATSIS linguists to assist them with this work, and with identifying historical records that can be used.
Phonology +Ngunawal consonants Labial Apico-alveolar Lamino-dental Lamino-palatal Dorso-velar Stop b d d̪ ɟ g Nasal m n n̪ ɲ ŋ Trill r Lateral l ʎ Approximant w ɹ j
Retroflex sounds [ɖ, ɳ, ɭ] may have also been recorded in limited distribution. Stops /b, d, ɟ, ɡ/ may also be heard as voiceless [p, t, c, k] when in word-final or syllable-final positions. /ɹ/ may have also been heard as [ɻ].
+ Ngunawal vowels Front Central Back High i, iː u, uː Low a, aː
Vocabulary + Ngunawal words and phrases and English translations Ngunawal English Ref.Kangaroo rat LongYellow box BoomerangBirdShieldBinduganMusselBirrigaiTo laughBudyanBirdsBunburungSmall lizardBunduluk RosellaBunima Blow (as wind)Burrai QuickBurrum-bahWhere the kangaroo, the wallaby, bounces over the rocksBural DayBurinStringybarkDhangarnFoodDaramoolenDreamingDarwaA transition for ceremony Dulwa Casuarina treesDyindanRing-tail possumGaluCraneGamburra FlowersGang-gangGang-gang cockatooGiliruk pee weeGinninderraSparkling lightGinin-ginin-derry Sparkling, throwing out little rays of light(possibly a description of a waterfall)GubbityPipeclayGubur DhauraRed ochre groundGudaliTo huntGuginyaKookaburraGulaKoalaGulwanYounger sisterGummiukBulrushesGunyan SlowJedbinbillaA place where boys become menGurubun KoalaKubbadang MoonKarrugang MagpieKudyera Fighting clubKanbarra Meeting PlaceMadiVeryMulleun EagleMulunggangPlatypus Mundang CanoeMundawari BandicootMunjuwaTracks, FootMuraPathwayMura gadiPathways for searchingMurra Bidgee MullangariKeeping the pathway to our ancestors aliveMurrung LizardNangi To see or lookNarragunnawali Alive/well-being/coming togetherNengi BamirSee far (view) Ngadyung WaterNgunna yerrabi yangguYou're welcome to leave your footprints on our land NguruCampPajongNgunnawal clan groupTuggeranongCold placeUmbagong Axe Walga HawkWallabalooa Ngunnawal clan groupWarabin CurlewWarrumbul YouthWeereewaLake George(translates roughly to "bad water")WimbaliriDrinkWinnunga nimmityjahStrong healthWinyuSunWirria Tree goannaWoggabaliriPlayWolwayWaterfallYarrhRunning waterYeal-am-bid-gieMolonglo RiverYerraSwim, to fly like a bird Yerrabi To walkYerradhangEucalyptus TreeYukkumbrukBlack CrowYumba EelYuyuMopoke
More words are compiled in The Wiradyuri and Other Languages of New South Wales, an article by Robert H. Mathews first published in the Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute in 1904.
References
External links https://aiatsis.gov.au/research/research-themes/ngunawal-language-revival-project