Language links
Language links
Annual or biennial events
The following events happen annually or biennually. If you or your organisation holds an event related to Indigenous language, let us know and we can list it here!
- Puliima National Indigenous Language and Technology forum: held every 2 years, this forum brings together language activists from around Australia. The last PULIIMA was held in 2019. Find out more about the forum
- Australian Languages Workshop: 16th Annual Workshop: March 3 - 5 2017
- Languages and Cultures Network for Australian Universities (LCNAU): held biennially
Community organisations
- Living Languages, formerly Resource Network for Linguistic Diversity (RNLD)
- Our Languages - produced by and for Australian Indigenous people
- Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages (VIC)
- Miromaa Aboriginal Language and Technology Centre (NSW)
- First Languages Australia
- Patyegarang – the Indigenous Australian languages education website
Governmental organisations and publications
The following pages provide information on a mixture of policies, funding and general information around the area of Indigenous languages in Australia.
- Our Land Our Languages Report 2012 – House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Inquiry into language learning in Indigenous communities
- Indigenous Visual Arts Industry Support program of the Australian Government
- Bachelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education
- Australian Institute of Australian and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS)
Indigenous language in the media
- Indigenous language news radio - ABC now produces two news bulletins each weekday in both Warlpiri and Yolngu Matha. They are available online for download or to stream
- 'Reconciliation one hour at a time': Reviving Aboriginal culture in schools - ABC News 27 July 2015
- Language app helps preserve Queensland's Indigenous voices and culture through touch screens - ABC News 10 July 2015
- Young Aboriginal student helping to preserve Dja Dja Wurrung language - ABC Central Victoria 10 July 2015
- Mount Druitt Indigenous Youth Choir revives Dharug language - The Age 7 July 2015
- Speaking Out Indigenous affairs program celebrates 25 years of connecting communities through the airwaves - ABC News 6 July 2015
- Canberra preschoolers learn local Indigenous language of ACT, southern NSW - 30 June 2015
- Australia developing first ever school curriculum for Indigenous languages - The Guardian 25 May 2015
- Thornbury Primary School runs only Melbourne Indigenous language program - The Age 17 May 2015
- Gina Williams on why every Australian should know some Indigenous words - The Guardian 28 March 2015
- Far from extinct, Indigenous languages thriving in public schools in Dubbo - 1 March 2015
- Say g'day the indigenous way for NAIDOC week - 9 July 2014
Indigenous language related blogs
The links below take you to a range of blogs focused on the either Indigenous language projects themselves, or the experiences of speakers, linguists and other people involved in language work around the region.
- Iltyem-iltyem Central Australian sign language project blog
- Anggarrgoon blog - Linguist Claire Bowern's blog
- Australian Aboriginal Languages students blog
- Languages and Cultures Network for Australian Universities (LCNAU) - Indigenous Languages Cluster
- Endangered Languages and Cultures blog - discussion forum connected to the PARADISEC archive
International language links
- UNESCO Endangered Languages
- Project for the Study of Alternative Education in South Africa (PRAESA) - new ways to teach literacy in multilingual communities
- Heteroglossia.net Research on Multilingualism at the University of Vienna
- Arctic Languages Vitality is a great website focused on assessing, monitoring and promoting Arctic Indigenous Languages
Learning an Australian Aboriginal language at University
The University Languages Portal Australia (ULPA) provides excellent information on opportunities to study Australian Indigenous languages at a tertiary level: see the summary on their Where can I study an Indigenous Australian language? web page. Most of the courses listed with ULPA have some form of cross-institutional study available.
The six Indigenous languages currently taught around Australia are:
Online resources
This is a collection of web-based resources which are created around a specific theme or topic.
Iltyem-iltyem - an online resource for sign languages used in Indigenous communities in Central Australia. This site contains several hundred video clips of signs for public view. The project was piloted by members of the sign language team from Ti Tree in Central Australia.The website is for people who want to teach and learn Central Australian sign languages. It will also help people learn spoken language, as most of the video clips contain sign language and speech together.
Austkin database - this website provides access the austkin database, which contains reference to kinship terminologies and social category systems from published and archival sources for over 607 Australian Aboriginal languages. The website can be used to search and map kinship terms in a variety of ways, and contains a large number of resources relating to kinship in Australian Aboriginal languages.
Wadeye Song Database - this database documents the history, language and music of public songs and dances composed and performed at Wadeye (also known as Port Keats) in Australia's Northern Territory. It focuses on three songsets of Murriny Patha people: djanba, wurltjirri and malgarrin. Also included is information on other public songs performed in the Wadeye area, including lirrga and wangga.
Researching Australian Aboriginal languages
- AUSTLANG - searchable database which assembles information about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages from a number of sources
- OZBIB - bibliography of published works and theses on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages
- Aboriginal languages - a list of links compiled by linguist David Nash
- Aboriginal Languages of Australia - a list of annotated links to resources compiled by digital language resource developer, David Nathan
- Australian Society for Indigenous Languages - materials produced by the Summer Institute of Linguistics Bible translators
- Australian Linguistic Society - the national organisation for linguists and linguistics in Australia
RUIL's 'word posts' project: resources
The Research Unit for Indigenous Language strives to increase community awareness of the incredible linguistic diversity found in Australia by featuring images of different things (generally nouns), and their words in various Indigenous languages. Our ‘word posts’ appear every three days, and can be found on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram by following us @indiglang. Here is an example:
The languages
We source the words for these posts from a variety of print and online dictionaries. Below is a list of the languages we’ve featured and the resources used to date in this project. If you would like us to include another language in this list, please get in touch and let us know the language and its resource!
Alyawarr: Blackman, D., and Moore, D. 2004. Alyawarr picture dictionary. Alice Springs, N.T: IAD Press
Bilinarra: Meakins, F. 2013. Bilinarra to English dictionary. Batchelor, N.T: Batchelor Press
Bundjalung: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Burrara: Glasgow, K. 2012. Burarra Interactive Dictionary
Central Anmatyerr: Green, Jenny. 2003. Central Anmatyerr picture dictionary. Alice Springs, N.T.: IAD Press
Dalabon: Evans, N., Merlan, F., Tukumba, M. and Maningrida Arts and Culture. 2004. A first dictionary of Dalabon (Ngalkbon). Maningrida, N.T: Maningrida Arts and Culture
Dätiwuy: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Dharug / Eora: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Diyari: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Eastern Arrernte: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Gooniyandi: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Gumbaynggirr: Morelli, S. 2008. Gumbaynggirr dictionary and learner’s grammar =: Gumbaynggirr bijaarr jandaygam, ngaawa gugaarrigam. Nambucca Heads, N.S.W: Muurrbay Aboriginal Language and Culture Co-operative
Gurindji: Meakins, F. 2013. Gurindji to English dictionary. Batchelor, N.T: Batchelor Press
Gurr-goni: Green, R. and Nimbadja, L. 2015. Gurr-goni to English dictionary.
Kaantju: Thompson, D. 1998. ‘Lockhart River “Sand Beach” Language an outline of Kuuku Ya’u and Umpila’. Darwin. N.T: Summer Institute of Linguistics
Kaurna: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Kriol: Online Kriol dictionary
Kukatja: Valiquette, H. 1993. A basic Kukatja to English dictionary. Balgo, W.A: Luurnpa Catholic School
Kundedjnjenghmi: Bininj Gun Wok names for plants and animals
Kundjeyhmi: Bininj Gun Wok names for plants and animals
Kune / Mayali: Bininj Gun Wok names for plants and animals
Kuninjku: Bininj Gun Wok names for plants and animals
Kunwinjku: Bininj Gun Wok names for plants and animals
Kuuku Ya’u: Thompson, D. 1998. ‘Lockhart River “Sand Beach” Language an outline of Kuuku Ya’u and Umpila’. Darwin. N.T: Summer Institute of Linguistics
Marra: Heath, J. 1981. Basic Materials in Mara: Grammar, Texts and Dictionary, The Australian National University, Canberra
Mawng: Online Mawng dictionary
Meryam Mir: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Murrinhpatha: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Narungga: In Narungga aboriginal progress association (Maitland, Australie). 2006. Nharangga warra: Narungga dictionary. Maitland: Narungga aboriginal progress Association
Ngandi: Heath, J. M. 1978. Ngandi grammar, texts, and dictionary. Canberra: Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies
Ngiyampaa: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Nhanda: Blevins, J. 2001. Nhanda: An Aboriginal language of Western Australia. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press
Nyungar: Macquarie Aboriginal Words (1994) and Whitehurst, R. (1997). Noongar to English Dictionary. Perth, W.A: Noongar Language and Culture Centre
Barkindji / Paakantyi: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Pitjantjatjara / Yankunytjatjara: Goddard, C. and Institute for Aboriginal Development (Alice Springs, N.T.). 1992. Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara to English dictionary. Alice Springs, N.T: Institute for Aboriginal Development
Torres Strait Creole: Macquarie Aboriginal Words (1994)
Umpila: Thompson, D. 1998. ‘Lockhart River “Sand Beach” Language an outline of Kuuku Ya’u and Umpila’. Darwin. N.T: Summer Institute of Linguistics
Wagiman: Wagiman online dictionary 1999-2001. AIATSIS
Wambaya: Nordlinger. 1998. Wambaya Dictionary (unpublished manuscript)
Wembawemba: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Wik Mungkan: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Wiradjuri: Macquarie Aboriginal Words (1994) and Grant, Stan and Rudder, John (2010) A new Wiradjuri Dictionary. O’Connor, ACT: Restoration House
Yindjibarndi: Macquarie Aboriginal Words. 1994
Yolŋu Matha: Yolnu Matha Dictionary
Images
We source the images for these posts from a variety of free online image databases, which release images free of copyright or licencing restrictions. These include sources such as Pixabay website and Pexels website.
However, sometimes these sources just don’t showcase (enough) the incredible wildlife that Australia has to offer. In these cases, we are helped out by people sharing their own photos with the project. Many thanks to RUIL team members Brighde Collins and Jennifer Green, and to Flickr user Duncan McCaskill. Please get in touch with us if you would like to contribute!