Yangkaal facts for kids

The Yangkaal (also spelled Yanggal) are an Aboriginal Australian people. They come from the area around the Gulf of Carpentaria in Queensland, Australia. Sometimes, they are also called Gananggalinda.

Yangkaal Language

The Yangkaal people speak a language called Kayardild. This language was known by several names, like Yanggaralda, Janggal, and Nemarang.

Some experts, like Geoffrey O'Grady, thought it was a type of Yukulta language. Both are part of the Tangkic language family. It was once thought that "Yanggal" might be another name for "Njangga," which is a name for the Yanyuwa people.

Yangkaal Country

The Yangkaal people traditionally lived on about 777 square kilometers (300 square miles) of land. This land includes Forsyth Island and the coastline across from it on the mainland. Their land on the mainland stretched west to Cliffdale Creek. Much of their coastal land was covered in mangrove forests.

David Horton wrote in The Encyclopaedia of Aboriginal Australia: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history, society and culture about the Gananggalinda's traditional lands. He said they were near Bayley Point and Point Parker on the Gulf of Carpentaria coast. The Gananggalinda and their neighbors, the Yukulta / Ganggalidda, share similar cultures and languages.

Yangkaal Family Groups

The Yangkaal people were made up of at least three main family groups, also called kin groups:

• The Djo:ara lived near Beche-de-Mer Camp and Bayley (Robert) Island.
• The Laraksnja:ra lived in the eastern part of Forsyth Island.
• The Mara'kalpa lived on the western side of Forsyth Island.
• There was also a family group that once lived on Denham Island.

Contact with Others

Over time, some Yangkaal people moved to Mornington Island. There, a researcher named Arthur Capell spoke briefly with one person. He gathered some information, but not all of it was correct.

For example, he was told that their name for their home on Forsyth Island was Nemi. From this, he thought their language was called Nemarang. But Norman Tindale later corrected this misunderstanding. He explained that "Nemie" was actually the personal name of a Yangkaal person. This person was known at the Mornington Island Mission as Edward Nemie. The name "Nemie" was a changed version of the missionary's word "name."

Other Names for Yangkaal

The Yangkaal people have been known by several different names, including:

• Njanggad
• Janggaral
• Janggura
• Janggaralda
• Jangaralda (a name used by the Lardil people)
• Nemarang (a newer name that came from the English word 'name')
• Balumbant (meaning 'westerners,' used to describe them compared to the Lardiil and Yokula people)

Some Yangkaal Words

Here are a few words from the Yangkaal language:

• bidinaŋga means man.
• magudaŋga means woman.
• ganda means father.
• ŋama means mother.