N128: Wubuy | AIATSIS Collection

AIATSIS code:

N128

AIATSIS reference name:

Wubuy

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Name

Thesaurus heading language	Wubuy language N128
Thesaurus heading people	Wubuy people N128
ABN name	Nunggubuyu language
ABS name	Nunggubuyu
Horton name	Nunggubuyu
Ethnologue name	Nunggubuyu
ISO 639-3 code	nuy
Tindale name	Nunggubuju
Tindale (1974)	Nunggubuyu, Nungubuyu, Nungabuyu, Nungabuya, Nugubuyu (? misprint), Nungguboiyu, Nungguboiju, Nun-guboiyu, Nuggaboju, Ningburia, Nangabuya.
O'Grady et al (1966)	Nunggubuyu, Nungubuju, Nungbuju, Nungabuyu, Nungabuya, Nugubuyu
Glottocode	nung1290
Other sources	Nunggubuyu, Nungubuyu, Nunggabuyu, Nunggubu'ju, Nungubuju, Nungkubuyu [Top End Handbook]
Synonyms	Wubuy, Yingkwira, Nangabuya, Ningburia, Nuggaboju, Nugubuyu, Nungabuju, Nungabuya, Nungabuyu, Nungbuju, Nunggaboju, Nungguboiju, Nungguboiyu, Nunggubuju, Nunguboiyu, Nungubuju, Nungubuyu, Nunggabuyu, Nungkubuyu, Nun guboiyu, Gunwinyguan

Comment

Comments:

Wubuy is a non-Pama Nyungan language of the Gunwinyguan language family in eastern Arnhem Land, Northern Territory. The vernacular language name is Wubuy, the word Nunggubuyu (N128) is probably an adaptation of English pronunciation of nun- (gentilic prefix) + wubuy, and means 'people (speaking) Wubuy' (Heath, 1982:126 and Warren, 1982:1); 'Wubuymiri bayaman! Say it in Nunggubuyu!' (Heath 1982:236).

Wubuy (N128) is called Yingkura (N128) by Enindhilyakwa N151 speakers (Leeding, 1989 in van Egmond, 2012:10).

Baker's assessment of the complex non-past inflections in Ngandi N90 and Nunggubuyu (N128), and their closest cognates being found in Maningrida languages, suggests that their relationship with Gunwiynguan remains uncertain (2004:340).

Heath (in van Egmond, 2012:3) says that Anindilyakwa N151, Nunggubuyu (N128) and Ngandi N90 share a common ancestor. Van Egmond concurs with Heath, concluding that Enindhilyakwa N151 is genetically related to Wubuy (N128) and Ngandi N90 and is thus a member of the Gunwiynguan family (2012:315).

References:

Baker, Brett. 2004. Stem forms and paradigm reshaping in Gunwiynguan. In Australian languages : classification and the comparative method / edited by Claire Bowern, Harold Koch. Amsterdam ; Philadelphia : John Benjamins Pub. pp. 313-340.
Harvey, Mark. 2003. An initial reconstruction of Proto Gunwiynguan phonology. In Nicholas Evans (editor) The Non-Pama-Nyungan languages of Northern Australia. Pacific Linguistics, Australian National University : Canberra ACT. pp 205-268.
Harvey, Mark. 2008. Non-Pama-Nyungan Languages: land-language associations at colonisation. AILEC 0802.
Heath, Jeffery, 1982. Nunggubuyu dictionary. Canberra : Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies.
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.
van Egmond, Marie-Elaine, 2012. Enindhilyakwa phonology, morphosyntax and genetic position. MS 4966.
Warren, Kathie, 1982. Nunggubuyu nouns. MS 1639.

Status:

Confirmed

Location

State / Territory:

Location information:

From Cape Barrow and Harris Creek south to coast near Edward Island; west toward headwaters of Rose and Walker rivers (Tindale 1974). The general associations were to the drainages flowing into Bennet Bay, and the coast from approximately Minnie Creek up to and including the mouth of the Walker River. Wubuy affiliations included only the mouth of the Walker and did not extend upriver (Harvey ASEDA 802). It is estimated there are 200-500 Nunggubuyu speakers, most of whom live at Numbulwar - a mainland community at the mouth of the Rose River. ... there is a large group of Nunggubuyu speakers living at Angurugu, Groote Eylandt, and a smaller groups at Ngukurr (Roper River) (Warren, 1982:1).

Maps:

Links

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UCLA Phonetics Lab Data

Wikipedia

Programs

Activities:

Numbulwar Community Education Centre is providing a bilingual education (2006). Ngukurr Language Centre has run intermittent Wubuy language programs at the Ngukurr Community Education Centre (2005 - 2007; 2017; 2018).

People:

Jeffrey Heath, Earl Hughes, Alice Moyle, Alex van der Leeden, Ngukurr Language Centre, Numbulwar Community Education Centre

Indigenous organisations:

Ngukurr Language Centre https://ngukurrlc.org.au/

Speakers

Year	Source	Speaker numbers
1975	Oates	400
1984	Senate	300 - 400
1990	Schmidt	300 - 400
1996	Census	363
2001	Census	39
2004	NILS1	44
2005	Estimate	44
2006	Census	109
2011	Census	239
2014	NILS2
2016	Census	276
2018-2019	NILS3	251-500

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	Large (more than 200 pages)	4
Text Collection	Large (more than 200 pages)	4
Grammar	Large grammar (more than 200 pages)	4
Audio-visual	More than 10	3

Manuscript note:

tape transcription/field note available

Grammar:

Heath, Jeffrey. 1984. Functional grammar of Nunggubuyu. Canberra: AIAS.

Dictionary:

Heath, Jeffrey. 1982. Nunggubuyu dictionary. Canberra: AIAS.

Classification

Source	Family	Group	Sub-group	Name	Relationship
Ethnologue (2005)	Gunwingguan	Enindhilyagwa		Nunggubuyu	Nunggubuyu [dialects: Not intelligible with other languages]
Dixon (2002)		ARNHEM LAND GROUP	Far east Arnhem Land group	Nunggubuyu (or Wubuy or Yingkwira)	Nunggubuyu (or Wubuy or Yingkwira) Heath (1984)
Wurm (1994)	Nunggubuyu			Nunggubuyu
Walsh (1981)	Nunggubuyan			Nunggubuyu
Oates (1975)	Nunggubuyan			Nunggubuyu
Wurm (1972)	Nunggubuyan			Nunggubuyu
O'Grady, Voegelin and Voegelin (1966)	Nunggubuyan			Nunggubuju