Gooniyandi (Guniandi)

Gooniyandi is a member of the Bunuban language family, along with Bunuba, and is spoken by about 100 people in Fitzroy Crossing in the Kimberley Region of Western Australia, and in a number of outstation communities in the river areas between there and Halls Creek.

A system of spelling Gooniyandi in the Latin alphabet was adopted by the community in 1984, and subsequently revised in 1990 and again in 1999. It is not phonemic, as it omits some distinctions made in speech.

Gooniyandi is not being passed on to children, however since 1982 various programmes have been developed to teach it to Gooniyandi children in some schools.

Gooniyandi pronunciation

Information compiled by Wolfram Siegel.

Sample text in Gooniyandi

Ray garuwa-yuwa jurug'a
yaarri-ingga ngayi mila'yarra
biyirri-ingga-miya
mila'yanbirra
maaningga-ngana
muway-ngana baga'arranya
birayjga'wurranyayarrangi
maaningga yaarri-ingga baga'yarra
yajil'arri buga.

Translation

Ray are the spirit children.
They swim around in the water.
We can't see them, but they can see us.
At night, when we are asleep, they come
and visit us and make us dream about
children who are going to be born.

Spirit children, by Nyawanday (Casey Ross)
Source: http://www.fatsil.org/LOTM/june00.htm

Links

Information about the Gooniyandi people, language and culture
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gooniyandi_language
http://www.fatsil.org/LOTM/june00.htm
http://www.rosettaproject.org/archive/gni

Recordings of spoken Gooniyandi
http://globalrecordings.net/language/3698

Other Australian Aboriginal languages

Arrernte, Gooniyandi, Gugadja, Kala Lagaw Ya, Murrinh-Patha, Ngiyambaa, Noongar, Pitjantjatjara, Warlpiri, Wik-Mungkan, Wiradjuri, Yindjibarndi, Yolngu

Other languages written with the Latin alphabet

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