Awabakal language facts for kids

Awabakal (also called Awabagal or the Hunter River – Lake Macquarie language) is an Aboriginal language from Australia. It was spoken around Lake Macquarie and Newcastle in New South Wales. The name Awabakal comes from Awaba, which was the original name for Lake Macquarie. The Awabakal and Wonnarua peoples spoke this language.

A missionary named Lancelot Threlkeld studied Awabakal in the 1800s. He wrote a book about its grammar. The language stopped being spoken by the end of the 1800s. However, people are now working to bring it back to life.

What is Awabakal?

Awabakal is part of a large group of languages called Pama–Nyungan. This is one of the biggest language families in Australia. Awabakal is most closely related to the Worimi language. Both are part of the Yuin–Kuric group within the Pama–Nyungan family.

How Was Awabakal Studied?

Reverend Lancelot Threlkeld studied Awabakal from 1825 until he died in 1859. He created a grammar book and a dictionary for the language. These were published in a book called An Australian Grammar in 1834.

The main person who taught Threlkeld about the language was Biraban. Biraban was a tribal leader. In 1827, Threlkeld and Biraban wrote Specimens of a Dialect of the Aborigines of New South Wales. This was one of the first times anyone tried to show how an Australian language was put together.

Later, in 1892, John Fraser expanded Threlkeld's work. He republished it as An Australian language as spoken by the Awabakal. This new book helped make the name "Awabakal" popular for this language group.

Bringing the Language Back

The Awabakal language is currently being brought back to life. This process is called language revival. People are working to figure out how the language sounded and how to write it.

Several new books have been created to help with this. These include "A grammar for the Awabakal language" and "Teach yourself Awabakal". These books help people learn and use the language again.

How Awabakal Sounds

Awabakal stopped being spoken long before recording devices existed. Because of this, people are working to reconstruct its sounds. This means they are trying to figure out how the language was spoken. While it might not be exactly how it sounded in the past, it's good enough for people to start using the language again.

Vowel Sounds

Awabakal has different vowel sounds. Some are short, and some are long. For example, there are sounds like the 'a' in "cut" or the 'a' in "father". There are also sounds like the 'i' in "pit" or the 'ee' in "need".

Consonant Sounds

The consonant sounds in Awabakal are also unique. Some are similar to English sounds, like 'm' or 'y'. Others are made differently, like the 't' sound, which is made with the tongue in a slightly different place.

Awabakal Grammar Basics

Awabakal grammar is different from English. It has interesting ways of putting words together.

Nouns and Their Classes

Nouns are words for people, places, or things. In Awabakal, nouns belong to one of three groups or "classes". These classes help you know how to use the noun in a sentence.

• First class: This group includes common nouns, words that describe things, and words like 'what?'.
• Second class: This group includes place names and words about where things are, like 'where?'.
• Third class: This group includes people's names, family words, and words like 'who?'.

Nouns can also change their endings depending on their job in a sentence. This is called "case".

Describing Words

Awabakal has words called "descriptors". These words are like adjectives in English. They describe nouns or show an action. They can also change their endings like nouns.

Numbers in Awabakal

The Awabakal language has specific words for numbers:

• Wakool – one
• Bulowara – two
• Ngoro – three
• Wara – four or five (this word also means the palm of your hand, like a "handful")

Small Words That Attach

Awabakal uses "pronominal enclitics". These are like small words that attach to the end of other words. They can attach to verbs, describing words, or even nouns. They tell you who is doing the action, how many people, and other details.

Showing Where Things Are

Awabakal has special words called "demonstratives". These words show how close something is.

• 'this' – for something very close to the speaker.
• 'that' – for something near the person you are talking to.
• 'that' – for something a bit further away but still easy to reach.

There are also "appositive demonstratives" that specifically show a place.

Verbs and Their Meanings

Verbs are action words. In Awabakal, verbs can show different times, like present, future, or past. They can also show if the action is active or passive.

Here are some examples:

Saying "No"

Awabakal has ten different ways to say "no" or to make something negative. Each way works with different types of words or phrases.

Connecting Sentences

Unlike English, Awabakal does not use many conjunctions (connecting words like "and" or "but"). Sentences can often be linked together without them.

Asking Questions

Traditional lands of Australian Aboriginal tribes of eastern New South Wales.

Here are some words used to ask questions:

• Ngaan – who?
• Minaring – what?
• Wonta – where?
• Yakowai – how?
• Yakowanta – when?
• Korakowa – why not?
• Wiya – say (how about) ...

Examples of Awabakal Text

Here is a small part of the Gospel of Luke translated into Awabakal:

Wonto ba kauwȧllo mankulla unnoa tara túġunbilliko ġurránto ġéen kinba,

2. Yanti bo ġearun kin bara ġukulla, unnoa tara nakillikan kurri-kurri kabiruġ ġatun mankillikan wiyellikanne koba.

3. Murrȧrȧġ tia kȧtan yantibo, koito baġ ba tuiġ ko ġirouġ Teopolo murrȧrȧġ ta,

4. Gurra-uwil koa bi tuloa, unnoa tara wiyatoara banuġ ba.

The Lord's Prayer

The Lord's Prayer was also translated into Awabakal. This version comes from the 1892 translation of the Gospel of Luke.

Awabakal's Influence on English

The word Koori comes from the Awabakal language. This word is used by some Aboriginal people to refer to themselves.

See Also

In Spanish: Idioma awabakal para niños

• Arwarbukarl Cultural Resource Association
• Indigenous Australian languages
• List of Aboriginal languages of New South Wales