N27: Wagiman

AIATSIS code: 
N27
AIATSIS reference name: 
Wagiman

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Name
Thesaurus heading language
Wagiman language N27
Thesaurus heading people
Wagiman people N27
ABN name
-
ABS name
Wagiman
Horton name
Wagiman
Ethnologue name
Wageman
ISO 639-3 code
waq
Tindale name
Wagoman
Tindale (1974)
Wagaman, Wageman, Wogeman; Wongkakaringa (a name for part of tribe), Ongkakaringa.
O'Grady et al (1966)
Glottocode
wage1238
Other sources
Wakiman [Merlan 1994:3] Wagiman, Wakiman, Wageman, Woggeman, Wogiman [Top End Handbook]
Synonyms
Wageman, Airiman, Tagoman, Wagoman, Ongkakaringa, Wagaman, Wogeman, Wongkakaringa, Wakiman, Wogeman; Wongkakaringa
Comment
Comments: 

Wagiman (N27) is a non-Pama Nyungan language from the Gunwinyguan language family.

There are several dialects of Wagiman, two mentioned in the Wagiman on-line dictionary are matjjin no-roh-ma 'light language' and matjjin gu-nawutj-jan 'heavy language'. Wagiman call their country Guwardagun.

Wagiman has not been actively acquired as first language by children since the 1950s. Elderly speakers have been engaged since the 1980s to record cultural and linguistic heritage. Wagiman people have produced the 'Wagiman online dictionary'; 'Wagiman Plants and Animals' and the 'Wagiman plants and animals calendar'.

 

References: 
  • Harvey, Mark. 2003. Western Gunwinyguan. In The non-Pama-Nyungan languages of northern Australia: comparative studies of the continent's most linguistically complex region, ed. Nicholas Evans, 285-303. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.
  • Harvey, Mark. 2008. Non-Pama-Nyungan Languages: land-language associations at colonisation. AILEC 0802.
  • Liddy, Lenny Gappuya, Lulu Dalppalngali Martin (t), Joe Galwaying Huddlestone (t), Lena Jululuk (Liddy) (t), Helen Imorrotjba Liddy, Clara Gumbirtbirtta Memah (t), George Jabalgarri Huddlestone, Mark Harvey, Glenn Wightman. 2006. Wagiman plants and animals : Aboriginal knowledge of flora and fauna from the mid Daly River basin, northern Australia. Darwin : Dept. of Natural Resources, Environment and the Arts ; Katherine, N.T. : Diwurruwurru-jaru Aboriginal Corporation.
  • 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.
  • Wagiman on-line dictionary. https://aiatsis.gov.au/sites/default/files/e_access/digital/a339234/home.html
Status: 
Confirmed
Location
State / Territory: 
NT
Location information: 

According to Warray and Wagiman people Hayes Creek and Butterfly/Dougas Gorge are in traditional Wagiman country (Harvey 2003:297). The general associations were to the Daly River drainage between its junction with Jinduckin Creek and its junction with Hayward Creek. There was little precise information on the limits of Wagiman associations in 2007. In the south-east, Ejong Billabong was associated with Dagoman, though this is close to the north-western limit of Dagoman associations. In the north, Hayes Creek was associated with Wagiman. Mt Osborne was not associated with Wagiman. Mt Shoebridge does not appear to have been associated with Wagiman. Plateau Point was associated with Wagiman. It is unclear how far upstream on the Douglas, Wagiman associations extended. In the west, limits have been extrapolated from drainage basin boundaries. Wagiman associations did not extend west of the Hayward Range. Fletcher's Gully Mine was associated with Ngan'gityemerri. In the south, limits have been extrapolated from drainage basin boundaries (Harvey ASEDA 802). About Dorisvale; southwest of Daly River; west of Ooloo; on Bamboo Creek; north to Douglas Homestead (Tindale 1974).

Maps: 
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Links

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PDF icon Oates_N27.pdf
Tindale 1974
OLAC
SIL
The Online Wagiman Dictionary
Programs
Activities: 
-
People: 
Anthony Cook, Mark Harvey, Stephen Wilson, Katherine Regional Aboriginal Language Centre
Indigenous organisations: 

Diwurruwurru-jaru Katherine Regional Language Centre

Speakers
Year Source Speaker numbers
1975Oatesexist
1984Senate-
1990Schmidt-50
1996Census-
2001Census-
2004NILS111
2005Estimate11
2006Census-
2011Census30
2014NILS2
2016Census18
2018-2019NILS31-10

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 Small (20-100 pages) 2
Grammar Large grammar (more than 200 pages) 4
Audio-visual More than 10 3
Manuscript note: 
not available
Grammar: 

Cook, Anthony. 1987. Wagiman Matyin: a description of the Wagiman language of the Northern Territory, La Trobe University: PhD.

Dictionary: 

Harvey, Mark. Wagiman Dictionary 2nd ed. AILEC 0792.

Wilson, Stephen. 1999. Wagiman dictionary, MS 4222.

Wilson, Stephen et al. The Wagiman on-line dictionary, https://aphasialab.org/wagiman/

Classification
Source Family Group Sub-group Name Relationship
Ethnologue (2005) Gunwingguan Wagiman   Wageman  
Dixon (2002)   ARNHEM LAND GROUP Wagiman-Wardaman subgroup* Wagiman Wagiman Cook (1987), Wilson (1999)
Wurm (1994) Gunwinyguan Yangmanic   Wagiman  
Walsh (1981) Gunwinyguan Yangmanic Wagiman Wagiman (Wageman)  
Oates (1975) Gunwingguan Yangmanic Wageman Wageman  
Wurm (1972) Gunwingguan Yangmanic Wageman Wageman  
O'Grady, Voegelin and Voegelin (1966)