Wulna language facts for kids

Wulna (also known as Wuna) was an indigenous language from Australia. Indigenous means it was spoken by the very first people who lived in that land. Sadly, Wulna is now an extinct language. This means no one speaks it anymore as their everyday language.

In 1981, only one person was known to still speak Wulna. Not much information was written down about Wulna. Because of this, experts are not completely sure how it relates to other languages. They think it might be connected to the Limilngan language.

Discovering the Wulna Language

Even though Wulna is no longer spoken, we can still learn about it. A special book helps us understand some of its words.

A Book of Wulna Words

The State Library of New South Wales has a very old and important book. It is called "Vocabulary of the Woolner District Dialect, Adelaide River, Northern Territory." A vocabulary is a list of words. This book was written by John W. O. Bennett in 1869.

The library has put scanned copies of this book online. This means you can see the pages just like they are in real life! The book lists many Wulna words. It also shows how to say them correctly.

Notes from a Police Inspector

The original book has extra notes written in it. These notes were added by Paul Foelsche. He was the first police inspector in the Northern Territory of Australia. A police inspector is a high-ranking officer who helps keep law and order.

Paul Foelsche added his own words to the list. He also made corrections on how some words were pronounced. These notes are very helpful for understanding the Wulna language better. They give us a glimpse into the past.