Northeast Pama–Nyungan languages facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Northeast Pama–Nyungan |
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| Pama–Maric | |
| Geographic distribution: |
Coastal Queensland |
| Linguistic classification: | Pama–Nyungan
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| Subdivisions: | |
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Northeast Pama–Nyungan, also called Pama–Maric, was a suggested group of languages from Australia. These languages are part of the larger Pama–Nyungan family. They were thought to be related because they were spoken close to each other in coastal Queensland.
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What are Language Families?
A language family is a group of languages that came from a common ancestor language. Think of it like a family tree, but for languages! For example, English, German, and Dutch are all part of the Germanic language family.
The Northeast Pama–Nyungan Idea
For a while, some experts thought that certain language groups in Queensland were closely related. They called this proposed group Northeast Pama–Nyungan. The main language groups included:
These languages were spoken in the coastal areas of Queensland, Australia.
Why is it "Hypothetical"?
The idea of Northeast Pama–Nyungan is called "hypothetical" because it was a theory that experts later changed their minds about. When scientists study languages, they look for shared words, grammar rules, and sounds. If enough similarities are found, they suggest the languages are related.
Over time, with more research, many experts decided that these languages might not be as closely related as first thought. This means the idea of them forming one special "Northeast Pama–Nyungan" family has mostly been set aside in recent studies.
Where Were These Languages Spoken?
The languages that were once grouped under Northeast Pama–Nyungan were spoken in coastal Queensland. There were also some languages, like the Lower Burdekin languages, that might have fit into this group. However, we don't have enough information about them to be sure. This is because not many records were kept of these languages before they changed or disappeared.
