The Nauo language, also commonly written Nawu, is an extinct and little-recorded Australian Aboriginal language that was spoken by the Nauo people on the southern part of the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. However, work on the reconstruction of the language by the Mobile Language Team at the University of Adelaide is proceeding.
| Nauo | |
|---|---|
| Nawu, Nhawu | |
| Native to | Australia |
| Region | Eyre Peninsula, South Australia |
| Ethnicity | Nauo people |
| Extinct | 19th century |
| Revival | 21st century |
| Latin | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | nwo |
| Glottolog | nauo1235 |
| AIATSIS[1] | L2 |
 Languages of South Australia.[2] | |
Classification
editThe Nauo language may have been related to the languages of its regional neighbours on the Eyre Peninsula, such as Barngarla or Wirangu.
Alternative names
editApart from Nawu, other variant spellings have been recorded as Nhawu, Nawo, Njao, Gnowoo, Growoo, and variant names include Battara, Hilleri, Kadu, Kartwongulta, and Wiljaru. It has also been treated as a variant of the Wirangu language.[1]
Status
editThe language was deemed to be extinct by Norman Tindale, based on linguistic investigations done to determine Nauo's status in the 1930s, and no speakers have been recorded since 1975.[1]
Revival
editHowever, Mobile Language Team (MLT) from the University of Adelaide has started work on the reconstruction of the language, based on the 10 words recorded by German missionary C. W. Schürmann, increasing the wordlist to 300 words. MLT is preparing a website for online learning site of the language.[3]
References
edit- ^ a b c L2 Nauo at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
- ^ Tribal boundaries, after Tindale (1974), adapted from Hercus (1999).
- ^ "Nauo/Nhawu". Mobile Language Team. University of Adelaide. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- Hercus, Luise; Simpson, Jane (2001). "The tragedy of Nauo". Forty years on: Ken Hale and Australian languages. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics. pp. 263–290.
External links
edit- "Nauo (SA)". South Australian Museum. Reproduced from Tindale's Aboriginal Tribes of Australia (1974).
- "Nauo (SA)". South Australian Museum. Archive Collections. Includes inventory listings of holdings.
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