Manyjilyjarra dialect

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Manyjilyjarra
Manjiljarra, Mandjildjara
Regionnear Jigalong, Western Australia
Ethnicity Mandjildjara
Native speakers
311 (2016 census); [1] 65 (2021 census) [2]
Manjiljarra Sign Language
Language codes
ISO 639-3
mpj   Martu Wangka
Glottolog None
AIATSIS [3] A51.1
ELP

Manyjilyjarra (Manjiljarra, Mandjildjara) is an Australian Aboriginal language, generally considered a dialect of the Western Desert language.

Contents

It is often classified as a distinct language among the Wati languages of the large Pama–Nyungan family of Australia. [4]

It is one of the components of the Martu Wangka koine. [5] :iii

Sign language

Most of the peoples of central Australia have (or at one point had) signed forms of their languages. Among the Western Desert peoples, sign language has been reported specifically for Manjiljarra, though it is not clear from records how well developed it was. [6]

Phonology

Vowels

Front Back
High i u
Low a

Consonants

Peripheral Laminal Apical
Bilabial Velar Palatal Alveolar Retroflex
Plosive p k c t ʈ
Nasal m ŋ ɲ n ɳ
Lateral ʎ l ɭ
Trill/Tap ɾ ~ r
Approximant w j ɻ

References

  1. A51.1 Manyjilyjarra at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
  2. "SBS Census Explorer: How diverse is your community?". SBS News. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  3. A51.1 Manyjilyjarra at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
  4. Claire Bowern and Quentin Atkinson. 2012. Computational phylogenetics and the internal structure of Pama-Nyungan. Language 88. 817-845. Johns Hopkins University Press.
  5. Burgman, Albert; Marsh, James; Hansen, Ken; Booth, Joshua (2005). Martu Wangka Dictionary and Topical Finderlist 2005 Draft. South Hedland, Western Australia: WANGKA MAYA Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre. ISBN   1875946152.
  6. Kendon, A. (1988) Sign Languages of Aboriginal Australia: Cultural, Semiotic and Communicative Perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  7. Marsh, James L. (1969). Mantjiltjara phonology. Oceanic Linguistics 8(2). pp. 131–152.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)