Region South Australia | Extinct 1960s | |
Ethnicity Ngarrindjeri, Ramindjeri Revival 160 reported in 2006 census Language family Pama–Nyungan
Lower Murray
Ngarrindjeri Dialects Yaralde (Ngarrindjeri)
Tangane (Tanganekald)
Ramindjeri
Portaulun
Warki | ||
Ngarrindjeri (also Yaraldi, Yaralde Tingar) or Narrinyeri (also written Ngarinyeri) was the language of the Ngarrindjeri people of southern South Australia.
Contents
Ngarrindjerri is Pama–Nyungan. Bowern (2011) lists the Yaraldi, Ngarrindjeri, and Ramindjeri varieties as separate languages.
The last fluent speaker died in the 1960s, but recent attempts to revive the language include the release of a Ngarrindjeri dictionary in 2009.
In 1864, the publication of the Narrinyeri Bible was the first time portions of the Bible were translated into an Aboriginal language. 8 Genesis 2:8 follows in Ngarrindjerri from the 1864 translation and a literal English translation. "Jehovah winmin gardenowe Edenald, kile yuppun ityan korn gardenungai." "Jehovah God planted a garden in Eden, toward the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed."
Name
Other variants of the names are Jarildekald, Jaralde, Yarilde, Yarrildie, Jaraldi, Lakalinyeri, Warawalde, Yalawarre, Yarildewallin.
Berndt, Berndt & Stanton published 1993, "The appropriate traditional categorization of the whole group was Kukabrak: this term, as we mention again below, was used by these people to differentiate themselves from neighbours whom they regarded as being socio-culturally and linguistically dissimilar. However, the term Narrinyeri has been used consistently in the literature and by Aborigines today who recognize a common descent from original inhibitants of this region-- even though their traditional identifying labels have been lost."
Sign
The Yaralde had the southernmost attested Australian Aboriginal sign language.