The Kulin languages are a group of closely related languages of the

Kulin people The Kulin nation is an alliance of five Aboriginal nations in south central Victoria, Australia. Their collective territory extends around Port Phillip and Western Port, up into the Great Dividing Range and the Loddon and Goulburn River valle ...

, part of the ''Kulinic'' branch of Pama–Nyungan.

Languages

Woiwurrung The Woiwurrung, also spelt Woi Wurrung, Woiwurrong, Woiworung, Wuywurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin people, Kulin alliance. The Woiwurrung people's territory in Central Victoria (Austral ...

(Woy-wur-rung): spoken from

Mount Baw Baw Mount Baw Baw is a mountain summit on the Baw-Baw Plateau of the Great Dividing Range, located in Victoria, Australia. The name is from the Woiwurrung language spoken by Eastern Kulin people. It is of uncertain meaning, but possibly signifie ...

in the east to

Mount Macedon Mount Macedon ( Aboriginal Woiwurrung language: ''Geboor'' or ''Geburrh'') is a dormant volcano that is part of the Macedon Ranges of the Great Dividing Range, located in the Central Highlands region of Victoria, Australia. The mountain has ...

, Sunbury and Gisborne in the west. The ''Wurrundjeri-willam'' were a clan who occupied the

Yarra River The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stre ...

and its tributaries. Referred to initially by Europeans as the ''Yarra Yarra tribe''. Other Woiwurrung clans include the ''Marin-Bulluk'', ''Kurung-Jang-Bulluk'', ''Wurundjeri-Balluk'', ''Balluk-willam''. ''

Wurundjeri The Wurundjeri people are an Australian Aboriginal people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin nation. They are the Traditional Owners of the Birrarung (Yarra River) Valley, covering much of the present location of Narrm (Melbourn ...

'' is now the common term for descendants of all the Woiwurrung clans. *

Bunurong The Boonwurrung people are an Aboriginal people of the Kulin nation, who are the traditional owners of the land from the Werribee River to Wilsons Promontory in the Australian state of Victoria. Their territory includes part of what is now the c ...

(Bun-wurrung): spoken by six clans along the coast from the Werribee River, across the

Mornington Peninsula The Mornington Peninsula is a peninsula located south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is surrounded by Port Phillip to the west, Western Port to the east and Bass Strait to the south, and is connected to the mainland in the north. Geogra ...

Western Port Western Port, (Boonwurrung: ''Warn Marin'') commonly but unofficially known as Western Port Bay, is a large tidal bay in southern Victoria, Australia, opening into Bass Strait. It is the second largest bay in the state. Geographically, it is do ...

Bay to

Wilsons Promontory Wilsons Promontory, is a peninsula that forms the southernmost part of the Australian mainland, located in the state of Victoria. South Point at is the southernmost tip of Wilsons Promontory and hence of mainland Australia. Located at nearb ...

. Referred to by Europeans as the ''Western Port'' or ''Port Philip tribe''. The

Yalukit The Yalukit or Yalukit-willam people are a constituent clan of the Boonwurrung peoples. The Yalukit are the earliest Aboriginal inhabitants of the central bay-side region of Melbourne (Birrarung-ga). The Yalukit have inhabited the central bay-si ...

-willam clan occupied the thin coastal strip from Werribee, to Williamstown. ''

'' is now the common term for all the people of this language group. *

Taungurung The Taungurung people, also spelt ''Daung Wurrung'', are an Aboriginal people who are one of the Kulin nations in present-day Victoria, Australia. They consist of nine clans whose traditional language is the Taungurung language. Their Country ...

(Tung-ger-rung): spoken north of the Great Dividing Range in the

Goulburn River The Goulburn River, a major inland perennial river of the Goulburn Broken catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the alpine, Northern Country/North Central, and Southern Riverina regions of the Australian state of Victor ...

Valley around Mansfield, Benalla and Heathcote. Referred to by Europeans as the ''Goulburn River tribe''. ''

'' is now the common term for all the people of this language group.Richard Broome, pp123-125, Aboriginal Victorians: A History Since 1800, Allen & Unwin, 2005, , *

Wathaurong The Wathaurong nation, also called the Wathaurung, Wadawurrung and Wadda Wurrung, are an Aboriginal Australian people living in the area near Melbourne, Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula in the state of Victoria. They are part of the Kulin all ...

(Wadha-wurrung): spoken by 15 clans south of the Werribee River and the

Bellarine Peninsula The Bellarine Peninsula ( Wathawurrung: ''Balla-wein'' or ''Biteyong'') is a peninsula located south-west of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, surrounded by Port Phillip, Corio Bay and Bass Strait. The peninsula, together with the Mornington ...

to Streatham. Referred to by Europeans as the ''Barrabool people''. The escaped convict, William Buckley lived with this community for 32 years, between 1803 and 1835, before being found by

John Batman John Batman (21 January 18016 May 1839) was an Australian grazier, entrepreneur and explorer. He is best known for his role in the founding of Melbourne. Born and raised in the then-British colony of New South Wales, Batman settled in Van Die ...

on 6 July 1835. *

Dja Dja Wurrung Dja Dja Wurrung (Pronounced Ja-Ja-war-rung), also known as the Djaara or Jajowrong people and Loddon River tribe, are an Aboriginal Australian people who are the Traditional owners of lands including the watersheds of the Loddon and Avoca riv ...

(Jar-Jar-wur-rung: spoken by the 16 clans of the Jaara or

people around Bendigo, the central highlands region, east to Kyneton, west to the Pyrenees, north to Boort and south to the Great Dividing Range. Referred to by Europeans as the ''Loddon Aborigines''. Kulin, or perhaps Kulinic: *Western Central Murray: Madhi-Madhi (Muthimuthi), Ledji-Ledji, and Wadi-Wadi share 80% of vocabulary, suggesting they might have formed a group. *Eastern Central Murray:

Wemba-Wemba The Wemba-Wemba are an Aboriginal Australian people in north-Western Victoria and south-western New South Wales, Australia, including in the Mallee and the Riverina regions. They are also known as the Wamba-Wamba. Language Wemba-Wemba bears st ...

( Baraba-Baraba, Nari-Nari) * Tjapwurrung (Jab-wurrung, Djabwarrung) as a distinct language is included by Bowern (2011), who excludes Daungwurrung and Baraba-Baraba. *Bindjali, the language of the Bodaruwitj (Bedaruwidj, Potaruwutj, Tatiara) people in south-eastern

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, is classified as a Kulinic language by

Austlang The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), established as the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (AIAS) in 1964, is an independent Australian Government statutory authority. It is a collecting, ...

Classification

Dixon (2002) accepts the Kulin languages as a family, and sees them as forming three languages: * Wuy-wurrung, including Wuy-wurrung, Bun-wurrung, and Dhagung-wurrung dialects (the first three entries above) * Wadha-wurrung (Wuddyawurru, Witouro) *

, including Jaja-wurrung, Madhi-Madhi, Ladji-Ladji, Wadi-Wadi, Nari-Nari, Wemba-Wemba, Baraba-Baraba, Wergaya, Djadjala, Wutjabulak, Martijali, Buibatyalli, Nundatyalli, Jab-wurrung, and Pirt-Koopen-Noot dialects

References

{{Australian Aboriginal languages Kulinic languages