Gunwinyguan languages

From MedBib.com - Medicine & Nature

The Gunwinyguan languages form the second largest family of Australian Aboriginal languages. They are spoken in Arnhem Land in northern Australia. The most populous language is Gunwinygu, with some 1500 speakers.

Although the validity of the Gunwinyguan family is widely accepted, the inclusion of some lesser known language isolates is debated. Ethnologue, for example, Ethnologue includes the Burarran languages, Kakadu, and Enindhilyagwa, which are not included here. What follows is based on a 1997 classification by Nicholas Evans at the Australian National Universtity.

Classification

• Gunwinyguan proper: Dagoman, Jawoyn (Djauan), Ngandi, Ngalakgan, Kunwinjku (Gunwinggu, Kunwinjku), Kunbarlang, Ngalkbun, Rembarrnga, Wagiman, Wardaman, Yangman
• Maran languages: Alawa, Warndarrang, Marra
• Kungarakany language
• Nunggubuyu language
• Waray language
• Mangarayi language

Evans has proposed that Gunwinyguan is related to the Pama-Nyungan languages in a family he calls Macro-Pama-Nyungan.

References

• McConvell, Patrick and Nicholas Evans. (eds.) 1997. Archaeology and Linguistics: Global Perspectives on Ancient Australia. Melbourne: Oxford University Press

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