Wamin language facts for kids

Traditional lands of the Australian aboriginal tribes around Cairns.

Agwamin (also Wamin, Ewamin) is an extinct Australian Aboriginal language of North Queensland spoken by the Agwamin people. Agwamin was traditionally spoken in the Etheridge region, in the areas around Einasliegh, Georgetown, and Mount Surprise. There was only one living speaker of the language alive in 1981.

Alternative names and dialects

Agwamin and Wamin were previously thought to be interchangeable and mutually intelligible. Dixon (2002) counts Wamin as an alternative name for Agwamin. However, the comparison of an Agwamin and a Wamin word list, collected by Sutton, showed that they were separate dialects.

The following is a list of alternative names for Agwamin:

• Wamin
• Ewamin
• Wimanja
• Egwamin
• Gwamin
• Ak Waumin
• Wamin
• Wommin, Waumin, Wawmin
• Walamin
• Wommin
• Walming
• Wailoolo

Vocabulary

Some words from the Agwamin language, as spelt and written by Agwamin authors include:

• Bungaroo: turtle
• Bunnah: water (fresh)
• Burri: rock
• Gugrah: moon
• Gulberri: boy
• Guyur: fish
• Mulla: hand
• Pumbarra oomba: good day
• Yabu: father

See also

In Spanish: Idioma wamin para niños