G16.1: Wunumara

AIATSIS code: 
G16.1
AIATSIS reference name: 
Wunumara

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Name
Thesaurus heading language
Wunumara language G16.1
Thesaurus heading people
Wunumara people G16.1
ABN name
-
ABS name
-
Horton name
Wunumara
Ethnologue name
Maykulan (Wunamara)
ISO 639-3 code
-
Tindale name
Wanamara
Tindale (1974)
Wunamara, Woonamurra, Woonomurra, Unamara, Oonoomurra, ? Quippen-bura.
O'Grady et al (1966)
Wunamara, Wunumara, Woonamurra, Unamara, Oonoomurra
Glottocode
-
Other sources
Wunumara [Breen 1981]
Synonyms
Maykulan, Wunamara, Oonoomurra, Wanamara, Quippen bura, Unamara, Woonamurra, Woonomurra, Wunamora
Comment
Comments: 

Mayi is the word for 'speech' or 'language' in two mutually unintelligible but closely related languages from the Gulf area of Queensland, one being Mayi-Kutuna G24 and the other being a dialect chain comprising Wunumara, Mayi-Thakurti G16, Ngawun G17, Mayi-Kulan G25 and Mayi-Yapi G20. Breen also says that Mayi is used by speakers to refer to these two languages as a group (Breen,1981:2, 15).

 

References: 
  • Breen, Gavan. 1981. The Mayi languages of the Queensland Gulf country. Canberra: Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies. (B B832.72/M1)
  • Tindale, Norman B. 1974. Aboriginal tribes of Australia: their terrain, environmental controls, distribution, limits, and proper names. Berkeley: University of California Press/Canberra: Australian National University Press.
Status: 
Confirmed
Location
State / Territory: 
QLD
Location information: 

Headwaters of Flinders River, east to Richmond; south to the Divide and to Kynuna; west to the Williams River near Cloncurry; north to Cambridge Downs and Dalgonally (Tindale 1974)

... possibly as in Tindale (Breen 1981).

 

Maps: 
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Links

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PDF icon Oates_G16.1.pdf
Tindale 1974
Programs
Activities: 
-
People: 
Gavan Breen
Indigenous organisations: 

North Queensland Regional Aboriginal Corporation Language Centre

Speakers
Year Source Speaker numbers
1975Oates0
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 None 0
Grammar   2 (on Ngawun)
Audio-visual Less than 1 1
Manuscript note: 
not available
Grammar: 

Gavan, Breen 1981. The Mayi languages of the Queensland gulf country Canberra: AIAS. [mainly on Ngawun]

Dictionary: 

Gavan, Breen 1981. The Mayi languages of the Queensland gulf country Canberra: AIAS.

Classification
Source Family Group Sub-group Name Relationship
Ethnologue (2005) Pama-Nyungan Paman Mayabic Maykulan (Wunamara)  
Dixon (2002)   MAYIC SUBGROUP* Breen (1981b)   Wunumara Ngawun further dialects: Wunumara, Mayi-Thakurti, Mayi-Yapi, Mayi-Kulan
Wurm (1994) Pama-Nyungan Paman   Wunumara  
Walsh (1981) Pama-Nyungan Paman Mayabic Wunumara  
Oates (1975) Pama-Nyungan   Mayabic Pama Wunamara  
Wurm (1972) Pama-Nyungan Mayapic   Wanamara  
O'Grady, Voegelin and Voegelin (1966) Pama-Nyungan Mayapic (Wanamaric)   Wanamara