Ndjébbana language
Australian Aboriginal language of north-central Arnhem land
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Ndjébbana language, also spelt Djeebbana and Ndjebanna and also known as Kunibidji (Gunavidji, Gunivugi, Gombudj), is a Burarran language spoken by the Gunavidji (Ndjebbana) people of North-central Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia.
RegionNorthern Territory
EthnicityGunavidji
Native speakers
367 (2021 census)[1]Arnhem
-
Maningrida
- Ndjébbana
"Gunavidji" (and variant forms) is an exonym used by speakers of Kunbarlang, Kunwinjku and Maung languages.[3]
Phonology
Consonants
- Sounds /b, ɟ, d, ɖ/ may also be heard as voiceless [p, c, t, ʈ] when in word-final position or when preceding other stop consonants. They may also occur as geminated, where they are always pronounced as [pː, cː, tː, ʈː].
- /ɾ/ can be heard as either a flap [ɾ] or a trill [r].
- /k/ can be heard as [ɣ] in intervocalic position or when followed by a liquid sound.
- /b/ can be heard as [β] when in intervocalic position.
Vowels
- Vowels /ɛ, a, ɔ, ʊ/ may have a [ɪ] vowel off-glide heard as [ɛᶦ, æᶦ, ɔᶦ, ʊᶦ], when preceding a laminal-palatal consonant.[4]
| Phoneme/Sound | Allophones | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| /i/ [i] | [ɪ] | Is heard when in lax or unstressed positions. |
| /ɛ/ [ɛ] | [e] | Can also be heard when before a laminal-palatal consonant or a semivowel. |
| /a/ [ä] | [æ] | May also be heard when following a laminal-palatal consonant. |
| /ɔ/ [ɔ] | [o] | Can also be heard when in stressed positions. |
| /ʊ/ [ʊ] | [u] | Is always heard when in word-final position. |
