Handbook of Australian Languages [Chapter on Bunuba ONLY]

Description

Of the 5000-odd languages in the world, about half are spoken by only a few people and are endangered. A large number of Australian Aboriginal languages are in this situation, but efforts are being made to maintain such languages and even to revive languages no longer in active use. In this volume we present descriptions of three languages with fewer than 200 speakers: Bunuba in the Kimberley district of Western Australia, Ndjebbana in central Arnhem Land, and Nganhcara on Cape York. Whatever the fate of these languages, the present descriptions will serve as a record of their current state and a resource for the future. Each description follows the standard Handbook format and the terminology is designed to make the data accessible to more than just a specialist readership. The volume also contains a survey of the way Australia's indigenous languages are being used today in education and the media.