Malak-Malak language

Malakmalak was formerly classified as an independent member of the Northern Daly languages, but is now considered a language isolate. Along with the "Anson Bay" group of Wagaydy (Patjtjamalh, Wadjiginy, Kandjerramalh) and the unattested Giyug. Green concluded that Wagaydy and Malakmalak were two separate language families.Green, I. "The Genetic Status of Murrinh-patha" in Evans, N., ed. "The Non-Pama-Nyungan Languages of Northern Australia: comparative studies of the continent’s most linguistically complex region". Studies in Language Change, 552. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics, 2003. Some later classifications have linked them such as Bowern (2011).Bowern, Claire. 2011. "[http://anggarrgoon.wordpress.com/2011/12/23/how-many-languages-were-spoken-in-australia/ How Many Languages Were Spoken in Australia?]", Anggarrgoon: Australian languages on the web, December 23, 2011 ([http://pamanyungan.sites.yale.edu/master-list-australian-languages-v12 corrected] February 6, 2012) However, the Wagaydy people are recent arrivals in the area, and their language may only be similar due to borrowing.{{AIATSIS|N31|Patjtjamalh}} AIATSIS and Glottolog both treat Wagaydy as an isolate and Giyug as unclassifiable.

In contemporary usage, "Northern Daly" (e.g. Harvey 2003,Harvey, M. (2003). "The evolution of verb systems in the Eastern Daly language family." In N. Evans ed. The Non-Pama Nyungan languages of Northern Australia. Canberra, Pacific Linguistics. pp. 159-184. Cahir 2006,Cahir, P. (2006). "Verb functions and Argument Structure in MalakMalak: a Northern daly Language of the Daly River Region, Northern Territory." Honours Thesis. University of Melbourne. Nordlinger 2017{{cite book |last=Nordlinger |first=Rachel |author-link=Rachel Nordlinger |editor1-last= Fortescue |editor1-first= Michael |editor-link1= Michael Fortescue |editor-link2=Marianne Mithun |editor2-last= Mithun |editor2-first= Marianne |editor3-last= Evans |editor3-first= Nicholas |editor-link3=Nicholas Evans (linguist) |title=Oxford Handbook of Polysynthesis |publisher=Oxford: Oxford University Press |date=2017 |pages=782–807 |chapter=Chapter 37: The languages of the Daly region (Northern Australia)}}) most often refers specifically to the group of languages which includes Malakmalak and Tyerraty{{cite web | url=http://www.dalylanguages.org/view_language.php?id=7 | title=The Daly Languages }} (also known as Guwema), a variety with which MalakMalak differs significantly in vocabulary (65% according to Tryon's 200 word list), but is very close to morphologically.{{cite book |last=Tryon |first=D. T. |author-link=Darrell Tryon |year=1974 |title=Daly family languages, Australia |location=Canberra |publisher=Pacific Linguistics |pages=24–41}}

Plosives /p t c k/ may be heard as voiced as [b d ɟ ɡ] when intervocalic.Birk (1976).

MalakMalak, is an ergative-absolutive language with constituent order mainly determined by information structure and prosody, but syntactically free. Marking of core-cases is optional. The language is mostly dependent-marking (1), but also has no marking (2) and head-marking features (3).{{Cite web|url=http://wurin.lis.soas.ac.uk/Collection/MPI1001522|title=Collection Items|website=wurin.lis.soas.ac.uk|access-date=2016-05-10}}

{{interlinear|number=(1)

|top= dependent-marking: possession

|Doro-ngayi muyiny

|name-3SG.F dog

|"Doro's dog"}}

{{interlinear|number=(2)

|top= no marking: noun-adjective

|meldaty ada tjung yintjerrik

|trip 1SG.EXCL.go.PST stick small.M

|"I tripped on the little stick"}}

{{interlinear|number=(3)

|top= head-marking: noun-adposition

|ngatj yunu tjinang pak-ma nende wag puyunduk-nana

|EMPH 3SG.M.sit.PST stay.give sit-CONT thing/person water underneath-LOC

|"he sits down underneath the water"}}

MalakMalak's verb phrase uses complex predicates. These consist of an inflecting verb that has properties of person, number and tense. MalakMalak only has six such verbs. In example (4), yuyu and vida are inflecting verbs. Additionally, there are coverbs which have aspectual properties, but do not inflect for number, tense or person. They occur with inflecting verbs. They are unlimited in number and new verbs are also borrowed into this class. In (4), kubuk-karrarr, dat-tyed, and ka are coverbs. They can also form serial verbs (kubuk-karrarr, dat-tyed).{{Cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/19436013|title=Dorothea Hoffmann: "Complex Predicates and Serialization in the Daly River Languages (and beyond?)"|website=www.academia.edu|access-date=2016-05-10|last1=Hoffmann |first1=Dorothea }}

{{interlinear|number=(4)

|top= Complex Predicates and Serial Coverbs

|kubuk-karrarr dat-tjed yuyu yanak ka yida{{=}}ke

|swim-move.up look-stand 3SG.M.stand.PST one come 3SG.M.go.PST{{=}}FOC

|"he crossed the river and looked once, then he came here"}}

MalakMalak employs all three "classic" types of spatial Frames of Reference: intrinsic, relative and absolute. Additionally, the language uses place names and body-part orientation to talk about space.{{Cite web|url=https://www.academia.edu/3796568|title=Dorothea Hoffmann. (MUR). "Mapping Worlds: Frames of Reference in MalakMalak". In Proceedings to the 39th Meeting of the Berkeley Linguistic Society 2013. University of California: Berkeley|website=www.academia.edu|access-date=2016-05-11}}{{Cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/24303018|title=Dorothea Hoffmann. (in prep). "Usage Patterns of Spatial Frames of Reference and Orientation: Evidence from three Australian languages"|website=www.academia.edu|access-date=2016-05-11|last1=Hoffmann |first1=Dorothea }} The intrinsic Frame requires some kind of portioning of the ground object or landmark into named facets from which search domains can be projected.{{Cite book|title=Grammars of Space: Explorations in cognitive diversity|last1=Levinson|first1=Stephen|last2=Wilkins, David|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2006|pages=20–21}} In English this would be, for example, the tree is in front of the man. And in MalakMalak it would be (5).

{{interlinear|number=(5)

|top= intrinsic Frame of Reference

|tjung angundu-na muyu

|tree behind-LOC 3SG.N*.stand.PST

|"the tree was behind (the man)"}}

The relative Frame of Reference involves mapping from the observer's own axes (front, back, left, right) onto the ground object. An English example is the ball is on the right. In MalakMalak it would be (6)

{{interlinear|number=(6)

|top= relative Frame of Reference

|yerra tjalmiyiny dek kantjuk purrat-ma wuta

|now right place up/upwards jump-CONT 3SG.N.go.PST

|"now the ball was on the right, jumping up ({{lit}} jumping in an upward place on the right)"}}

The absolute Frame of Reference requires xed bearings that are instantly available to all members of the community. An English example is the opera is west of here. In MalakMalak, three different types of absolute frames can be used. Those based on the course of the sun (east/west) (7a), on prevailing winds (northwesterly/southeasterly) (7b), and on two sides of the prominent Daly River (northeastern/southwestern bank) (7c).

{{interlinear|number=(7a)

|top= absolute Frame of Reference (sun)

|miri tjalk-ma yina, yina miri paiga-ma

|sun go.down-CONT this this sun go.up-CONT

|"this one is west and this one is east"}}

{{interlinear|number=(7b)

|top= absolute Frame of Reference (wind)

|Waliwali-nen pudang tjedali yuyu nul-yen pudang tjedali yuyu

|Daly.River-DIR face.towards stand.PART 3SG.M.stand.PRS northwesterly-DIR face.towards stand.part 3SG.M.stand.PRS

|"one is facing the river and the other one is facing northwest"}}

{{interlinear|number=(7c)

|top= absolute Frame of Reference (riverbank)

|duk puyunduk kinangga yide chair{{=}}we

|place underneath north.eastern.bank/this.side 3SG.M.go/be.PRS chair{{=}}FOC

|"it is underneath, on the northeastern bank's side, of the chair"}}

The following basic vocabulary items of Northern Daly language varieties, including Malak-Malak (or Mullukmulluk), are from Tryon (1968).Tryon, Darrell T. "The Daly River Languages: A Survey". In Aguas, E.F. and Tryon, D. editors, Papers in Australian Linguistics No. 3. A-14:21-49. Pacific Linguistics, The Australian National University, 1968. {{doi|10.15144/PL-A14.21}}

:

Below is a basic vocabulary list from Blake (1981).{{cite book |last=Blake |first=Barry J. |author-link=Barry Blake |title=Australian Aboriginal languages: a general introduction |publisher=Angus & Robertson Publishers |publication-place=London |date=1981 |isbn=0-207-14044-8}}

:

{{reflist}}

• {{cite book |last=Birk |first=D. B. W. |year=1976 |title=The MalakMalak language, Daly River (Western Arnhem Land) |location=Canberra |publisher=Pacific Linguistics}}
• {{cite journal |last=Ray |first=Sidney H. |author-link=Sidney H. Ray |date=Jan–Jun 1909 |title=The Ngolok-Wanggar Language, Daly River, North Australia |journal=The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland |volume=39 |pages=137–141 |doi=10.2307/2843287 |jstor=2843287 |publisher=Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute|url=https://zenodo.org/record/1449625 }}
• Hoffmann, Dorothea. [https://drdorotheahoffmann.wordpress.com http://drdorotheahoffmann.wordpress.com]
• Hoffmann, Dorothea (2015). “[https://sites.google.com/site/hoffmanndorothea/home/publications/DH_proof2_final.pdf?attredirects=0 Moving through space and (not?) time]: North Australian dreamtime narratives,” Narratives from the South Pacific: Sociocultural explorations, ed. by F. Gounder. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, 15-35
• Hoffmann, Dorothea (2014). “[http://www.adelaide.edu.au/australex/publications/hoffmann.pdf Mapping the Language]: How a dying language loses its place in the world”, Endangered Words, Signs of Revival, ed. by Ghil'ad Zuckermann, J. Miller, and J. Morley, Adelaide: Australex, 1-18

{{sister project |project=wiktionary |text=Wiktionary has a word list at Appendix:Malak-Malak word list}}

• [http://dalylanguages.org/view_language.php?id=6 MalakMalak] at the [http://www.dalylanguages.org/ Dalylanguages.org website].

{{Australian Aboriginal languages}}

Category:Daly languages

Category:Extinct languages of the Northern Territory

Category:Language isolates of Australia

Category:Severely endangered languages