Mantharta language facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mantharta |
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|---|---|
| Region | Western Australia |
| Ethnicity | Tharrkari, Wariangga, Tenma, Jiwarli, ?Malgaru |
| Native speakers | 2 Dhargari (2005)aiatsis (1 cited 2007) |
| Language family |
Pama–Nyungan
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| Dialects |
Dhargari
Warriyangga
Dhiin
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| AIATSIS | W21 Tharrkari, W22, W25 |
Mantharta languages (green) among other Pama–Nyungan (tan).
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Mantharta is a group of related languages, or dialects, that were spoken in the southern Pilbara region of Western Australia. Imagine a family of languages where each member is a bit different but can still understand each other! That's what Mantharta was like. Sadly, some of these languages are no longer spoken today. The name Mantharta itself comes from the word for "man" in all these languages.
Different Kinds of Mantharta
There were four main types of Mantharta languages. They were all connected but had their own special features.
- Tharrgari (also called Tharrkari or Dhargari): This language was still spoken by a few people around 2005.
- Warriyangka (also called Wadiwangga): This language was still spoken around 1973.
- Thiin (also called Thiinma): This language was still spoken as recently as 2021.
- Jiwarli (also called Tjiwarli): This language sadly became extinct, meaning it was no longer spoken by anyone, by 2004.
Bringing the Language Back
It's very important to keep languages alive, especially those that are critically endangered. This means there are very few or no speakers left.
As of 2020, the Warriyangka dialect is part of a special project. This project is called the Priority Languages Support Project. It is run by an organization called First Languages Australia. The Department of Communications and the Arts helps fund it.
The main goal of this project is to find and record languages that are in danger of disappearing. They look for languages that haven't been written down or recorded before. The project focuses on languages where there are still some living speakers. This way, they can learn from them and help keep the language from being lost forever.
