N14: Kungarakany

AIATSIS code: 
N14
AIATSIS reference name: 
Kungarakany

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Name
Thesaurus heading language
Thesaurus heading people
ABN name
-
ABS name
-
Horton name
Kungarakany
Ethnologue name
Kungarakany
ISO 639-3 code
ggk
Tindale name
Kungarakan
Tindale (1974)
Gunerakan, Kangarraga, Kangarranga, Warnunger, Ungnakan.
O'Grady et al (1966)
Glottocode
kung1259
Other sources
Koongurrukuñ; [Koormundum (Ida) 2000] Gungarakany, Kungarakan, Kungarakany, Gunerakan [Top End Handbook] Gungarakany [Harvey PMS 5822] Gunerakan [Basedow 1907:2]
Synonyms
Gungarakanj, Kungarakany, Gungarakayn, Cunerakan, Gundrakan, Gunerakan, Kangarraga, Kangarranga, Kumerakainj, Kungarakan, Ungnakan, Warnunger, Gungaraganj, Gungaragany, Koongurrukuñ
Comment
Comments: 

Koongurrukuñ (N14) is a non-Pama Nyungan language from the Northern Territory. Evans describes Kungarakany (N14) as a Gunwingguan language 'in which the recently borrowed Daly-like features still coexist with the inherited Gunwingguan-type structures' (1989:1), with particular reference to verb and verb phrase structures.

 

References: 
  • Koormundum (Bishop, Ida). 2000. Nguñ Koongurrikuñ Speak Koongurrukuñ. Perth, WA: The Author.
  • Evans, Nicholas. 1989. Linguistic convergence in the Wogait. pMS 4779.
Status: 
Confirmed
Location
State / Territory: 
NT
Location information: 

Table Top Range and areas to the east (Top End Handbook). Tabletop Range and upper Finniss valley west of Batchelor (Harvey PMS 5822). I have one reasonably good piece of information on the Gungarakany proper dialect which places it at Litchfield station. Consquently I assume that Gungarakany proper was associated with basically the lower-middle Reynolds (Harvey 2007 p.c.).

Northeast of Mount Litchfield on midwaters of Reynolds River and on Adelaide River headwaters; an inland tribe extending to the western side of the Tabletop Range divide; northeast to vicinity of Rum Jungle and Batchelor (Tindale 1974).

The general associations were to the plain country, grassland and forested, on the Finniss River and the Reynolds River. There was little precise information on the limits of Gungarakany associations in 2007. In the south-west, Gungarakany was associated with Litchfield homestead, and this was the south-western limit of Gungarakany affilations. In the east boundaries are extrapolated from ecological zone changes - the shift from plain country to hill country on the Finniss and Reynolds, and drainage basin boundaries - in the Tabletop Range area. In the north, the boundary appears to have been the ecological zone change between the forested area on the southern shore of Bynoe Harbour, which were associated with Gulumoerrgin, and the grassland plains on the Finniss which were associated with Gungarakany. The western boundary abutted on to Batjjamalh affiliations. In the south, Litchfield homestead was associated with Gungarakany. Mt Litchfield was associated with Malak-Malak (Harvey AILEC 0802).

 

Maps: 
-
Links
Programs
Activities: 
-
People: 
Ida Bishop, Luch Parish
Indigenous organisations: 
-
Speakers
Year Source Speaker numbers
1975Oates-
1984Senate-
1990Schmidt-
1996Census-
2001Census-
2004NILS1-
2005Estimate-
2006Census-
2011Census-
2014NILS2
2016Census-
2018-2019NILS3

Speaker numbers were measured differently across the censuses and various other sources listed in AUSTLANG. You are encouraged to refer to the sources.

Speaker numbers for ‘NILS 2004’ and ‘2005 estimate’ come from 'Table F.3: Numbers of speakers of Australian Indigenous languages (various surveys)' in 'Appendix F NILS endangerment and absolute number results' in McConvell, Marmion and McNicol 2005, pages 198-230 (PDF, 2.5MB).

Documentation
Type Documentation Status Documentation Score
Word list Small (20-100 pages) 2
Text Collection Medium (100-200 pages) 3
Grammar Sketch grammar (less than 100 pages) 2
Audio-visual More than 10 3
Manuscript note: 
tape transcription/field note available (vocabulary, sentences)
Grammar: 

Bishop, Ida. 2000. Nguñ Koongurrukuñ: speak Koongurrukuñ. Perth: Author.

Parish, Lucy. 1983. Some aspects of Kungarakany verb morphology, Australian National Univedrsity: BA (Hons).

Dictionary: 

Bishop, Ida. 2000. Nguñ Koongurrukuñ: speak Koongurrukuñ. Perth: Author.

Classification
Source Family Group Sub-group Name Relationship
Ethnologue (2005) Gunwingguan Gungaraganyan   Kungarakany  
Dixon (2002)   ARNHEM LAND GROUP   Gungarakanj Gungarakanj Parish (1983) probable further dialect: Mukngirru
Wurm (1994) Gungaragany     Gungaragany  
Walsh (1981) Gungaraganyan     Gungaragany  
Oates (1975) Gungaraganyan     Gungaraganj  
Wurm (1972) Kungarakanyan     Kungarakany  
O'Grady, Voegelin and Voegelin (1966)   Kungarakany