Panyjima language
Australian Aboriginal language
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Panyjima is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken in the Hamersley Range, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It is the traditional language of the Panyjima people. The name has also been spelled Bandjima, Banjima, Banyjima, Paanjima, Pandjima, Panjima, Panjtjima, and Panytyima.
| Banyjima | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Australia |
| Region | Pilbara region of Western Australia |
| Ethnicity | Panyjima people |
Native speakers | 140 (2021 census)[1] |
Pama–Nyungan
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | pnw |
| Glottolog | pany1241 |
| AIATSIS[2] | A53 Banyjima (cover term) |
| ELP | Panyjima |
 Banjima is classified as Severely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger. | |
Like most indigenous Australian languages, Panyjima is endangered. Younger generations have English as a first language and make little distinction between Panyjima and its closely related neighbouring languages. There is a formal language register known as padupadu.
Classification
Panyjima is classified as a member of the Ngayarta branch of the Pama–Nyungan languages. Under Carl Georg von Brandenstein's 1967 classification, Martuthunira was classed as an Inland Ngayarda language, but the separation of the Ngayarda languages into Coastal and Inland groups is no longer considered valid.
Phonology
Grammar
Accusative alignment
Unlike most Australian languages, which exhibit ergativity, Panyjima and the other Ngayarta languages have an accusative alignment. That is, the subjects of transitive verbs are treated the same as the subjects of intransitive verbs, while the objects are treated differently.