Research Unit for
Indigenous Language
Faculty of Arts
The Research Unit for Indigenous Language (RUIL) is the first of its kind in Australia. We work with Indigenous communities across Australia and the region to expand and strengthen Indigenous language research, and to support efforts by communities to maintain their linguistic and cultural heritage.
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which the University of Melbourne sits, and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future.
50 Words Project
This project aims to provide fifty words in every Indigenous language of Australia.
The words are provided online with community permission, and with audio provided by a language speaker. All words, audio, and video recordings are provided by language speakers and are included here with permission. We hope this will be a useful resource for schools and educational organisations, and for the general public to discover the diversity of languages around Australia.
Explore our resources
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The sounds of Australian Aboriginal languages
A video series exploring the different sounds that can be found in some Aboriginal Australian languages
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Training resources for Community Language Workers
Helpful videos and links to external sites for people using linguistic software to work on Indigenous languages
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Public lectures
Whenever possible the Research Unit for Indigenous Language record our public lectures and make them available for you to watch. Enjoy!
Grants and scholarships
See below for funding opportunities to engage with The Research Unit for Indigenous Language team
People of RUIL
- Professor Rachel Nordlinger
Director, RUIL
Professor of Linguistics
Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language
- Associate Professor
Nicholas ThiebergerDeputy Director, RUIL
Chief Investigator, ARC Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language
- Allyra Murray
Project Officer, RUIL
Twitter @indiglang
Contact the Research Unit for Indigenous Language
Email: RUIL-contact@unimelb.edu.au
Phone: +61 3 8344 3311
Location: Babel (Building 139), the University of Melbourne VIC 3010
Project Officer location: Room 311, Level 3, Babel (Building 139)
The Research Unit for Indigenous Language's researchers work on Indigenous languages in Australia and the region.
Research projects
Explore our team members' current projects. Information about our current research and other activities is also included in our Newsletter
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50 words project
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Digital Daisy Bates
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The Daly Languages project
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Getting in Touch: Bird app development
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Visible talk: Using Australian Indigenous sign languages
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A sociophonetic study of Aboriginal English
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Are super-complex words represented like sentences in speakers' minds?
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Conversational Interaction in Aboriginal and Remote Australia (CIARA)
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Learning Pitjantjatjara: A longitudinal study of how children learn Pitjantjatjara
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Learning to tell a narrative in Murrinhpatha
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Aboriginal language use in Darwin
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The sounds of Anindilyakwa
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Darwin prison Indigenous languages program
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Developing an early literacy learning app for Dhuwaya speaking children
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Towards culturally inclusive language assessments for Indigenous student
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The ABC’s of listening and learning
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Modern diplomacy: understanding ceremonial exchange at Indigenous festivals
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Nyingarn project
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How free is free?: word order in Australian Indigenous languages
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The Acquisition Sketch Project
Communities we work with
You can see the locations where RUIL team members carry out research in the map below - each pin on the map represents the language!
Indigenous Scholar Scheme
The Scheme funds Indigenous language experts to work on a small project of their design with the support of a RUIL team member. Depending on the nature of the project, RUIL can provide relevant training, collaborative support, library access and relevant resources. Applicants can apply for up to $5000, which can be used to fund such things as travel, salary buyout to enable time to work on the project, research assistance costs, publication costs, etc.
Indigenous Language Support
This scheme supports Indigenous individuals and communities across Australia to expand and strengthen Indigenous language research, and to support their efforts to maintain their linguistic and cultural heritage.
Leary Trust for Australian Indigenous Languages Award
The Research Unit for Indigenous Language is excited to congratulate Dharug woman Tula Wynyard as the inaugural winner of the Leary Trust for Australian Indigenous Languages Award.
This award was established in 2020 to support and encourage the study of Australian Indigenous languages by Australian Indigenous honours students at the University of Melbourne. The award will support Tula as she undertakes her honours year in Linguistics in 2021.
RUIL works toward increasing the general public's awareness and understanding of issues surrounding Indigenous languages in Australia, we host public lectures and actively promote linguistic diversity through our Social Media presence and newsletter.
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Newsletter
Published thrice yearly, The RUIL newsletter contains details of the research activities, latest news and other achievements of the Research Unit.
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Public lectures
Whenever possible the Research Unit for Indigenous Language record our public lectures and make them available for you to watch. Enjoy!
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RUIL in the media archive
A collection of publications by Research Unit for Indigenous Language (RUIL) team members to increase general knowledge of issues surrounding Indigenous languages.
Explore training and resources that RUIL offers
Training
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Training programs
Research Unit for Indigenous Language team members conduct training programs: here you will find out more about some select workshops
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Training resources for Community Language Workers
Helpful videos and links to external sites for people using linguistic software to work on Indigenous languages
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Learn about Australian Indigenous Languages
Helpful videos and links to external sites for those interested in learning more about Australian languages
Resources
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Ethical guidelines for researchers in Aboriginal communities
Research Unit for Indigenous Language team member Dr Brett Baker recently gave a presentation for the Office for Research Ethics and Integrity (OREI, University of Melbourne) concerning ethical guidelines for researchers working with Aboriginal communities.
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Language links
These web pages are aimed at providing links to some of the great resources that are available, as well as some wonderful stories about the work that different groups are doing around Australia.
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Inspiring projects around Australia
This is a small and varied collection of some of the great projects happening around Australia at the moment, to provide inspiration.
The Research Unit for Indigenous Language (RUIL) was established in 2013 and is the first of its kind in Australia.
The research unit is centred around a team from the School of Languages and Linguistics with an exemplary record in research on the languages of Indigenous communities in both Australia and the region. The University of Melbourne is the national (and global) leader in this important area of research.
The RUIL team comprises core research staff with a variety of specialisations, working on languages in Australia and in the surrounding region (including Indonesia and Vanuatu). Team members also work closely with a range of external collaborators (see RUIL associates). The team is supported by a project officer who also facilitates ongoing training and outreach activities. Key staff associated with the research unit all have substantial track records of publications and ARC and other competitive grants in the area, and an established history of collaboration.
While focusing predominantly on research outputs, the Research Unit for Indigenous Language also works with indigenous community members to build their capacity to carry out linguistic work on their own languages. This is either via training workshops delivered at conferences, or through focused work geared toward community projects. We also work toward increasing the general public's awareness and understanding of issues surrounding Indigenous languages in Australia. We run training sessions geared toward school-aged groups, host public lectures and actively promote linguistic diversity through our Social Media presence. For more information please see the news and events page.
The establishment of this research unit places the Faculty of Arts and the University of Melbourne at the forefront of this research domain, with its recognised importance for government policy, education, and the health and well-being of Australia's indigenous population. To discover more about our research projects, see our Research web page; to hear about outreach and other activities, see the news and events web page.
Thanks to Jenny Green for the sand-and-wire image used throughout the RUIL website and associated media.
The Leary Trust for Australian Indigenous Languages
In 2017 RUIL received Duncan Leary’s extraordinary multi-million dollar bequest for the research of Australian Indigenous languages. This generous bequest – the largest ever for the research of Australian languages – has ensured that RUIL’s activities to strengthen Indigenous language research and support Indigenous communities in their language-related goals can continue into perpetuity.
Duncan Leary graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1955 with a Bachelor of Arts. He met his life partner, chef Ernest Lanz, in Geneva, Switzerland, before the couple returned permanently to Melbourne in the 1960s. Duncan maintained a strong association with the University of Melbourne for the rest of his life, studying many subjects through Melbourne’s continuing education program, including a number in the fields of Aboriginal history and culture. Though we know little about his connection to Indigenous languages, it is clear that Duncan was a passionate linguist, speaking five languages in addition to English.
We at RUIL are so extraordinarily grateful for Duncan Leary’s generosity, which will continue to have a substantial impact on Indigenous language research and the ways in which we are able to support Indigenous communities to maintain their linguistic heritage.
Contact the Research Unit for Indigenous Language
Email: RUIL-contact@unimelb.edu.au
Phone: +61 3 8344 3311
Location: Babel (Building 139), the University of Melbourne VIC 3010
Project Officer location: Room 311, Level 3, Babel (Building 139)