 | This articleshould specify the language of its non-English content using{{lang}} or{{langx}},{{transliteration}} for transliterated languages, and{{IPA}} for phonetic transcriptions, with an appropriateISO 639 code. Wikipedia'smultilingual support templates may also be used - notably xgm for Dharumbal.See why.(October 2024) |
| Darumbal | |
|---|---|
| Guwinmal | |
| Region | Queensland |
| Ethnicity | Darumbal,Koinjmal (Guwinmal),Woppaburra |
| Extinct | (date missing) |
| Revival | revival efforts exist[1] |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | xgm |
| Glottolog | dhar1248 |
| AIATSIS[2] | E46 |
| ELP | Dharumbal |
 Traditional lands of Aboriginal people around Mackay, Rockhampton andGladstone, Queensland; Darumbal in yellow | |
Darumbal, also speltDharambal, is anAustralian Aboriginal language ofQueensland in Australia declaredextinct. It was spoken in theRockhampton area of Queensland, as well as on theCapricorn Coast, SouthernGreat Keppel Island andYeppoon islands. Dialects wereGuwinmal,Karunbara,Rakiwara, andWapabura. It is classified withBayali as aKingkel language, but the two are not close, with a low 21% shared vocabulary.[3][4] Indeed, Angela Terrill states that "there is no evidence on which to base a claim of a low-level genetic group including Dharumbal with any other language".[4]
There is some variation in the naming of the language community.Walter Roth spellsTa-rum-bal andTaroombal whileNorman Tindale recordsDharumbal and cites the alternativesTarumbul,Tarambol,Tarmbal andCharumbul.Nils Holmer, who undertook the first modern field study of the language[5] usesDarumbal, as does theDarumbal-Noolar Murree Aboriginal Corporation for Land and Culture[permanent dead link]. However, Holmer also uses ⟨D⟩ to indicate an interdental stop (where others have used ⟨dh⟩), and indeed, he alphabetisesDarumbal along with other words beginning with an interdental stop, making hisDarumbal equivalent in pronunciation toDharumbal. From the available material then, Angela Terrill justifiably usesDharumbal.[6]
TheKoinmerburra people (Koinjmal, Guwinmal) spoke the Guwinmal dialect, while theWapabara (Woppaburra) probably spoke their own dialect.
| Labial | Laminal | Apical | Dorsal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stop | voiceless | p | t̪ | t | k |
| voiced | b | d̪ | d | g | |
| Nasal | m | n̪ | n | ŋ | |
| Lateral | l | ||||
| Rhotic | voicelesstrill | r̥ | |||
| voicedtrill | r | ||||
| retroflex | ɻ | ||||
| Semivowel | w | j | |||
Dharumbal possesses a rare distinction (among Pama-Nyungan languages) between voiced and voiceless stops, which seems to be maintained intervocalically, but not in other environments, where voicing seems to be in free variation. This observation, posited by Holmer and maintained by Terrill, is supported by the consistency to which older authors transcribed certain words; intervocalically, there is greater consistency in the use of a certain symbol, while in other environments (word-initially, after liquids), there is more variation.
Other Pama-Nyungan languages with a voicing distinction of stops includeThangatti,Marrgany-Gunya,Wangkumara, andDiyari.
Laminal consonants are often realisedinterdentally, but may also be realisedpalatally in any position, except for the laminal nasal, which must be realised palatally in word-final position.
Lateral consonants may not appear word-initially.
From the existing material, Terrill concludes that there were likely three phonemically distinct rhotic consonants: a retroflex continuant, and two trills, distinguished by voicing. The two trills only appear intervocalically and never word-initially. The (near) minimal pairs given byStephen Wurm are:
Additional minimal pairs were observed by Holmer.
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u | |
| Open | a |
Darumbal has three phonemic vowels. Terrill finds no evidence for contrastive vowel length. Roth used various diacritics in his transcriptions, but no explanation for their function was provided.
 | ThisAustralian Aboriginal languages-related article is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |