Lower Burdekin languages

Lower Burdekin
Lower Burdekin
Bindal ?
(geographic)
Native to	Australia
Region	Queensland
Ethnicity	Bindal?
Extinct	ca. 1900
Language family	Pama–Nyungan unclassified (Dyirbalic?) Lower Burdekin; ;
Dialects	Cunningham vocabulary; Gorton vocabulary; Mt. Elliot vocabulary;
Language codes
ISO 639-3	xbb
Linguist List	xbb
Glottolog	bind1234 Cunningham list; bind1235 Gorton list; bind1236 Mount Elliot list
AIATSIS	E61 Bindal
	Lower Burdekin languages (green) among other Pama–Nyungan (tan)

The Lower Burdekin languages are a geographical grouping of two distinct Aboriginal languages,^[2] spoken around the mouth of the Burdekin River in north Queensland. One short wordlist in each was collected in the 19th century, and published in the second volume of The Australian Race in 1886.^[3] These languages have since gone extinct, with no more having been recorded. Due to the paucity of the available data, almost nothing of their grammatical structure is known.

The two languages^[1] may have been Maric. However, Breen analysed two of the lists and concluded that they were different languages, neither Maric.^[1] He presumes that one of them was Bindal.^[4]

Wordlist

English gloss	Cunningham vocabulary	Gorton vocabulary
Kangaroo	hoora	wootha
Opossum	moonganna	goong
Tame dog	oogier	minde
Emu	kowwerra	goondaloo
Black duck	yammooroo	buggininulli
Wood duck	mumboogooba	detto
Pelican	boloona	booloon
Laughing jackass	kowurgurra	kookaburra
Native companion	braroogan	buberenulli
White cockatoo	digooi	bugina
Crow	wyaguna	wethergun
Swan	woergerella
Egg	wyoorda	werroo
Track of a foot	dooigooburra
Fish	weenburra	kooia
Lobster	koongooya	goonaway
Crayfish	goombarroo
Mosquito	kowearoo	dee
Fly	karoovella
Snake	oongullab	wormbaloo
The Blacks	murre
A Blackfellow
A Black woman	wurrungooa	gungan
2 Blacks
3 Blacks
Nose	urrooa	woodroo
Hand	mobirra	mulbroo
One	warmina
Two	blareena	bool
Three	kudjua	ka
Four	kulburra
Father	kiya	yaba, yabo
Mother	younga	yanga
Elder sister	kootha
Elder brother	wabooa
A young man	karrebella	thillagal
An old man	booingermunna	bunganan
An old woman	boingergunna	bulnagun
A baby	mullererammoo
A White man	yooarroo
Children	erroomunna
Head	kurria	kabbon
Eye	mudjura	deburri
Ear	awbilla	wobbilla
Mouth	da	yawirra
Teeth	irra	woonung
Hair of the head	gunnarri
Beard	thungier	thungi
Thunder	degoroo	digoro
Grass	wudthoor	quwytho
Tongue	thullamia
Stomach	bunboona	borlo
Breasts	woorga	wuggunna
Thigh	toomburra	thoombur
Foot	dingooburra	bulliger
Bone	bulbanna
Blood	gwiburri	moondtha
Skin	yoolanna	uline
Fat	towie	koonoo, goomo
Bowels	gurroona	kullinga
Excrement	goonna	goonna
War-spear	nirremoo	woomburro
Reed-spear	wollaburra
Wommera or throwing-stick	birrana
Shield	goolmurri	gooldinare
Tomahawk	bulgooa	nubanin
Canoe	kobbetheba	bettel-bettel
Sun	burgorri	kartri
Moon	bowarri
Star	bunjoldi	tor, bangala
Light	burgungubba
Dark	wooroowobba	moonoo
Cold	didoora	detto
Heat	towarroo
Day	woorabunda
Night	wooroonga	woormooga
Fire	wygunna	booninin
Water	kowara	thoolanoo
Smoke	toogar
Ground	nannier	numera
Wind	quioona	queeyon
Rain	yoogana	broothi
Wood	doola	dulla
Stone	burreea	burtheroo
Camp	yaamba	yamba
Yes	yea	umba
No	kurra	kateka
I	iyooa
You	yindooa
Bark	bulgan	boogoo
Good
Bad	kooyooa
Sweet	kowangubba
Food	igango
Hungry	nagnoora	kabbil
Thirsty	dthunginna
Eat	igango
Sleep	boogoora	boogooroo
Drink	bithungo	bitthana
Walk	kunnaigo
See	timmi	thimmi
Sit	thunnango	thunara
Yesterday	yambowerroe
To-day	nilla	nilla
To-morrow	burgenda	burringa
Where are the Blacks?	ondia murre?
I don't know	kurra mira
Plenty	qniarilla [sic]
Big		wiarra
Little	wa-baw-au-boona	wabungam
Dead	waulgoona	wolgoon
By-and-by	thagoo
Come on	kowa

References

^ ^a ^b ^c E61 Bindal at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
^ "2009-014 | ISO 639-3". iso639-3.sil.org. Archived from the original on 4 July 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2025.
^ Curr, Edward Micklethwaite (1886). The Australian race: its origin, languages, customs, place of landing in Australia and the routes by which it spread itself over the continent. Vol. 2. Melbourne: Government Printer.
^ "E61: Bindal". Australian Indigenous Languages Database. Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 25 November 2020.

Dixon, R. M. W. (2002). Australian Languages: Their Nature and Development. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-47378-1.

[AIATSIS-1] E61 Bindal at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies

[2] "2009-014 | ISO 639-3". iso639-3.sil.org. Archived from the original on 4 July 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2025.

[3] Curr, Edward Micklethwaite (1886). The Australian race: its origin, languages, customs, place of landing in Australia and the routes by which it spread itself over the continent. Vol. 2. Melbourne: Government Printer.

[4] "E61: Bindal". Australian Indigenous Languages Database. Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 25 November 2020.

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