The Languages of AustraliaA study of the more than two hundred different Aboriginal languages of Australia. Professor Dixon deals first with the general character of these languages, and their use and role in Australia today. He stresses that they are in no sense 'primitive' languages, but have a rich and complex grammar with the many subtle and distinctive features. He goes on to demonstrate this in the first-ever study of their genetic relationships, probable origins and historical development, and their grammatical and phonological behaviour. This is in many ways a pioneering work, and a fundamental one. The Press has already published two major scholarly studies by Professor Dixon of individual Australian languages, Dyirbal and Yidin. He offers here the synthesis that they pointed towards, provisional still in many of its details, but sufficiently convincing in outline to stimulate the next stage of professional research, to provide the general linguist with the kind of survey to the interested Australian something of the extraordinary linguistic heritage of the continent, now and for some time past seriously at risk. |
Contents
Tribe and language | 23 |
Speech and song styles | 47 |
The role of language in Aboriginal Australian society today | 69 |
Vocabulary | 97 |
Phonology | 125 |
Phonological change | 195 |
Classification of Australian languages | 220 |
Word classes | 266 |
Nouns | 292 |
Pronouns | 327 |
Verbs | 378 |
Syntax | 438 |
Summary | 467 |
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Common terms and phrases
Aboriginal Australians adjective allomorphs allophones antipassive apical Arnhem Land articulation Australian languages bound pronominal C₁ Canberra Cape York clause clitics clusters cognate conjugation marker consonant continent contrast corresponding dative derivational affix Dhalandji dialect distinct Dyirbal English ergative example feature final function genetic genitive grammatical Gumbaynggir Guugu Yimidhirr Hale imperative inflection initial instance intransitive involve Jalŋuy Jirrbal Kalkatungu laminal lexeme lexical linguistic locative long vowel marking Mbabaram modern languages monosyllabic roots nasal neighbouring Ngiyambaa nominal nonPN languages Notes noun Nyawaygi occur original pattern peripheral person phoneme phonological phonological changes phonotactic Pintupi Pitta-Pitta polysyllabic prefixing pronouns Queensland refer reflexive Rembarrnga rhotic semantic semi-vowel sentence similar single songs South Wales speakers stem stop subgroup suffix suggests syllable syntactic tongue transitive tribal tribes V₁ verb roots verbal vocabulary Walmatjari Warlpiri Warrgamay Western Desert western languages words Yidiny Yolŋu