K50: Doolboong

AIATSIS code: 
K50
AIATSIS reference name: 
Doolboong

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Name
Thesaurus heading language
Doolboong language K50
Thesaurus heading people
Doolboong people K50
ABN name
-
ABS name
-
Horton name
Doolboong
Ethnologue name
-
ISO 639-3 code
-
Tindale name
Duulngari
Tindale (1974)
Kurramo (stated to be language name), Pokai (horde name), Kanjai (horde west of Knob Peak), Wardaia (horde east of Knob Peak), Wardai, Wardia.
O'Grady et al (1966)
Glottocode
-
Other sources
Dulngarri [Harvey ASEDA 802]
Synonyms
Dulbung, Tulpung, Du:l°ari, Duulngari, Kurramo, Dulngarri, Pokai, Kanjai, Wardaia, Wardai, Wardia
Comment
Comments: 

McGregor describes Doolboong as a language from the Kimberley region which is no longer spoken; it may be a member of the Jarrakan language family because speakers of Gajirrabeng K37.1 and Miriwoong K29 say Doolboong was similar to Gajirrabeng (2004:40, 74).

However its location is associated with the Worrorran family. Miriwoong speakers use the term Doolboongarri; McGregor describes the term Duulngari (from Tindale, 1974:241) as a possible mishearing of the Miriwoong term; the pan-Kimberley suffix -ngarri 'with' or 'having' often occurs with language names in that region (1998:47).

 

References: 
  • Oates, Lynette F. 1975. The 1973 supplement to a revised linguistic survey of Australia. Armidale: Armidale Christian Book Centre.
  • Oates, William J., and Lynette F. Oates. 1970. A revised linguistic survey of Australia: Australian Aboriginal Studies 33, Linguistic Series 12. Canberra: AIAS.
  • McGregor, William. 1998. Handbook of Kimberley languages : volume 1 : general information. Pacific Linguistics C-105. Canberra, A.C.T., Australia : Dept. of Linguistics, Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University.
  • McGregor, William. 2004. The languages of the Kimberley, Western Australia. New York: RoutledgeCurzon.
  • 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.
  • Harvey, Mark. 2008. Non-Pama-Nyungan Languages: land-language associations at colonisation. AILEC 0802.
Status: 
Confirmed
Location
State / Territory: 
WA
Location information: 

... on the coast of Cambridge gulf (McGregor 2004). Coastal mangrove flats and springs north and west of Ninbing Station from Wyndham east to mouth of Keep River in the Northern Territory (Tindale 1974). ... it is preferable to interpret Tindale's description of Dulngarri affiliations as extending to the 'mouth of Keep River', as referring to both sides of the mouth of Keep River, and that Dulngarri associations in fact extended to the western side of the mouth of the Victoria (Harvey ASEDA 802).

Maps: 
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Tindale 1974
Handbook of Kimberley Languages (1988): 

Mardo (A100* ) in Handbook of Kimberley Languages (1988).

3.7 Doolboong / Tulpung

Names of the language and different spellings that have been used:

Doolboong (Kofod), Du:l?ari (Tindale), Duulngari (Tindale), Tulpung (McGregor), Kurramo (Tindale).

Tindale's Duulngari (Du:l?ari) has been taken as a variant name of Doolboong, because: (1) it is spoken in the approximate area Doolboong was apparently spoken; (2) Miriwoong speakers sometimes refer to the language as Doolboongarri (it is possible that Tindale's spelling is based on a mishearing of the latter term); and (3) -ngarri is a pan-Kimberley suffix, which usually carries a meaning like 'with', or 'having', and is sometimes attached to language names (see also Worla, in section 5.13).

Classification of the language:

There is no information available on the language, and it is not certain what family it belongs to; it has been tentatively placed in the Jarrakan family because Miriwoong and Gajirrawoong speakers say that it was like Gajirrawoong. However, because of its location, it may well belong to the Worrorran family.

Identification codes:

AIAS: (not included)

Oates 1973: (not included)

Capell: (not included)

Present number and distribution of speakers:

No speakers remain; apparently the language was traditionally spoken to the north of Wyndham, and to the west of Gajirrawoong country (Kofod, pers.comm.); see also Tindale's map).

People who have worked intensively on the language:

No one

Practical orthography:

None; none needed.

Word lists:

None

Textual material:

None

Grammar or sketch grammar:

None

Material available on the language:

Nothing

Language programme:

None

Language learning material:

None

Literacy material:

None

McGregor, William. 1988 Handbook of Kimberley Languages. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics. © Author.

AIATSIS gratefully acknowledge William McGregor for permission to use his material in AUSTLANG.

Programs
Activities: 
-
People: 
-
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 None 0
Text Collection None 0
Grammar None 0
Audio-visual None 0
Manuscript note: 
Not available
Grammar: 
-
Dictionary: 
-
Classification
Source Family Group Sub-group Name Relationship
Ethnologue (2005)          
Dixon (2002)          
Wurm (1994)          
Walsh (1981)          
Oates (1975)          
Wurm (1972)          
O'Grady, Voegelin and Voegelin (1966)