Nunggubuyu or Wubuy is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

, the traditional language of the

Nunggubuyu people The Nunggubuyu are an Aboriginal Australian people of eastern Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory. Language Nunggubuyu also called ''Wubuy'' is a non-Pama Nyungan language characterized by head marking with an intricate verb prefix morpholog ...

. It is the primary traditional language spoken in the community of

Numbulwar Numbulwar, formerly known as Rose River Mission,https://www.ntlis.nt.gov.au/placenames/view.jsp?id=22449 is a small, primarily Aboriginal community on the Gulf of Carpentaria in the Northern Territory of Australia. The major language group of ...

in the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

. The language is classified as severely endangered by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

, with only 272 speakers according to the 2016 census. Most children in

can understand Nunggubuyu when spoken to, but cannot speak it themselves, having to reply in Kriol. To counter this, starting in 1990, the community has been embarking on a revitalisation programme for the language by bringing in elders to teach it to children at the local school.

Classification

The classification of Nunggubuyu is problematic. Heath (1997) postulates that Nunggubuyu is most closely related to Ngandi and Anindilyakwa. However, Evans (2003) believes that the similarities are shared retentions rather than shared innovations, and that Nunggubuyu is closest to the eastern

Gunwinyguan languages The Gunwinyguan languages (Gunwinjguan, Gunwingguan), also core Gunwinyguan or Gunwinyguan proper, are a possible branch of a large language family of Australian Aboriginal languages in Arnhem Land, northern Australia. The most populous language ...

. Brett Baker (2004) demonstrates that Ngandi and Wubuy form an "Eastern Gunwinyguan" subgroup as distinct from the "jala"/"Rembarngic" subgroup which includes

Rembarrnga The Rembarrnga people, also spelt Rembarunga and other variants, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Northern Territory. Language The Rembarrnga language Rembarrnga (Rembarunga) is an Australian Aboriginal language. It is one of the ...

and

Ngalakgan The Ngalakgan are an indigenous Australian people of the Northern Territory. Language Ngalakgan is generally classified as a member of the Gunwinyguan family. Country Ngalakgan territory covered an estimated , north of the Roper River as far a ...

.Baker, Brett. (2004). "Stem forms and paradigm reshaping in Gunwinyguan." In Koch, H. & Bowern, C. eds. ''Australian languages: Classification and the comparative method.'' Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing, pp. 313-40, 669-79. Furthermore, Van Egmond's (2012) study of the genetic position of Anindilyakwa supports Heath's hypothesis that

Ngandi The Ngandi were an indigenous Australian people of the Northern Territory. The Ngandji are another tribe, and the two are not to be confused. Country The Ngandi's lands, some 1,500 sq-miles in extent, encompassed the area around the upper Wilt ...

, Anindilyakwa and Wubuy/Nunggubuyu do constitute one subgroup within

Gunwinyguan The Macro-Gunwinyguan languages, also called Arnhem or Gunwinyguan, are a family of Australian Aboriginal languages spoken across eastern Arnhem Land in northern Australia. Their relationship has been demonstrated through shared morphology i ...

.Van Egmond, M-E. (2012). "Enindhilyakwa phonology, morphosyntax and genetic position." Doctoral thesis. University of Sydney. pp. 314–70.

Phonology

Consonants

is rare. may optionally be pronounced as a

trill TRILL (Transparent Interconnection of Lots of Links) is an Internet Standard implemented by devices called TRILL switches. TRILL combines techniques from bridging and routing, and is the application of link-state routing to the VLAN-aware custom ...

when it occurs word-initial position, which is rare.

Vowels

Numbers

Nunggubuyu uses a

quinary Quinary (base-5 or pental) is a numeral system with five as the base. A possible origination of a quinary system is that there are five digits on either hand. In the quinary place system, five numerals, from 0 to 4, are used to represent an ...

number system.

Sample text

Ba-marang-dhayiyn Ba-marang-gagagiyn B a-marang-dhayiyn Ba-marang-jaljaliyn Ba-wan.ngang “hokey pokey” Badhawawa-rumiyn Aba dani-yung-bugij ''(the Hokey Pokey in Wubuy)''

Notes

References

* *

External links

Nunggubuyu language books
available in the Living Archive of Aboriginal Languages Gunwinyguan languages {{ia-lang-stub