Bidjara language
Encyclopedia
Bidjara is a nearly extinct
language of Australia
. Bidyara is spoken by twenty elders in Queensland
, between Tambo and Augathella, Warrego and Langlo rivers (according to Ethnologue
). It is an aboriginal language. It is also the only aboriginal language in eastern Australia. It is sadly shifting to English
. This is an example of people not continuing to have a passion for their native language. Ruhlen (1987) said this was an extinct language
.
Australian Bidjara artist and the inaugural Charlie Perkins Scholar Christian Bumbarra Thompson employs his Bidjara language in his video work in attempt to redistribute his language into the public realm. His work 'Gamu Mambu' which means 'Blood Song' in Bidjara is a video work of a Dutch Baroque Opera Singer singing in Bidjara. It was included in the 17th Sydney International Biennale ' The Beauty of Distance: Songs of Survival in a Precarious Age' and is held in the Museum of Contemporary Art Collection, Sydney. His work 'Desert Slippers' was also included in the National Indigenous Art Triennial 'Culture Warriors' and features Thompson and hid Father greeting each other in Bidjara. His work ' Decent Extremist' was also included in the Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art. The sound work features the words 'Nguwal' meaning bee swarm and 'muna' meaning bee. Thompson voice saying these phrases has manipulated to sound like an actual bee swarm and individual bee.
Language death
In linguistics, language death is a process that affects speech communities where the level of linguistic competence that speakers possess of a given language variety is decreased, eventually resulting in no native and/or fluent speakers of the variety...
language of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Bidyara is spoken by twenty elders in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, between Tambo and Augathella, Warrego and Langlo rivers (according to Ethnologue
Ethnologue
Ethnologue: Languages of the World is a web and print publication of SIL International , a Christian linguistic service organization, which studies lesser-known languages, to provide the speakers with Bibles in their native language and support their efforts in language development.The Ethnologue...
). It is an aboriginal language. It is also the only aboriginal language in eastern Australia. It is sadly shifting to English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. This is an example of people not continuing to have a passion for their native language. Ruhlen (1987) said this was an extinct language
Extinct language
An extinct language is a language that no longer has any speakers., or that is no longer in current use. Extinct languages are sometimes contrasted with dead languages, which are still known and used in special contexts in written form, but not as ordinary spoken languages for everyday communication...
.
Australian Bidjara artist and the inaugural Charlie Perkins Scholar Christian Bumbarra Thompson employs his Bidjara language in his video work in attempt to redistribute his language into the public realm. His work 'Gamu Mambu' which means 'Blood Song' in Bidjara is a video work of a Dutch Baroque Opera Singer singing in Bidjara. It was included in the 17th Sydney International Biennale ' The Beauty of Distance: Songs of Survival in a Precarious Age' and is held in the Museum of Contemporary Art Collection, Sydney. His work 'Desert Slippers' was also included in the National Indigenous Art Triennial 'Culture Warriors' and features Thompson and hid Father greeting each other in Bidjara. His work ' Decent Extremist' was also included in the Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art. The sound work features the words 'Nguwal' meaning bee swarm and 'muna' meaning bee. Thompson voice saying these phrases has manipulated to sound like an actual bee swarm and individual bee.
External links
- www.christianthompson.net
- http://www.christianthompson.net/works/desert-slippers/index.html
- http://www.christianthompson.net/works/gamu-mambu-brother-universal-fields/index.html
- http://nga.gov.au/Exhibition/NIAT07/Detail.cfm?IRN=163876&BioArtistIRN=6549&MnuID=1
- http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/reality-check-is-in-the-male/story-e6frg8n6-1111116113115