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Awabakal language
Awabakal (also Awabagal or the Hunter River – Lake Macquarie, often abbreviated HRLM language) is an Australian Aboriginal language that was spoken around Lake Macquarie and Newcastle in New South Wales. The name is derived from Awaba, which was the native name of the lake. It was spoken by Awabakal and Wonnarua peoples.
It was studied by missionary Lancelot Threlkeld in the 19th century, who wrote a grammar of the language, but the spoken language had died out before 21st-century revival efforts.
Awabakal is a Pama–Nyungan language, most closely related to the Worimi language, within the Yuin–Kuric group of Pama–Nyungan.
Awabakal was studied by the Reverend Lancelot Threlkeld from 1825 until his death in 1859, producing a grammar and dictionary in An Australian Grammar in 1834. The speaker of Awabakal who taught him about the language was Biraban, the tribal leader. Threlkeld and Biraban's Specimens of a Dialect of the Aborigines of New South Wales in 1827 was the earliest attempt at exhibiting the structure of an Australian language.
Threlkeld's work was greatly expanded by John Fraser and republished in 1892 as An Australian language as spoken by the Awabakal, the people of Awaba or Lake Macquarie (near Newcastle, New South Wales) being an account of their language, traditions and customs / by L.E. Threlkeld; re-arranged, condensed and edited with an appendix by John Fraser. It contained a grammar and vocabulary as well as much new material by Fraser, and helped to popularise the name "Awabakal" for the language grouping more broadly referred to as the Hunter River-Lake Macquarie language.
The language is currently being revived. A new orthography and reconstruction of the phonology has been undertaken. To date, several publications have been produced including "A grammar for the Awabakal language", "An introduction to the Awabakal language : its orthography, recommended orthoepy and its grammar and stylistics " and "Nupaleyalaan palii Awabakalkoba = Teach yourself Awabakal".
There exist three noun classes. The first has 4 declension patterns. A noun can exist in any of 13 cases.
The default, unmarked case of nouns is the absolutive. Unlike English and many European languages, in which an unmarked noun is the nominative case, and is (in the active voice) the subject of the sentence, Awabakal merely references a particular noun with this case.
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Awabakal language
Awabakal (also Awabagal or the Hunter River – Lake Macquarie, often abbreviated HRLM language) is an Australian Aboriginal language that was spoken around Lake Macquarie and Newcastle in New South Wales. The name is derived from Awaba, which was the native name of the lake. It was spoken by Awabakal and Wonnarua peoples.
It was studied by missionary Lancelot Threlkeld in the 19th century, who wrote a grammar of the language, but the spoken language had died out before 21st-century revival efforts.
Awabakal is a Pama–Nyungan language, most closely related to the Worimi language, within the Yuin–Kuric group of Pama–Nyungan.
Awabakal was studied by the Reverend Lancelot Threlkeld from 1825 until his death in 1859, producing a grammar and dictionary in An Australian Grammar in 1834. The speaker of Awabakal who taught him about the language was Biraban, the tribal leader. Threlkeld and Biraban's Specimens of a Dialect of the Aborigines of New South Wales in 1827 was the earliest attempt at exhibiting the structure of an Australian language.
Threlkeld's work was greatly expanded by John Fraser and republished in 1892 as An Australian language as spoken by the Awabakal, the people of Awaba or Lake Macquarie (near Newcastle, New South Wales) being an account of their language, traditions and customs / by L.E. Threlkeld; re-arranged, condensed and edited with an appendix by John Fraser. It contained a grammar and vocabulary as well as much new material by Fraser, and helped to popularise the name "Awabakal" for the language grouping more broadly referred to as the Hunter River-Lake Macquarie language.
The language is currently being revived. A new orthography and reconstruction of the phonology has been undertaken. To date, several publications have been produced including "A grammar for the Awabakal language", "An introduction to the Awabakal language : its orthography, recommended orthoepy and its grammar and stylistics " and "Nupaleyalaan palii Awabakalkoba = Teach yourself Awabakal".
There exist three noun classes. The first has 4 declension patterns. A noun can exist in any of 13 cases.
The default, unmarked case of nouns is the absolutive. Unlike English and many European languages, in which an unmarked noun is the nominative case, and is (in the active voice) the subject of the sentence, Awabakal merely references a particular noun with this case.