Janday language facts for kids

Jandai is an Aboriginal language from Australia. It was spoken by the Quandamooka people. They live around the Moreton Bay area in Queensland.

Sadly, Jandai is now an extinct language. This means no one speaks it as their main language anymore. Only a few people still know some words.

Other names for Jandai include Djandai, Goenpul, and Jundai. The Goenpul people traditionally spoke it. Jandai is very similar to the Nunukul language and the Guwar language.

What is Jandai?

Jandai is one of the many languages of Australia's First Peoples. It belongs to a group called Durubalic languages.

The Quandamooka people are made up of three main tribes. Each tribe spoke a slightly different version of the Durubalic language. These different versions are called dialects.

Jandai Dialects

The Goenpul tribe lived on central and southern Stradbroke Island. They spoke the Jandai dialect.

Another tribe, the Nunukul, lived on northern Stradbroke Island. Their dialect was called Moondjan. This name came from their special word for "no."

Related Languages

Experts have studied the connections between these languages. One expert, Bowern (in 2011), listed five languages in the Durubalic group:

• Jandai
• Turrubal and Yagara
• Nunukul (also called Nunungal or Moonjan)
• Gowar

Another expert, Dixon (in 2002), thought that most of these were actually different dialects of the Yagara language.

Jandai Words

Here are some words from the Jandai language:

• Maroomba bigi or maroomba biggee: good day
• Juwanbinl: bird
• Buneen: echidna (a spiny mammal)
• Gagarr: fish
• Murri: kangaroo
• Dumbirrbi: koala
• Gabul: snake
• Bingil: grass
• Humpi: home or camp
• Djara: land
• Juhrram: rain
• Bigi: sun
• Dabbil: water
• Bargan: boomerang
• Goondool: canoe
• Jahlo: fire
• Marra: hand
• Jalwang: knife
• Tabbil: water
• Wanya: where?

See also

You can learn more about the Jandai language in Spanish here: Idioma jandai para niños