Wangaaybuwan Language
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The Wangaaypuwan, also known as the Wongaibon or Ngiyampaa Wangaaypuwan, are an
Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia 50,000 to 65,000 year ...
people who traditionally lived between
Nyngan Nyngan () is a town in the centre of New South Wales, Australia, in the Bogan Shire local government area within the Orana Region of central New South Wales. At the 2016 census, Nyngan had a population of 1,988 people. Nyngan is situated on th ...
, the headwaters of Bogan Creek, and on Tigers Camp and Boggy Cowal creeks and west to
Ivanhoe, New South Wales Ivanhoe is a very small township on the Cobb Highway between the Lachlan and Darling rivers in western New South Wales, Australia. It is located within the Central Darling Shire local government area. Ivanhoe functions as a service centre fo ...
. They are a clan of the
Ngiyampaa The Ngiyampaa people, also spelt Ngyiyambaa, Nyammba and Ngemba, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of New South Wales. The generic name refers to an aggregation of three groups, the Ngiyampaa, the Ngiyampaa Wangaaypuwan, and the ...
nation.


Ethnonym

The tribal
ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and used ...
derives from their word for "no", variously transcribed ''worjai'', ''wonghi'' or ''wangaay''.


Language

They spoke a distinct dialect of the
Ngiyambaa language The Ngiyampaa language, also spelt Ngiyambaa, Ngempa, Ngemba and other variants, is a Pama–Nyungan language of the Wiradhuric subgroup. It was the traditional language of the Wangaaypuwan and Wayilwan peoples of New South Wales. Speaker ...
. The last known speaker was a woman called "Old Nanny", from whom a list of sixty words was collected. She died sometime around 1914. Like other Ngiyampaa people such as the Wayilwan, they also referred to themselves according to their home country.


Country

According to anthropologist
Norman Tindale Norman Barnett Tindale AO (12 October 1900 – 19 November 1993) was an Australian anthropologist, archaeologist, entomologist and ethnologist. He is best remembered for his work mapping the various tribal groupings of Aboriginal Australians ...
, the Wangaaypuwans' traditional lands extended over some of territory, taking in the headwaters of the
Bogan River Bogan River, a perennial river that is part of the Macquarie– Barwon catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the central west and Orana regions of New South Wales, Australia. From its origin near Parkes, the Bogan River ...
, the Tiger's Camp and Boggy Cowal creeks. Their area encompassed Trida,
Narromine Narromine (Help:IPA/English, /næroʊmaɪn/) is a rural Australian town located approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) west of Dubbo in the Orana, New South Wales, Orana region of New South Wales. The town is at the centre of Narromine Shire. ...
,
Nyngan Nyngan () is a town in the centre of New South Wales, Australia, in the Bogan Shire local government area within the Orana Region of central New South Wales. At the 2016 census, Nyngan had a population of 1,988 people. Nyngan is situated on th ...
,
Girilambone Girilambone is a small village in western New South Wales, Australia. It is located north of Nyngan and 610 km north-west of Sydney. The name is also applied to the surrounding area, for postal and statistical purposes. At the 2016 census, the ...
,
Cobar Cobar is a town in Outback New South Wales, Australia, whose economy is based mainly upon base metals and gold mining. The town is by road northwest of the state capital, Sydney. It is at the crossroads of the Kidman Way and Barrier Highwa ...
, and Gilgunnia. The western boundary lay around
Ivanhoe ''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' ( ) by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in December 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. It marked a shift away from Scott's prior practice of setting stories in Scotland and in the more ...
and near the Neckarboo Range. Their southern borders ran to Trundle. When severe drought struck they were known to venture into
Wiradjuri The Wiradjuri people (; ) are a group of Aboriginal Australian people from central New South Wales, united by common descent through kinship and shared traditions. They survived as skilled hunter-fisher-gatherers, in family groups or clans, a ...
land, to their west, on the
Lachlan River The Lachlan River (Wiradjuri: ''Kalari'', ''Galiyarr'') is an intermittent river that is part of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, located in the Southern Tablelands, Central West, and Riverina regions of New Sou ...
and Little Billabong Creek..


Social organisation

According to an early observer, A. L. P. Cameron, the Wangaaypuwans' social divisions were as follows: The Wangaaypuwan intermarried with the
Wiradjuri The Wiradjuri people (; ) are a group of Aboriginal Australian people from central New South Wales, united by common descent through kinship and shared traditions. They survived as skilled hunter-fisher-gatherers, in family groups or clans, a ...
, and the marriage pattern, again according to Cameron, was as follows: Cameron elsewhere states that ''Ipatha, Butha, Matha'' and ''Kubbitha'' were the female equivalents of Ipai, Kumbu, Murri and Kubbi. There were five grades classified for the ages of man: a boy was ''eramurrung'', ''bimbadjeri'' during the initiatory months, then ''bigumjeri''. On reaching middle age, he became ''gibera'' and in old age ''giribung''.


Lore

According to a Wangaaypuwan story, the emu once had enormous wings, and, flying high, grew curious at the sight of numerous birds engaged in fishing in a lake. On its descent, the other species flew off in alarm, save for the brolga or native companion. The emu inquired about how it might learn the craft of fishing, and the brolga, with treacherous mischief in mind, told it that to trawl up fish, it would have to have its immense wings removed which, on the emu consenting, the native companion set about doing, and, once the shearing was completed, scorned the emu, which was now deprived of flight. On meeting up again after many years, it turned out the emu had a brood of ten chicks, while the brolga had only one. The brolga apologized for her bad behaviour and was forgiven. But, unable to change her malicious ways, she jumped at the excuse provided by the emu's admission it was hard to feed her nurslings, by suggesting they eat them. Once more the emu was inveigled into accepting the brolga's advice, only, once the latter had gorged itself, to be cajoled for its stupidity in having its young killed. On a third occasion, the brolga, seeing the emu on a brood of 10 eggs, tried to get them, but was fended off as the emu rushed off the nest and charged the native companion. It in turn, leapt at the opportunity to smash the eggs by dropping down from the sky. Only one remained intact. The outraged emu, finding nothing to throw at her antagonist, took this last egg and launched it after the brolga as it flew high into the sky. It hit its target, and, as it broke, formed the sun.


Alternative names and spellings

* ''Mudall'' * ''Wongai-bun'' * ''Wonghi'' * ''Wonghibon'' * ''Wonghibone'' * ''Wonghibone'' * ''Wongi-boner'' * ''Wo'yaibun'' (typo) * ''Wungai'' * ''Wuzai/Wozai'' (z = substitute for the ''ng'' ( ŋ) symbol by Ridley)


Some words

Source: Wangaaypuwan dictionary * ''paapaa'' (father) * ''kunii'' (mother) * ''purraay'' (child) * ''palkaa'' (boomerang) * ''mirri'' (tame dog) * ''wampuy'' (rock kangaroo) * ''winarr'' (woman, wife) * ''thurrkala'' (initiated man) * ''mayi'' (Aboriginal person) * ''walmarra'' (medicine man) * ''ngaawaa'' (yes) * ''wangaay'' (no, not)


Notes


Citations


Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{authority control Aboriginal peoples of New South Wales