Pitta Pitta (also known under several other spellings) is an extinct Australian Aboriginal language. It was spoken around Boulia, Queensland.[4]
| Pitta Pitta | |
|---|---|
| Region | Queensland |
| Ethnicity | Pitapita, Ringaringa, Rakkaia, Karanya, Kungkalenja, Maiawali |
| Extinct | 2 cited in 1979[1] |
| Dialects |
|
| Pitha Pitha Sign Language | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | pit – inclusive codeIndividual code: yxa – Mayawali (Maiawali) |
| Glottolog | pitt1247 Pitta Pitta |
| AIATSIS[3] | G6 Pitta Pitta (other dialects listed from here) |
| ELP | Pitta-Pitta |
Pituri
The name pituri for the leaves chewed as a stimulant by traditional Aboriginal people has been claimed to be derived from the Pitta Pitta word pijiri.[5][6] though Walter Roth pointed out in 1897 that the word 'pituri', thus pronounced, was the term used by the neighbouring Yurlayurlanya people, and added that the Pitta Pitta people called it "tarembola".[7]
Status
In 1979, Barry J. Blake reported that Pitta Pitta was "virtually extinct", with only three speakers remaining – Ivy Nardoo of Boulia, Ted Marshall and Linda Craigie of Mount Isa.[1] It is now considered unlikely that any speakers remain.[8]
Phonology
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | i iː | u uː | |
| Low | a aː |
Consonants
| Peripheral | Laminal | Apical | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labial | Velar | Dental | Palatal | Alveolar | Retroflex | ||
| Plosive | p | k | t̪ | c | t | ʈ | |
| Nasal | m | ŋ | n̪ | ɲ | n | ɳ | |
| Lateral | l̪ | ʎ | l | ɭ | |||
| Tap/Trill | ɾ | r | |||||
| Approximant | w | j | ɻ | ||||
Vocabulary
Below is a basic vocabulary list from Blake (1981).[9]
English Pitta-Pitta man karna woman parratya mother ngamari father yapiri head karti eye miyi nose milya ear ngarra mouth parla tongue ṯarli tooth mirlka hand mara breast kaputyu stomach ngampa urine purra faeces kuna thigh marla foot ṯina bone pirna blood kimpa dog piyawarli snake kaṯi kangaroo kulipila possum ṯinapali fish kupi spider kupu mosquito kuṉṯi emu warrukatyi eaglehawk kurriṯala crow wakiri sun warlka moon tyangi star tyinpi stone tipu water ngapu camp ngurra fire maka smoke kuṯu food yaṉṯurru meat kaṯi stand ṯarrka sit ṉangka see ṉatyi go karnta get marri hit piṯi I ngantya you inpa one ngururu two parrkula
Sign language
The Pitta Pitta had well-developed a signed form of their language.[10]
References
- Blake, Barry J. (1979). Pitta-Pitta. In R.M.W. Dixon and Barry Blake (eds.), Handbook of Australian Languages, Vol. 1. 183–244. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
- Roth, W. E. (1897). Ethnological Studies among the North-West-Central Queensland Aborigines. Brisbane: Edmund Gregory, Government Printer.
- Roth, Walter E. (1897). The expression of ideas by manual signs: a sign-language. (p. 273–301) Reprinted from Roth, W.E. Ethnological studies among the North-West-Central Queensland Aborigines. London, Queensland Agent-Generals Information Office, 1897; 71–90; Information collected from the following tribes; Pitta-Pitta, Boinji, Ulaolinya, Wonkajera, Walookera, Undekerebina, Kalkadoon, Mitakoodi, Woonamurra, Goa. Reprinted (1978) in Aboriginal sign languages of the Americas and Australia. New York: Plenum Press, vol. 2.
External links
- Bibliography of Pitta Pitta people and language resources, at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies