Lamalama language facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lamalama |
|
|---|---|
| Mbarrumbathama, Mba Rumbathama | |
| Native to | Australia |
| Region | Queensland |
| Ethnicity | Lamalama |
| Native speakers | 3 (2016 census) |
| Language family | |
| AIATSIS | Y136 |
The Lamalama language is an Indigenous Australian language. It comes from the Queensland region of Australia. It is also known by the clan names Mbarrumbathama or Mba Rumbathama. In the past, it was called Lamu-Lamu or Lama-Lama.
Lamalama is part of the Paman language family. This family includes many languages spoken in northern Australia. The Lamalama people once spoke four different languages. Besides Lamalama, they spoke Morrobolam, Mbariman-Gudinhma, and Umpithamu. Sadly, in 2016, only three people still spoke Lamalama. This makes it a critically endangered language.
Understanding the Lamalama Language Name
The name of the Lamalama language has changed over time. In January 2019, the ISO database updated its official name to Lamalama. Before that, it was known as Lamu-Lamu.
Today, different groups use slightly different names. Glottolog, a big database of languages, calls it Lamalama. However, the AIATSIS database uses Mbarrumbathama language as its main name. These different names can sometimes be confusing.
How Lamalama Connects to Other Languages
Linguists are scientists who study languages. They look at how languages are related to each other. A linguist named Jean-Cristophe Verstraete studied Lamalama. He found that Lamalama, Rimanggudinhma, and Morrobolam are closely related.
They form a special group within the Paman language family. This group is called Lamalamic. These languages share unique sounds and grammar rules. Morrobolam and Lamalama have changed more over time. Rimanggudinhma has kept more of its older features.
